Bootstrap Geologist: My Life in Science

By Gene Shinn

Book Overview

Known worldwide among geologists, marine scientists, and petroleum engineers, Gene Shinn sometimes seems a product of another century.

Born in the Florida Keys, he attended the University of Miami on a music scholarship, where he earned a bachelor's degree in biology. A U.S. national champion spearfisher, he worked as a salvage diver, becoming an expert in the use of dynamite underwater. A self-tutored field geologist for nearly 50 years, he made major geological findings that have significantly changed professional and academic knowledge of undersea oil reserves. Shinn helped invent technology for underwater core drilling, and more recently, he has studied the effects of transoceanic African dust on coral reefs, agriculture, and human health. He's even the basis for a character in a mystery novel.

In Bootstrap Geologist Shinn enthusiastically shares the highs and lows of his remarkable life. Taking readers around the globe as well as below the ocean, he recounts the painstaking process of data gathering that can lead to paradigm-breaking discoveries. He emphasizes the importance of field science and pointedly addresses the use and abuse of scientific research and the emergence of market-funded research.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0813044367
• ISBN13: 9780813044361
• Release Date: April 2013
• Publisher: University Press of Florida
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 1.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.3" x 0.7" x 6.1"