The geographical patterns that emerge from the oil fields, whether in the Middle East or Indonesia, all exhibit a correspondence to deep-Earth geological structure. This is in stark contrast to the haphazard deposition we find with surface life, and its subsequent fossils, which have never exhibited such patterns.

    Hydrocarbons from a particular oil field do not exhibit chemical changes as the depth of their extraction increases. But the fossils above them have constantly changing biologi-cal "signatures," which relate to their particular paleontological periods.

    Hydrocarbons are found in geographic areas where the amount of prehistoric life known to be at that location could never have provided the quantities of hydrocarbons involved. Most surface life is comprised of 90 percent water and 10 percent organic compounds. So, even if that 10 percent that is organic compounds had been entirely converted to "fossil fuels," it would not come close to the mass of hydrocarbons already extracted during the last 130 years.

    Because hydrocarbons are so consistent, the use of distinct trace metals can be used to identify their geographic: origin.

    The existing petroleum reservoirs are refilling themselves - from the bottom!
    Some scientists insist that all petroleum comes from abiogenic processes, with hydrocarbon development occurring in the Earth's mantle. Most geochemists and petroleum geologists remain convinced that crude oil and natural gas have organic origins. Theorists of abiogenic petroleum tend to see hydrocarbons as not just abundant but super-abundant, with no possibility of constrained supply. Petroleum generated by abiogenic processes could occur anywhere, so exploration need not be limited to sedimentary basins, or to depths of only a few miles.