Hugh Bradner

Hugh Bradner was an American physicist at the University of California who is credited with inventing the neoprene wetsuit, which helped to revolutionize scuba diving.

Hugh Bradner was born in Tonopah, Nevada, on November 5, 1915, but he was raised in Findlay, Ohio. His father, Donald Byal Bradner, was briefly director of the Chemical Warfare Service at Marylands Edgewood Arsenal. His mother was Agnes Claire Bradner ne Mead. He had an older brother, Mead Bradner. Bradner graduated from Ohios Miami University in 1936 and later received his doctorate from California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, California, in 1941, writing his thesis on Electronoptical studies of the photoelectric effect under the supervision of William Vermillion Houston.

Source: Wikipedia