What was the most influential development in scuba diving?

[Akimbo]

If it were not for compressed air nobody would be diving (except freediving)

True, but high pressure compressed air and cylinders predate recreational Scuba diving by half a century.

 

[boulderjohn]

As had training agencies, wetsuits, and a dive computer.

Really?

NAUI was created in 1960. The YMCA was doing training before that, but it really wasn't what you would call an agency. Los ANgeles County was a regional offering.

The modern wetsuit was created around 1952, but it was not really available to the general public. O'Neill started producing wetsuit for general use in 1959.

https://www.wetsuitwearhouse.com/blog/the-history-of-wetsuits/

The earliest computers were created in the mid 1950s, but they were pretty much for the navy and they were all pretty much failures. Computers deemed reliable enough for the general population were not available for decades.

The history of the dive computer

Improvements to scuba diving gear were discussed at a secret meeting in 1951. Top of the list was a foolproof way to monitor nitrogen loading.

divemagazine.co.uk

 

[tursiops]

The modern wetsuit was created around 1952, but it was not really available to the general public. O'Neill started producing wetsuit for general use in 1959.
https://www.wetsuitwearhouse.com/blog/the-history-of-wetsuits/

I worked with Hugh Bradner at a NATO lab in in italy for a few years. He told of the early wetsuit he invented. His day-job at Scripps was underwater acoustics, and he'd gotten hold of a roll of neoprene sheeting they were looking at for use with sonars. He had some leftover sheeting and asked his wife Marge to make him a jumpsuit for his diving -- he and his buddies had gotten hold of some post-war Cousteau-Gagnan units and would spend weekends off the beaches in La Jolla. They were always cold. Brad's insight was that the neoprene would give him some insulation from the cold water, and also minimize the movement of the water over his skin...and maybe even let the water inside warm up a bit! His physics worked. He showed up one Saturday in his rubber jumpsuit and everybody laughed at him, they in their denim overalls and sweatshirts. At the end of the day, they were asking Marge if she could make one for them, too.

 

[Jimchris]

SPG, computer/timer and relief valve for me.

 

[Angelo Farina]

If it were not for compressed air nobody would be diving (except freediving)

Here in Europe we started diving in mass just after WW2 using oxygen tanks, not compressed air.
Scuba diving was already a popular activity here in the fifties, and everyone was using CC rebreathers with pure oxygen tanks. Cheap, simple, lightweight and long diving time. And silent (very important for spearfishing).
Another big advantage was the heat produced by tbe sodablyme filter: the gas was really hot, making a diving suit superfluous, at least here in the Medierranean sea, whre water is warm for some months (May to October).
Compressed air started to be used in the sixties (hence the timeframe was set "after 1960"), but became dominant only in the seventies. It was much more expensive, bulkier, heavier, and with limited diving time, so it did take a lot of time for replacing CC oxygen rebreathers.
It was also noisy, so bad for spearfishing, and the expanded air is very cold and very dry, so the diver needs a warm exposure suit (which also was not available until 1965-1970).

 

[Nitrox_DiverNY]

I did my open water course in 1986. We learned to dive using analog gauges and tables (and no octopus), instead of a PDC. Diving this way is really straightforward. And safe. I still dive using that 1986 approach.

A couple of years ago I did my first dive in open water (well, in a local quarry) without a BCD (shallow, without an exposure suit). So easy. And so much fun. And I felt safe enough. More recently, I did a similar dive, but wearing a 3 mm jumpsuit wetsuit, and diving a bit deeper (though still shallow). And, again I felt safe enough and enjoyed the dive immensely. So liberating!

Modern scuba instruction is built around what seems to be modern "standard" scuba kit. However, IMHO, one can dive quite safely using an earlier, simpler, minimalistic approach.

rx7diver

rx7diver, that is very cool, I would love to try diving "old School" one day. I bet If diving agencies still would teach some things the way they used to it might make more competent divers

 

[CT-Rich]

I did my open water course in 1986. We learned to dive using analog gauges and tables (and no octopus), instead of a PDC. Diving this way is really straightforward. And safe. I still dive using that 1986 approach.

A couple of years ago I did my first dive in open water (well, in a local quarry) without a BCD (shallow, without an exposure suit). So easy. And so much fun. And I felt safe enough. More recently, I did a similar dive, but wearing a 3 mm jumpsuit wetsuit, and diving a bit deeper (though still shallow). And, again I felt safe enough and enjoyed the dive immensely. So liberating!

Modern scuba instruction is built around what seems to be modern "standard" scuba kit. However, IMHO, one can dive quite safely using an earlier, simpler, minimalistic approach.

rx7diver

While in Belize I was diving with just a rash guard. I still had my BCD, but with no wetsuit, buoyancy control was nothing, just tiny puff to stay off the bottom. I have the Perigine computer not because I need it, but because I wanted it. It just makes diving more enjoyable. J-valves worked great, but knowing your exact remaining pressure distresses your dive.

when playing around with my vintage tank and single stage Mistral, my dive buddies have trouble keeping up. I will admit, the Mistral is a crappy breather by modern standards.

The idea behind this thread wasn’t argue about when water tight zippers were invented but hear what people thought about some of the killer apps that helped popularI’ve diving. I was a little surprised that the more tiered and specialized training didn’t get mentioned more…

 

[broncobowsher]

True, but high pressure compressed air and cylinders predate recreational Scuba diving by half a century.

But the first step is typically the most important.

 

[Angelo Farina]

I was a little surprised that the more tiered and specialized training didn’t get mentioned more…

The opposite happened. The first diving courses were held by ex military incursors, they were 6-9 months long and very demanding for the students, both physically and mentally.
The training started with free body, followed by deep free diving with fins, mask and snorkel. Then 3 months using the military pure oxygen CC rebreather, and only at the end one or two months using air twin tanks.
All this nowadays is considered technical, or at least very advanced, but for 30 years (50's, 60's, 70's) that was the standard way of becoming a scuba diver.
What popularized diving for the masses was the arrival of PADI with their short and easy OW courses, which did allow to become a diver almost to everyone.
This was the evolution in teaching which made scuba diving popular.
Tech-advanced training is an attempt to come back to the original paramilitary discipline, albeit just partially (as the free body and deep free diving part is still lost).

 

[happy-diver]

ScubaBoard has permitted me a perspective immeasurably valuable and unattainable elswhere