During Expediton 329 so far, I have heard all sorts of terms, some of which were unfamiliar to me. Let’s take a look at some of them. Some are names for objects or places, and others are job titles.

Point Nemo: the location in the Pacific Ocean furthest from any land, even islands. We are close to that position. In the last several days, we have been as far from any continent as you can get.

Starboard: the right side of the ship.

Port: the left side of the ship.

Roughneck: someone who connects and disconnects the drilling pipe.

Oiler: the person who maintains lubricant levels for machinery, bearings, gears, cleans and polishes equipment.

Motorman: an individual that maintains and operates the motors on the drill floor used to hoist equipment.

Roustabout: this is a general laborer, loads supplies onto and off the ship, lots of heavy lifting.

Derrickman: a person who works above the drill floor and maintains the drilling derrick.

AB Seaman: an experienced seaman (able bodied) who maintains the life boats, anchor, and operates the deck equipment.

Toolpusher: the person responsible for all aspects of the drilling operation and rig.

Floorman: works on the drill floor.

Driller: the person who actually runs the drilling rig.

As you can see, many of the job titles are rooted in the oil industry, while others go back to the early days of sailing. They are quite different than the job titles many of us are familiar with.