UT Austin Faculty Lend Expertise to Oil and Gas Industry Training

Austin, TX (PRWEB) June 03, 2011

Three top professors at The University of Texas at Austin have made new contributions to the latest edition of "Fundamentals of Petroleum," a best-selling oil and gas industry training publication produced by the Petroleum Extension Service (PETEX). Since its inception in 1944, PETEX has become the industry trainer of choice, and "Fundamentals of Petroleum" is its flagship publication. "Fundamentals of Petroleum" has sold over 75,000 copies since its first publication in 1979. PETEX, a component of Continuing and Innovative Education at The University of Texas at Austin, offers training and study materials to workers in every sector of the oil and gas industry, from roughnecks to executives.

?We are so proud to count Dr. Paul Bommer, Dr. Chris Zahm and Dr. Michael Webber among the contributors to 'Fundamentals of Petroleum,'? said John Hoopingarner, director of PETEX. ?The reason this publication is considered a classic within the industry is the great information, guidance and expertise found within its pages from generations of esteemed experts and contributors. Now, these three distinguished academics have added their own insights to this latest edition. Anyone who reads, studies, or refers to this book will have the benefit of their great knowledge.?

Dr. Bommer is a senior lecturer in the university?s Department of Petroleum and Geosystems Engineering. He is a major contributor to PETEX, having written "The Primer of Oil Well Drilling, 7th Edition" and "Arithmetic for Rig Personnel." He is currently developing a series of e-learning tools in addition to "The Beam Lift Handbook" with colleague Dr. Tony Podio. Dr. Bommer also serves on PETEX? advisory board.

Dr. Zahm is a Research Associate in the university?s Bureau of Economic Geology in the Jackson School of Geosciences. He is also an Adjunct Professor for the Department of Geological Sciences. He comes to the university after working as a structural geologist for ConocoPhillips Subsurface Technology.

Dr. Webber is an Associate Director in the Jackson School of Geosciences, Fellow of the Strauss Center for International Security and Law at the LBJ School of Public Affairs, and Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering. Webber's opinions and research have been featured in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, National Public Radio, BBC, and many other media outlets.

Linda Glessner, Senior Associate Dean of CIE, credits PETEX?s staff for its longevity as a trainer of choice in the oil and gas industry. ?John Hoopingarner and his team are experts in this field with a deep understanding of training and how it resonates within the industry. That level of staff expertise, married with the impressive instructional content and innovative delivery methods, such as e-learning, books, video-on-demand and industry-ready assessment tools, makes PETEX unlike any other training provider of its type in the world.?

About PETEX:

In 1944, the Texas state legislature mandated that The University of Texas at Austin provide training to workers in the oil and gas industry, resulting in the establishment of the Petroleum Extension Service (PETEX). PETEX trains workers with comprehensive on-site courses, up-to-date publications and Web-based tools all designed to ensure that industry workers are fully trained and highly-skilled. http://www.petex.org.

About Continuing and Innovative Education:

Continuing and Innovative Education (CIE) has a 100-year history of extending the resources of The University of Texas at Austin to anyone with a desire to learn. CIE provides a wide range of credit and noncredit courses, services and programs that encompass K-16 academics, online college and professional development courses, professional certificate programs and personal enrichment opportunities. http://www.utexas.edu/cie/stories.

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New Service for Business Professionals and Entrepreneurs to Proactively Pitch Their Expertise and Story Ideas to the Media in a Data Hungry, Content Starved World

Boston, MA (PRWEB) January 24, 2012

Proactive Publicity is the natural evolution of the way industry experts can leverage media exposure for business success in a data hungry, content starved world. This new service takes a proactive approach for busy professionals and entrepreneurs to pitch their expertise and story ideas to the media. Proactive Publicity saves the media time and money by providing private access to experts and story ideas with the click of a mouse.

Created by Diva Toolbox? Chief Executive Officer, Janet Powers, Proactive Publicity extends the success of the Diva Toolbox?s model of proactively publishing women in business on major media blogs to proactively promoting the knowledge and story ideas of all business professionals to an extensive network of reporters, writers and other media professionals.

?Proactive Publicity adds a new content stream for media publications?, says Powers. ?It is disastrous for any on line media publication not to have fresh content on their site daily; without fresh content, readers will not return to the site and site revenues from subscriptions and advertisements will suffer.?

Identifying the business professionals and industry experts who can provide input for current events and topics as well as developing new story ideas is a time consuming and costly job for any media outlet. Proactive Publicity will solve this problem for the media by maintaining a database of experts and story ideas by industry so it is quick and easy for the media to publish the fresh content their audience demands.

Industry experts and service professionals know that media exposure can be a game changer for their business. Being featured in a major media story brings additional credibility and extensive visibility to an expert?s brand and business, but they simply do not have the time or dedicated resources to do anything about it. This service will do it for them and the expert's time commitment is about one hour per month.

By connecting the two groups, Proactive Publicity adds to the traditional model of the media pitching story ideas to the experts, a complementary model where the experts can promote their own ideas to the media.

About Proactive Publicity and the Diva Toolbox, LLC

Proactive Publicity is a service owned and offered to business and service professionals by the Diva Toolbox?, an existing publicity platform for business professionals and service providers since 2008. Media professionals can register to get instant access to experts and story ideas on the Proactive Publicity website. Experts can learn more about becoming a member on the Proactive Publicity website.

The Diva Toolbox.com?, founded in 2008, is the premier destination for women in business to learn, grow and succeed. Its tagline (?Within you lies the ability to do anything. Find it!?) illustrates its mission is to empower, educate, and entertain women. The Diva Toolbox? helps women succeed across the major areas of their lives, including: business ownership and entrepreneurship, financial planning, career, home, family, health and beauty. Led by Chief Executive Diva, Janet Powers, the organization offers its members a strong, supportive network and powerful voice. As its name implies, the Diva Toolbox? provides a veritable toolbox for its growing member community of well educated and diverse women.

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