Distinguished Lecture Tours

The appointment of Robert H. Lander as an AAPG Distinguished Lecturer for 2015-2016 marks an unprecedented eight distinguished lecture tours by SDI project scientists that have been sponsored by a professional society–and 9 lecture tours overall–since initiation of the project.

The AAPG Distinguished Lecture Program began in 1941 and is the American Association of Petroleum Geologist’s oldest and most prestigious program. Speakers are selected by AAPG’s Distinguished Lecture Committee.

Each year, the Society of Petroleum Engineers selects experts for their respected world-wide lecture tour program. The speakers are nominated by their peers, and reviewed and selected by the SPE Distinguished Lecturer Committee.

SDI speakers have delivered almost 200 lectures around the world promoting initiative concepts.

Scientific Society Lecture Tours

Model the Rock!
Robert H. Lander
AAPG Distinguished Lecturer 2015-2016

Hydraulic Fracture Complexity: Insights From Geology, Modeling, and Physical Experiments
Jon E. Olson
SPE Distinguished Lecturer 2014-2015

Natural Fractures in Shale Hydrocarbon Reservoirs
Julia F. W. Gale
AAPG Distinguished Lecturer 2013-2014

Structural Diagenesis, Resource Plays, The Highlands of Scotland and Curriculum Development
Stephen E. Laubach
AAPG Distinguished Lecturer 2011-2012

Fractured Reservoir Characterization: From Diagenesis and Fracture Mechanics to Reservoir Permeability
Jon. E. Olson
AAPG Distinguished Lecturer 2007-2008

Linked Mechanical and Chemical Processes in the Diagenesis of Sandstones
Kitty L. Milliken
AAPG Distinguished Lecturer 2005-2006

Reservoir Quality Prediction in Deep Water to Tight Gas Sandstones Using a Process/Stochastic Modeling Approach
Sealed, Bridged or Open — A New Theory for Quartz Cementation in Fractures
Linda M. Bonnell
AAPG Distinguished Lecturer 2003-2004

Fractures in Reservoirs: Prediction, Characterization, and Incorporation in Fluid-Flow Simulation
Stephen E. Laubach
SPE Distinguished Lecturer 2003-2004

Other Distinguished Lecture Tours

Structural Diagenesis: An Integrated Investigative Approach to Coupled Chemical and Mechanical Processes in Sedimentary Systems

Applications of Structural Diagenesis to Predicting and Assessing Reservoir Quality in Unconventional and Fractured Reservoirs
Stephen E. Laubach
Bureau of Economic Geology Centennial Distinguished Lecturer 2009-2010

Award-Winning Science

Predicting Fracture Porosity in Sandstone
Robert H. Lander with S. E. Laubach
Outstanding Contributions in Geoscience Research–Best University Research, U.S. Department of Energy Symposium Flow and Transport: from Pore to Reservoir Scales 2004

Key elements of this research were published in:

Lander R.H., and Laubach, S.E., 2015, Insights into rates of fracture growth and sealing from a model for quartz cementation in fractured sandstones. Geological Society of America Bulletin, v. 127, no. 3-4, p. 516-538. doi: 10.1130/B31092.1 (published online October 2014) | view

A summary and fracture cement animations available on the SDI blog

Award |  S.E. Laubach was recognized with the 2023 JSG Joseph C. Walter, Jr., Excellence Award, the Jackson Schools highest honor.

2019 Best Recent Paper AAPG Petroleum Structure & Geomechanics Division

Correlation analysis of fracture arrangement in space. 2018, Journal of Structural Geology 108, 16-33. Marrett, R., Gale, J.F., Gomez, L., Laubach, S.E. | view

2016 Bureau of Economic Geology Best Publication Award

Natural hydraulic fracturing of tight-gas sandstone reservoirs, Piceance Basin, Colorado. 2015, Geological Society of America Bulletin 127(1-2), 61-75. Fall, A., Eichhubl, P., Bodnar, R., Laubach, S.E., Davis, S. | view

2011 Bureau of Economic Geology Best Publication Award

Modeling fracture porosity evolution in dolostone. 2010, Journal of Structural Geology 32(9), 1201-1211. Gale, J.F., Lander, R.H., Reed, R.M., and Laubach, S.E. | view

2014 Jackson School Publication Bronze Award for student-authored publication and Best Student Paper Award JSG Energy Theme

Fracture-aperture size–frequency, spatial distribution, and growth processes in strata-bounded and non-strata-bounded fractures, Cambrian Mesón Group, NW Argentina. 2013, Journal of Structural Geology 54, 54-71. J.N. Hooker, S.E. Laubach, R. Marrett. | view

2010 AAPG Pratt Award | Best Paper in AAPG Bulletin: R.H. Lander, L.M. Bonnell

Selected Keynote Presentations

The role of chemistry in fracture pattern development: applications to the energy transition. S.E. Laubach, 16-18 May, 2023, Energy Geoscience Conference: Aberdeen, Scotland

Role of chemistry in fracture pattern development in the context of landscape evolution. S.E. Laubach, June 20-24, 2022, Penrose Conference: Progressive Failure of Brittle Rocks, Geological Society of America: Flat Rock, NC

The complete mechanics or the complete chemistry? S.E. Laubach, May 21, 2019, AAPG Petroleum Structure & Geomechanics Division: San Antonio, TX

Fractures: a brief overview. S.E. Laubach, March 28-30, 2018, Mechanical discontinuities from faults to microfractures, DOE Basic Energy Sciences workshop Information is in the Noise: Signatures of Evolving Fracture Systems. The Machine Learning/Deep Learning Challenge: Gaithersburg MD,

Fracture corridors and structural diagenesis. S.E. Laubach, October, 2018. The Geology of Fractured Reservoirs: The Geological Society (Burlington House): London

Structural diagenesis of fracture systems. S.E. Laubach, February, 2018. Third EAGE Workshop on Naturally Fractured Reservoirs: Muscat, Oman

The geology of natural fractures: what we need to detect and characterize. S.E. Laubach, September, 2013. SEG workshop on natural fractures: Houston, Texas

The message is the medium: reconciling petrology and rock physics. R.H. Lander, 2013. AAPG Charles Taylor Fellows Keynote Lecture: Houston, Texas

Fractures for geologists. J.E. Olson, May, 2012. Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists, Calgary

Structural diagenesis. S.E. Laubach, April, 2012. Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists, Calgary

Other Lectures–available online

Lecture for general public | S.E. Laubach, invited, Bizarre secrets of fractures in the Flathead sandstone and why they matter for geothermal everywhere, Geologists of Jackson Hole, 2023, Jackson, 7 March |  see the video

AAPG PSGD | Qiqi Wang, invited. Understanding fractures and reservoir quality in tight sandstones: coupled effects of diagenesis and deformation, Petroleum Structure & Geomechanics Division, AAPG, 2022 | see the video

AAPG PSGD | Rodrigo Corrêa, invited. Quantifying spatial arrangement of fractures with normalized correlation count, Petroleum Structure & Geomechanics Division, AAPG, 2022 | see the video

Teaching Recognition

Texas Ten | In 2017 long-time SDI collaborator Maša Prodanović was named to the Texas Ten, professors recognized by alumni as having had a lasting impact on their lives. Read the Alcalde article

Notable Papers

Published results of SDI research have been recognized by publishers for their impact. Information on this recognition is noted on the Publications page, and some of that information is collated here: Notable papers

More information

Recent Lectures & Meeting Involvement | Event Information

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