People in Science

People in Science

TEKS 5.8.A - Energy Transformations

Marshall Watson, PhD is a petroleum engineer. Petroleum engineers find ways to extract petroleum, including oil and gas, from different sources. ​

Marshall Watson

Petroleum engineers must be knowledgeable in many fields of science, and experts in properties of matter, properties of rock, as well as energy transformations.

Marshall Watson

To successfully extract oil, petroleum engineers know that oil has a different relative density than water, so it floats. They know that liquids can move between layers of rocks also.

Marshall Watson

This knowledge is used to design and improve technology to find fossil fuels.

Marshall Watson

Watson began his career in 1981 as a reservoir engineering expert. Reservoir engineering is the part of petroleum engineering that focuses on how to extract the petroleum without losing any to the surrounding rocks.

Marshall Watson

Watson’s work took him all over the United States planning new extraction sites and improving efficiencies at existing locations.

Marshall Watson

After a 30-year career in the field, Watson returned to college. He received his doctorate in petroleum engineering from Texas Tech in 2008.

Marshall Watson

Now, Watson uses his extensive knowledge to help other petroleum engineers. He holds two patents for inventions that help drill new sources of natural gas.

Marshall Watson

His horizontal drilling invention uses high-powered water jets and allows petroleum companies to reach sources of energy that a traditional vertical drilling method alone cannot.

Marshall Watson

His hydraulic fracturing invention also uses water. The water breaks up underground rock so that the petroleum can be reached.

Marshall Watson

Each of these inventions built upon previous scientific work to reach deeper and more challenging pockets of petroleum.

Marshall Watson

Since 2013, Watson has been a professor at Texas Tech. He is the chair of the Bob L. Herd Department of Petroleum Engineering. He is the past president of the Society of Petroleum Evaluation Engineers where he mentored others.

Marshall Watson

Under Watson’s leadership, the Texas Tech’s East Campus Oilfield Technology Center has grown to the premier petroleum research location in the country.

Marshall Watson

In 2023, they expanded their facility to include a complete working oil rig that students can use to learn. Students are able to model changes to the systems to make it more efficient and potentially cheaper too.

Marshall Watson

Multiple Choice

Since 2013, Watson has been a professor at _____.

• Texas Christian University

• Texas Tech

• The University of Texas

• Stanford University

Drag and Drop

Marshall Watson, PhD is a ​

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.

Drag these tiles and drop them in the correct blank above

petroleum engineer

biologist

astronomer

Multiple Select

Petroleum engineers must be knowledgeable in many fields of science, and experts in properties of matter, properties of rock, as well as energy transformations. (Choose all that apply.)

• properties of matter

• shark anatomy

• energy transformations

• properties of rock

Drag and Drop

To successfully extract oil, petroleum engineers know that oil has a different ​

Placeholder

than water, so it floats.

Drag these tiles and drop them in the correct blank above

relative density

texture

volume

mass

Multiple Select

What kinds of things would a petroleum engineer study? (Choose all that apply.)

• ways to make steel stronger for building

• ways to reach a natural gas reserve deep underground

• the best location for an oil platform in the ocean

• the best location to search for fossils in the desert

Steven Chu, PhD is a physicist. A physicist is a scientist who studies matter, energy, and motion. Physicists also study how these forces can be used to support the things we do and need in everyday life, such as energy.

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Steven Chu

Physicists analyze and collect data, perform studies, and run simulations to better understand how things in life work.

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Steven Chu

Chu received his doctorate in physics from the University of California–Berkeley in 1976. Chu and his colleagues studied how tiny particles can be cooled and trapped with lasers. He won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1997 for this discovery.

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Steven Chu

Chu served as the 12th United States Secretary of Energy from 2009 to 2013. Chu was the first Asian American to hold this position. The U.S. Secretary of Energy is the head of the Department of Energy for the country.

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Steven Chu

Chu wants to see more research on science that our rapidly changing society can benefit from, such as renewable energy, nuclear power, and even alternative building materials.

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Steven Chu

Energy storage costs and development are very high, so research and investment are needed to make renewable or nuclear energy sources more affordable for all countries.

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Steven Chu

He advocates for smart building solutions, like using more wood in structures. Buildings made from wood are strong and safe, and wood is quicker to be replenished than traditional building materials.

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Steven Chu

Chu uses the example of improvements of batteries over time. Have you ever tried to use a very old battery in a portable gaming device?

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Steven Chu

Chances are it only worked for a few minutes before the screen turned off! Batteries from even 10 years ago are not able to power an advanced electronic toy from today for very long.

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Steven Chu

The earlier batteries used less efficient materials and were more expensive to make. Scientists made incremental improvements, testing new materials, such as lithium, building upon the research of others.

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Steven Chu

Now, batteries are more reliable and cheaper for everyone.

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Steven Chu

Drag and Drop

Steven Chu is a ​

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.

Drag these tiles and drop them in the correct blank above

physicist

petroleum engineer

botanist

marine biologist

Multiple Select

What kinds of things would a physicist study? (Choose all that apply.)

• energy transformations at an amusement park

• weather patterns in Utah

• a comet in the solar system

• the tiniest particles of matter

Open Ended

How do scientific discoveries, such as improvements in energy technology, impact science? Provide evidence in your answer.

Go back and review your ideas about the Guiding Question from the start of this lesson. Now, use what you have learned to answer the question.

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Can You Explain It?