UM doctoral student receives the Zale Parry Scholarship from Academy of Underwater Arts and Sciences

University of Miami Marine Geology & Geophysics student David Weinstein is the recipient of the 2010 Zale Parry Scholarship from the Academy of Underwater Arts and Sciences presented in person by Zale Parry at the Las Vegas Hilton. The scholarship recognizes students who are seeking to advance their knowledge or enter a professional career in the fields of ocean exploration, diving equipment technology, hyperbaric research and marine conservation.

Weinstein is a graduate student at the Rosenstiel School of Marine & Atmospheric Science, located in Miami, Fla. His current research with Professor James Klaus focuses on mesophotic reef bioerosion in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Mesophotic coral ecosystems are deep reef communities (30-150 m) found in low light, low energy environments. Bioerosion is a fundamental process because bioeroding organisms play a key role in creating and modifying the carbonate budget of a reef -- a primary controller of reef accretion, destruction, and preservation. Weinstein, a NSF graduate fellow, has also been active in teaching undergraduates and mentoring high school science students. An avid SCUBA diver, Weinstein has participated in numerous research cruises in the Bahamas and field research trips in the Dominican Republic. He is an alumnus of the University of Maryland, College Park.

"David is an unusual and special scholar who is very conscientious and dedicated to his field. His well-rounded personality and sharp mind impressed all of the scientists and scholars within our Academy," said Parry. "I have no doubt that he will be a fine and influential geologist for our time."

Zale Parry is an internationally renowned pioneer of the early days of skin and scuba diving. As early as the 1950s, Parry was an underwater equipment tester and (the only woman) executive at Scientific Underwater Research Enterprises (SURE), founded by her husband, Parry Bivens, M.D., who designed and built hyperbaric chambers. In 1954, Parry set a woman's deep diving record at 209 ft/64 meters in the open sea as part of an experiment to test the Hope-Page non-return valve mouthpiece, which from that day forward became a standard feature in all regulators. Zale was the third female instructor to graduate from the L.A. County UICC program and served for many years as a Red Cross Water Safety Instructor. Zale continues to lecture throughout the United States, and she is writing a four-volume book, Scuba America: The Human History of the Sport of Diving, to record and preserve the annals of diving. Zale is a NOGI (New Orleans Grand Isle) Fellow and the Ambassador at Large for the Academy of Underwater Arts and Sciences.

"While I am extremely honored just to have been called up to the podium and receive the award, meeting Zale Parry and other pioneers in the diving community was the most amazing experience at the NOGI Awards Gala," said Weinstein. "The award, as well as the new contacts I made within the prestigious Academy of Underwater Arts and Sciences, will help me to continue with my research at Rosenstiel School and in the U.S. Virgin Islands, to help further understanding and preservation of the underwater world."

Provided by University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine & Atmospheric Science