Will AI replace Geoscientists, Except Hydrologists and Geographers?
Estimated risk score: 49 out of 100
Moderate replacement risk
Estimate from published task research, not reviewed by a person · how we estimate
Within about 19 points for 4 in 5 of the jobs we checked (30 to 68).
For the occupation as a whole, from ratings of its 32 O*NET tasks published in 2023 and calibrated to our hand scores. A specialty inside it can sit higher or lower.
O*NET-SOC 19-2042.00 · Life, Physical, and Social Science
Tasks rated in 2023 as ones AI could do or speed up
Tasks a GPT-4-class model could do, or do in half the time or less: 5 of its 32 rated tasks. In O*NET’s words.
- Review environmental, historical, or technical reports and publications for accuracy.
- Develop applied software for the analysis and interpretation of geological data.
- Analyze and interpret geological data, using computer software.
- Locate and review research articles or environmental, historical, or technical reports.
- Communicate geological findings by writing research papers, participating in conferences, or teaching geological science at universities.
Tasks rated in 2023 as not sped up by AI
Tasks such a model was rated as not speeding up or taking over: 5 of its 32 rated tasks. In O*NET’s words.
- Measure characteristics of the Earth, such as gravity or magnetic fields, using equipment such as seismographs, gravimeters, torsion balances, or magnetometers.
- Investigate the composition, structure, or history of the Earth's crust through the collection, examination, measurement, or classification of soils, minerals, rocks, or fossil remains.
- Plan or conduct geological, geochemical, or geophysical field studies or surveys, sample collection, or drilling and testing programs used to collect data for research or application.
- Test industrial diamonds or abrasives, soil, or rocks to determine their geological characteristics, using optical, x-ray, heat, acid, or precision instruments.
- Inspect construction projects to analyze engineering problems, using test equipment or drilling machinery.
What the job is
Study the composition, structure, and other physical aspects of the Earth. May use geological, physics, and mathematics knowledge in exploration for oil, gas, minerals, or underground water; or in waste disposal, land reclamation, or other environmental problems. May study the Earth's internal composition, atmospheres, and oceans, and its magnetic, electrical, and gravitational forces. Includes mineralogists, paleontologists, stratigraphers, geodesists, and seismologists.
Also called: Geologist, Geophysicist, Geoscientist, Project Geologist, Geochemist, Prospector, Petrologist, Core Analyst.
Source. This site includes information from the O*NET 30.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. (O*NET, CC BY 4.0.) Task ratings: Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin and Rock (2023), “GPTs are GPTs: An Early Look at the Labor Market Impact Potential of Large Language Models”, data used under the MIT licence (licence texts). Our change: we averaged the ratings over this occupation’s tasks and calibrated them to our 0–100 scale. It is not a prediction about any one person and not career advice. Disagree? Write to hello@yourstopwashit.com. How we estimate