Abstract
Upon entering the twenty-first century, we see wide-ranging changes in geophysics. As of this writing, quality and utility of geophysical data continues a trend of inexorable improvement punctuated by individual quantum steps (such as the 3-D seismic revolution). To a large extent, this improvement has been accomplished on the coattails of advances in computing and related disciplines. These advances have allowed cost-effective implementation of methods that exploit our steadily increasing understanding of geophysical theory in ever increasingly realistic earth models. As a result, geophysical methods can now provide clearer images at greater distances with better resolution and signal-to-noise ratio than ever before. Consequently, explorationists are far more effective now than they were a decade ago. Predictions that earth resources will be depleted in the near future are continually being proven wrong, in no small part due to the consequences of geophysical progress that was not anticipated by the prognosticators. We expect this trend to continue into the twenty-first century with many exciting avenues for improvement available before us. One caution and caveat: The precipitous drop in funding for research that has occurred, although temporarily boosting profits, will translate into a slower rate of improvement of geophysical data in the future, which will ultimately cause poorer success rates. Whether investors of the future do or do not recognize that diminishing “yields” are a direct consequence of the conscious decision to inadequately fertilize the fields of research at the present time remains to be seen.
