Re: A better paleontological ratio

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Heinz Hilbrecht asks:
>how many academic paleontologists do
>consulting for oil companies and how much?
I have heard that outside the gulf coast region that quite a lot of
consulting is done by academics.  In the Gulf of Mexico, however, this just
doesn't work.  Even after 4 years working international paleo I found that
when I got here I was pretty useless.  The resolution demanded in this
basin for operational work is mind boggling.  Even after a whole career
working here most are only familiar with the details of a very small part
of the section.  Time is also an issue.  The modern Gulf coast
paleontologist now has to show that he or she can compete with wire line
logging tools.  Samples must be shipped, processed, looked at,and
interpreted faster than Schlumberger can get a man out to the rig for a
check shot.  One advantage we have is that even with the seemingly high
consultant prices a couple thousand dollars worth of paleo is cheaper than
a couple hundred thousand dollar wireline logs.
Mike
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|      Michael J. Styzen               Phone: (504) 588-4308            | 
|      Shell Offshore Inc.    	       Room:  OSS-2920            
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|      P.O. Box 61933                  Email: mstyzen@shell.com         | 
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