SEG Wavelets TED Talk Hits the Ground Running


SEG Wavelets TED Talk Hits the Ground Running
Event Kicks Off Fall Semester

SEG Wavelets leadership with the invited speakers and the audience.
SEG Wavelets leadership with the invited speakers and the audience.
Inspired by how TED Talks have wowed many crowds around the globe, SEG Wavelets’ leadership team organized their own TED-style talk to jumpstart the fall semester on August 29. The talk featured three department faculty members -- Dr. Edip Baysal, Dr. John Castagna and Dr. Paul Mann.

Dr. Baysal shared his knowledge about how some specific processing techniques, like deghosting, can lead into a broadband seismic data, extending the low frequency content from 4 Hz to 2 Hz (an octave) as well the high frequency part of the data. He underscored the importance of the removal of the reverberation of energy in the marine seismic processing to improve the frequency band of the seismic data.

Dr. Castagna opened his talk with a catchy line: “Do not have much reverence for the gods.” Then, he talked about the relationship between S-transform and Fourier transform spectra. He suggested that students should not accept any statement without trying to prove it.

Dr. Paul Mann had a different approach in the content of his talk. He discussed a non-technical topic that resonated with the largely student audience. His message was how the size of the department (the largest geosciences department in North America) and its relatively low ranking make it challenging for UH graduate and undergraduate students to “stand out” in the crowd. He provided advice for students that ranged from presenting their work at conferences and in publications to maintaining an online presence through LinkedIn, ResearchGate and other sites.

The event received a positive response from the faculty members and students. There were more than 40 people in attendance, despite the horrendous weather. This was the first of many events that SEG Wavelets is promoting at UH, and we hope that it will have become part of our culture when the next leadership takes over.

The next event, which is called a “Pop-Up Talk,” will feature student speakers with each speaker given 5 minutes to showcase his or her story. The event will be Friday, Nov 21, from 2 pm-3 pm at Agnes Arnold Hall, Room 104.

- Azie Aziz on behalf of SEG Wavelets