SEG ’14: SEG honors leading lights of exploration
SEG ’14: SEG honors leading lights of exploration
ROGER JORDAN, Associate Editor
DENVER, Colorado – The Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG) kicked off its annual meeting Oct. 26 by honoring those whose work has advanced geophysics and benefitted the Society.
During the event's opening awards ceremony, some of the industry’s leading lights were recognized for their achievements in areas as diverse as education, service to the SEG and technological development.
Introducing the awards, Larry Lines, Chair of the Society's Honors and Awards Committee, said, “Nothing says so clearly who we are and what we value as the awards that we choose to give.”
Norman Bleistein, a mathematician, was awarded the Maurice Ewing Medal, the society’s highest accolade, for his contributions to the science and practice of exploration geophysics.
And MicroSeismic’s Peter Duncan was presented with the Virgil Kauffman Gold Medal, which is awarded to those who have made an outstanding contribution to the advancement of geophysics as manifested within the last five years.
During his acceptance speech, Duncan, who founded MicroSeismic in 2003 with a focus on passive seismic, paid tribute to the geophysical community and predicted that other award winners will take to the stage in years to come because of their work in passive seismic.
“The thing that’s exciting for me today is that there is so much more to be done in passive seismic. We’ve really just scratched the surface,” Duncan said.
The SEG Presidential Award was given to John Stockwell Jr., by SEG 2014 President Don Steeples, for his work on the SEG Wiki, which the society intends to serve as a knowledge sharing platform for the geophysical community.
And Perth, Australia-based DownUnder Geosolutions was awarded the Cecil Green Enterprise Award, in recognition of the entrepreneurial spirit of the co-founders, Matthew Lamont and Troy Thompson, who built the company from the ground.
This year’s awards ceremony also saw the introduction of a new award recognizing the importance of education. The inaugural Outstanding Educator Award, which is presented to individuals for excellence in geophysics education, was awarded to Susan Jane Webb.
Nominations for next year’s awards close on Jan. 1, 2015.
The SEG’s International Exposition and 84th Annual Meeting is taking place in Denver’s Colorado Convention Center from Oct. 26 to Oct. 30. The conference moves to New Orleans, La., in 2015.
