Geoscience: Student-Industry Mixers and the SEG/EAGE Short Course 2004

2004 CSEG/SEG DISC Course and APPEGA Geoscience Mixers - attended by U of A and U of C students and those in industry.

Dr. Paul Weimer of the U of Colorado presented the 2004 SEG/EAGE Distinguished Instructor Short Course (DISC), entitled Petroleum Systems of Deep-Water Settings, in Calgary on Wednesday, September 29, hosted by the CSEG - who honoured CSPG membership in determining an attendee's fee class. This course will be held at 24 places worldwide, with Calgary and Houston as the largest venues. For a nominal student fee, about fifty Alberta university students attended this world-class course in Calgary.

The total DISC attendance of 160 people included CSEG and CSPG members from industry, approximately 10-15 students from the University of Calgary, and 33 students from the University of Alberta. The course started at 8 am, included a 300-page book and was an opportunity for both learning and catching up with industry colleagues. David James of Anadarko introduced the instructor. The attendees were treated to a broad worldwide overview of the petroleum systems of deep-water settings.

The thirty-three University of Alberta geology and geophysics students attended the DISC by boarding a bus at 5 am (with yours truly) from the University of Alberta in Edmonton for the three-hour ride to Calgary. The bus was sponsored jointly by CSEG's Educational Services, by CSPG's Student Outreach, and by APEGGA's Geoscience Affairs. The U of A students included both undergrad and graduate, with 12 from geophysics and 21 from geology programs.

The instructor, Dr. Paul Weimer, professor and Director of the Energy and Minerals Applied Research Centre at the U. of Colorado, received his Ph.D. from the University of Texas. His research focused on the petroleum systems of deep-water continental margins; and he has published more than 100 papers on various related topics. He has also co-edited eight books on petroleum systems of deep-water, sequence stratigraphy, 3D seismic interpretation, and North Alaska Geology. Dr. Weimer has worked for BP and Mobil Oil as both a research and exploration geoscientist. There were several interesting questions from the audience and interest in talking to Dr. Weimer during the breaks. When the course ended at 5 pm, Larry Mewhort, CSEG Director of Educational Services, and Satinder Chopra, CSEG RECORDER Editor, thanked and presented Paul Weimer with the traditional CSEG Speaker's Geophone. An interview with Paul will appear in an upcoming RECORDER.

On their return bus ride, the U of A students stopped in Red Deer (7-9 pm) for the annual APEGGA Red Deer Geoscience Mixer - including pop and pizza and a further chance to talk to those in the industry. The Mixer in Red Deer (where APEGGA sponsored buses from U of A and from Calgary meet half way) provides an opportunity for the geology and geophysics students at the University of Alberta to talk to their industry counterparts who primarily live in Calgary. ( M o re than 90% of Alberta geologists and 98% of the geophysicists reside in the Calgary area). A separate mixer was held on October 13th for University of Calgary students. In both cases, the student societies promote the event to students, and APEGGA and technical societies encourage participation from industry.

Heather Frantz, APEGGA’s Communications Coordinator in Calgary, loaded the “professional” bus at the Fairmont- Palliser with more than a dozen professional geoscience members from the Calgary geoscience community. The CSPG was re p resented by Kris Jewett and Brad Molnar, both Geologists-In-Training, as CSPG Outreach volunteers who set up a CSPG booth and distributed 2004 Convention bags to the students, with assistance by Kim Maclean, CSPG Corporate Relations Manager. CSEG was represented by Peter Cary, P.Geoph., CSEG President, Perry Kotkas, P.Geoph., CSEG President in 2000, and Satinder Chopra, P.Geoph., as the CSEG RECORDER Editor. APEGGA Councillor Julie Aitken, P.Geoph., and Len Shrimpton, P.Eng., APEGGA’s Director of Internal Affairs joined the bus to Red Deer.

The Red Deer APEGGA Branch and community was represented by Grant Nielson, P.Geol., Ph.D., Hydrologist with Alberta Environment, Central Region, and Dr Arun Mishra, P.Eng., from Red Deer College who brought three students interested in the geosciences.

The Edmonton evening bus brought other U of A geoscience students, and a few professionals, including Roger Paulen, P.Geol., the Past President of the Edmonton Geological Society, and Reg Olson, P.Geol., both from the Alberta Geological Survey. The Edmonton riders included Nancy Toth, APEGGA Manager of Professional Development and Flo Primeau, Coordinator of Professional Development who coordinated the facilities, food and the evening bus.

Everyone dined on pizza after professional members introduced themselves briefly – allowing students to find and talk to someone specializing in their favorite topics. Participants enjoyed an Ice Breaker Bingo with winners eligible for a draw for prizes, which included four copies of “Redwater”. The book, by Aubrey Kerr, P. Geol., a geologist with Imperial Oil who was onsite at Leduc in 1947, relates the geology, geophysics, and people involved in the 1948 discovery of the Redwater oil field, N.E. of Edmonton, (with three times the reserves of Leduc). Participants mingled for another hour and just after 9 pm buses departed for Edmonton and Calgary with many sleepy travelers on the former bus!

The APEGGA Geoscience Mixer at the University of Calgary on Oct 13th, 6-8 pm, was organized by the student societies and APEGGA (through Heather Frantz, with assistance fro m Elizabeth Muir as Outreach Coordinator, and yours truly). The attendance by 44 geology and geophysics students, and 24 from industry was an increase from 2003 - which had been the first trial of the geoscience mixers separate from the larger all inclusive engineering mixers. Many of the same attendees from Red Deer represented the geoscience community at the Calgary mixer. APEGGA Councillor Darcie Greggs, P.Geol. attended the informal gathering. CSPG' Student Outreach, headed by Nadya Slemko, P.Geol, along with Brad and Kris who had gone to Red Deer, handed out more CSPG bags, and signed up members for the first CSPG student section at the U of C (with U of A to follow). Additional bags, prizes and information were provided courtesy of CSPG (Kim MacLean), CSEG Managing Director Jim Racette, and CWLS representative Louis Chabot.

As APEGGA's Manager of Geoscience Affairs, and a member of CSEG, CSPG, and CSWLS, I enjoyed the enthusiasm evidenced at the mixers and extend thanks to everyone involved for their cooperation and fellowship in organizing the bus trip from the U of A. The organizing of the bus required the initial encouragement of several U of A professors (starting with two contacts on the Board of Examiners), who promoted the benefits of the course to the students, and the subsequent sponsorship and support by CSEG, CSPG and APEGGA for the bus. I thank SEG, EAGE, and CSEG for offering the course at nominal cost to students; Dr Weimer for his preparation of the course, the assistance from the U of A staff; and the work of the geology and geophysics student societies in gathering registrations and spreading the word. It was an honor and pleasure to associate with the U of A students, on the ride to the Calgary and at the Red Deer events. Likewise it is a privilege to talk to the U of C students and hear suggestions for additional synergy with industry and the societies. The energy, knowledge, and enthusiasm of university students, our discoverers of the future, can remind us all why we choose these scientific endeavors as our profession.