Inspect core samples to determine nature of strata, or take samples to laboratories for analysis.

“Inspect core samples to determine nature of strata, or take samples to laboratories for analysis.” is a supplemental task performed by Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas. Among the occupation's 30 rated tasks, workers place it 4th by importance (#27 most important). About 40% of workers say it is relevant to their job.

This is a single occupation-specific task statement from O*NET. The figures below describe how central the task is to the job and what independent studies measure about AI and this kind of work — not a prediction that the task will be automated.

Work activities this task rolls up to

O*NET groups concrete tasks into broader work activities shared across many occupations.

• Collect environmental or biological samples. in Handling and Moving Objects

AI exposure

The OpenAI / Eloundou “GPTs are GPTs” study rates this task E2. Exposure with tools — software built on top of a language model (not the model alone) could cut the time by at least half.

Exposure measures whether a model could meaningfully speed the task up — it is an estimate of overlap with model capabilities, not a measure of whether the work will be done by software. The study's intermediate score (β) for this task is 0.50. Automation potential label: T1.

Other tasks in this occupation

• Fabricate well casings. · importance 4.4
• Operate controls to stabilize machines and to position and align drills. · importance 4.4
• Start, stop, and control drilling speed of machines and insertion of casings into holes. · importance 4.3
• Pour water into wells, or pump water or slush into wells to cool drill bits and to remove drillings. · importance 4.3
• Regulate air pressure, rotary speed, and downward pressure, according to the type of rock or concrete being drilled. · importance 4.3
• Select and attach drill bits and drill rods, adding more rods as hole depths increase, and changing drill bits as needed. · importance 4.3
• Drive or guide truck-mounted equipment into position, level and stabilize rigs, and extend telescoping derricks. · importance 4.2
• Create and lay out designs for drill and blast patterns. · importance 4.2
• Operate machines to flush earth cuttings or to blow dust from holes. · importance 4.2
• Place and install screens, casings, pumps, and other well fixtures to develop wells. · importance 4.1
• Verify depths and alignments of boring positions. · importance 4.1
• Perform routine maintenance and upgrade work on machines and equipment, such as replacing parts, building up drill bits, and lubricating machinery. · importance 4.1
• Select the appropriate drill for the job, using knowledge of rock or soil conditions. · importance 4.1
• Document geological formations encountered during work. · importance 4.1

See all tasks on the Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas page.

Sources for this page

Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.

• O*NET 30.3 U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development
• “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130 OpenAI / academic

Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.

@misc{singulariki-task-13695,
  title  = {Inspect core samples to determine nature of strata, or take samples to laboratories for analysis.},
  author = {{Singulariki}},
  year   = {2026},
  note   = {O*NET 30.3; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130. Accessed June 7, 2026},
  url    = {https://singulariki.com/tasks/task-13695}
}