The most basic book on the petroleum industry, the author explains the basics from exploration to refining using nontechnical language and easy-to-understand illustrations. This is designed to de-mystify the roles of geophysicists, reservoir engineers, etc., so that what they do makes sense to people new to the industry and without technical background. The book is organized in a natural chronology so that the reader gets an understanding of what precedes and what follows each step.Content: Front Matter Introduction: A Brief History of the Petroleum Industry Preface Table of Contents1. How the Earth Was Formed2. Petroleum Origins and Accumulation3. Petroleum Exploration4. Contracts and Regulations5. Reservoir Performance6. Drilling7. Formation Evaluation8. Well Completion9. Field Appraisal and Development10. Artificial Lift11. Surface Facilities12. Natural Gas13. Refining and Petrochemicals14. Petroleum Marketing Postscript GlossaryIndex