Exactly.
Book smart don't usually cut it in the real world. And I'm book smart.
Some careers and skills not only require books smarts but actual research, months of in the field time with more research and to be published and peer reviewed plus board certified by your state. No one is going to let a “self taught” geologist touch a 50 let alone 100 million dollar hole in the ground. Post graduate is entry level at the true sciences. Most senior scientists have multiple master’s if not multiple PhDs. Same for exploration no one is going to risk hundreds of millions on someone who doesn’t have a pedigree behind them. Even with pedigree you still have to mentor under a staff senior or higher geo before you ever land your own well let alone wildcat one. Real science still requires years and I mean 12+ of specific knowledge,experience and pedigree.
I think the guy was totally onto the “book” Physics.
He had the hugely important part of being an extremely intelligent and knowledgeable process practitioner to get the Physics to work.