Letters from the Editor


Review past letters from the Editor below.

Headline Source
From the Editor - November 2015 November 1, 2015

From the Editor - November 2015


Erwin Raisz and His Wonderful Landform Maps

Most of us geologists have a love of maps — or at least we should, as we have to make and use them all the time. As an elementary school student in the northeast U.S., one of my favorite ways to spend a cold winter’s eve was to lie on the floor of the living room with the family World Atlas, sheets of tracing paper, pencil and eraser, and proceed to sketch rivers, lakes, mountain ranges, etc. from faraway, exotic realms of the globe. I would imagine how these places really looked, and dreamt of traveling there. I guess that’s the origin of my own affection for maps, and perhaps for geology.

From the Editor - October 2015 October 1, 2015

From the Editor - October 2015


Mourning the Cactolith

Linguists estimate that there are roughly 3,000 words in the English language that are in common, everyday use. In contrast, my copy of the 1974 edition of the American Geological Institute’s (AGI) Glossary of Geology has about 33,000 entries, and that number has risen to nearly 40,000 in the latest (2011) edition. Is that too many?

From the Editor - September 2015 September 1, 2015

From the Editor - September 2015


The Greatest Oil Well In History

It was a big early 20th century gusher… but it wasn’t the famous Spindletop well drilled in 1901 near Beaumont, Texas, or even any of the many super-prolific oil wells of the Middle East.

From the Editor - June 2015 June 1, 2015

From the Editor - June 2015


Goodbye and Thank You!

The time for the column that I was looking forward to writing in July of last year has finally arrived. For some reason, I am not as excited to be writing it as I thought I would be. I have enjoyed my term as Editor and, with the exception of writing the monthly Editor’s Column, am sad to see it end.

From the Editor - May 2015 May 1, 2015

From the Editor - May 2015


What is Your Job?

At some point in our careers, we have probably heard someone say “That’s not my job” — perhaps we’ve even said it ourselves. Personally I find it to be one of the most frustrating responses you hear commonly in the workplace. I have been thinking about this a lot lately and would like to offer a few thoughts.

From the Editor - April 2015 April 1, 2015

From the Editor - April 2015


Will You Be a Survivor?

A few days ago I was discussing my Editor’s Column with a colleague. Considering the recent events in our business (falling oil prices, budget cuts, layoffs) he suggested I use a future column to reassure the younger members that everything will be okay for them. This seemed like a pretty good idea until I gave it some more thought. In good conscience, I can’t tell or try to convince anyone in our business that all will be fine in the future. I can, however, fairly confidently state that the industry will be okay and will probably have a good future. Whether or not any particular member will be a part of that future is much less certain.

From the Editor - March 2015 March 1, 2015 Dave Miller

From the Editor - March 2015


Do You Hear or Do You Listen?

A few months ago, Ken Nemeth mentioned, in his President’s Column, that geologists harbor an intense passion for their profession. To this, I would add that we are also, as a group, quite a curious bunch. We are intrigued by incomplete data sets, challenged by trying to assemble the “jigsaw puzzle” that comes in a box without a photo on the cover, and usually not content with a partial understanding of any issue or problem.

From the Editor - March 2015* March 1, 2015

From the Editor - March 2015


Do You Hear or Do You Listen?

A few months ago, Ken Nemeth mentioned, in his President’s Column, that geologists harbor an intense passion for their profession. To this, I would add that we are also, as a group, quite a curious bunch. We are intrigued by incomplete data sets, challenged by trying to assemble the “jigsaw puzzle” that comes in a box without a photo on the cover, and usually not content with a partial understanding of any issue or problem.

From the Editor - February 2015 February 1, 2015

When I began my first job, I had no idea how complex the language of the industry I had chosen was.

From the Editor - December 2014 December 1, 2014

A few months ago, during a discussion of various things with Lisa Krueger, our Design Editor, the conversation turned to the printing of the Bulletin .