Eos, Vol. 86, No.
40, 4 October 2005
ABOUT AGU
Outstanding Student Paper Awards
from the 2005 Joint Assembly
The following members received outstanding
in New Orleans, Louisiana.
PAGE 3 6 9
Atmospheric Sciences
J a s o n D. White, Howard University, The
transport and regional aerosol impact of
volcanic ash from the July 2003 Soufriere Hills
volcanic eruption.
Geodesy
N o a h Fay, University of Oregon,Kinematics
BOOK RE
Quantitative Seismic Interpretation: Applying
Rock Physics Tools to Reduce Interpretation Risk
itprTti P E R AVSETH, T A P A N M U K E R J I ,
fcldl AND G A R Y M A V K O
Cambridge University Press; ISBN 0-521-81601-7;xi
PAGE 3 6 9
This b o o k is divided into seven chapters
that cover rock physics, statistical rock physics,
seismic inversion techniques, case studies, and
work flows. On b a l a n c e , the emphasis is on
rock physics. Included are 56 color figures that
greatly help in the interpretation of more com­
plicated plots and displays.
The domain of rock physics falls between
petrophysics and seismics. It is the basis for in­
terpreting seismic observations and therefore
is pivotal to the understanding of this book.
The first two chapters are dedicated to this
topic (109 pages).
Rock physics is a discipline born out of
empiricism and theory; unfortunately, both are
generally inadequate in providing unique rela­
tionships between observations and causes.
Quantitative Seismic Interpretation represents
an attempt to address these issues by incorpo­
rating statistical techniques, empiricism, and
theory.
This book details a set of recipes to ascertain,
in s o m e statistical sense, the probability of
finding sand or shale and of finding oil, gas, or
water, but the b o o k d o e s not detail the quan­
titative evaluation of sand or shale fraction
or saturation.Theoretical rock physics discus­
sions focus on models, 11 in all, that work well
in the clastic sediments found in the North Sea.
student paper awards at the 2005 Joint Assembly
and dynamics of the Southern San Andreas
Fault System.
Hydrology
R e b e c c a B . Batchelder,Tufts University,
A correction to GLUE: Generalized Likelihood
Uncertainty Estimation.
J . Mark B l o n q u i s t , J r . , Utah State Universi­
ty, Comparison of seven electromagnetic
content sensors commonly used in ecohydro-
+ 359 pp; 2005; $140.
Since the discussion, models, and examples all
center around recent unconsolidated sands
and shales, mostly confined to the North Sea, a
more appropriate title for this b o o k would b e
"A Heuristic Approach to Seismic Interpreta­
tion in Tertiary Environments."
The rock physics models discussed repre­
sent an admixture of generally a c c e p t e d theo­
retical models and empirical formulas, which
by definition are limited in applicability This
union of theory and empiricism is reminiscent
of successful petrophysical practices where
practioners often arrive at the correct answer
for the wrong reason. A crucial c o m p o n e n t of
what the authors are proposing is predicated
on well logs and petrophysical observations;
thus, recommendations regarding dealing with
data from deviated well bores and a descrip­
tion of best practices would have strength­
ened this b o o k considerably.
The authors resort to the appropriate statistical
techniques to deal with uncertainty in measured
rock and fluid properties and to generate likely
realizations. In describing fluid substitutions, the
authors recommend an approach that avoids
the intermediate step of calculating properties of
the dry porous frame.This often renders reason­
able-looking answers with unphysical model
parameters, especially in young, soft sediments.
Throughout this book, no recommendations are
made regarding the best methods of obtaining
logical studies.
J e s s i c a M. Cable, University of Arizona,
Poster controls on ecosystem
semi-arid watershed: Seasonality
respiration in a
and woody
plant encroachment.
J e f f r e y G. C h a n a t University of Virginia,
Poster continuous daily simulation of chloride
2
flux for a 12 km forested catchment in the Cen­
tral Appalachians.
J e r e m y C. Stalker, Florida International
University, Poster 2-D and 3-D visualization
of the freshwater/saltwater mixing front, and
zones of preferential groundwater flow in the
Karst Biscayne coastal aquifer using electro­
magnetic induction techniques, Miami, South­
eastern Florida.
water
accurate water saturations, shale fraction esti­
mates, or porosity values.
The remainder of the b o o k focuses on seis­
mic data and attributes, such as amplitude
variation with offset (AVO); and acoustic and
elastic impedance. A lengthy discussion is de­
voted to processing pitfalls, but little is offered
in the way of preferred processing flows.The
fundamental approximations leading to the
derivations of the linearizations of the equa­
tions for oblique reflection from an interface
are ignored as are the problems of applying
AVO in shallow environments. Calibration of
seismic attributes is at the center of any inver­
sion, and this hinges on c o r e and log data;
thus, there is a need for guidelines or recipes
for handling both.While the authors discuss
the effects of anisotropy they c h o o s e to ignore
anisotropy in their examples that include
highly anisotropic shales.
The c a s e histories and recipes are a codi­
fication of a variant of current industry prac­
tices and they serve to illustrate successful
approaches to particular problems. Most of the
c a s e studies begin with reasonable geologic
models, well logs, and c o r e observations that
greatly constrain the possible rock physics and
seismic models. Shales are naively considered
isotropic and uniform in properties; such is
the current industrial practice.
T h e authors have attempted to r e d u c e
the interpretation of s e i s m i c data to a series
of recipes. R e a d e r s n e e d to r e c o g n i z e that
these r e c i p e s are often limited in applicabil­
ity. T h e authors have d o c u m e n t e d r e c i p e s
that work reasonably well for young turbidi­
ties found off the Norwegian c o a s t . T h e s e
r e c i p e s are a u g m e n t e d with data sets that
are available at http://publishing.cambridge.
o r g / r e s o u r c e s / 0 5 2 1 8 1 6 0 1 7 / . T h e s e data sets
include s e i s m i c (fairly large f i l e s , - 2 0 0 M b ) ,
partial well logs ( n o t standard Log ASCII
Standard files), and MATLAB p r o g r a m s , a n d
they should prove valuable as a r e s o u r c e for
educators.

This b o o k is aimed at graduate students, aca­
demics, and industry professionals. It presup­
poses that these individuals have a grounding
in rock physics and geostatistics. In attempting
to address such a diverse audience, the depth
Eos, Vol. 86, No. 40, 4 October 2005
to which any specific topic is covered is com-
promised.The result, however, is a b o o k that
has a little something for everyone. It is not a
stand-alone textbook for students, it is not an in-
depth reference for academics, and it treats just
a small fraction of problems encountered by a
professional working in clastic environments.
— C A R L H. SONDERGELD, University of O k l a h o m a ,
Norman