Q: What do you call a fossil that doesn’t ever want to work?
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Sorry about the late reminder
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Still holding – but getting way more fun
Q. What do you call a terrible, horrible, unpleasant dinosaur?
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A rose by any other name…
So how do all these creatures and plants and fungi get those cool scientific names?
Scientists are found all over the world. They speak various languages and within that a variety of dialects. Latin (thanks to Carl Linne) became one of the universal languages of scientists.
Systematists follow the rules set forth by the International Committee of Zoological Nomenclature. The ICZN makes sure that the names make sense. For example for the name to have a –saur in it , the organism should be an animal related to lizards. For it to have a –cera in it, the organism (animal or plant) should have some obvious horns of some type.
Another rule, put simply, is that whoever finds the first one, the very first one of whatever it is, gets to name it.
For example, when I was younger one of the dinosaurs on display at AMNH was the Brontosaurus. This heavy lumbering beast was found in many of my picture books, usually partially submerged in muddy waters and had some vegetation of sorts dangling out of its mouth. If you were to go to AMNH today you would see what you think is the same animal but it has a different name: Apatosaurus.
What happened here? It depends who you ask, but basically O. C. Marsh found a skeleton and described it in 1877 as an Apatosaurus. 2 years later he found a similar skeleton, much more incomplete, that he thought was different and named it Brontosaurus. To make the waters muddier when it was put on display they grabbed another skull from the collection that seemed to go with it. (It was actually from a Camarasaurus) At some point the mistakes were realized.
So what happens to “brontosaurus”? Some would define it as a nomen nudem; A name that was assigned to an organism that never existed. Some call it a “jss” a Junior Subjective Synonym.
Did that clear it up for you?
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So what is a dinosaur anyway?
Q: Why did the Archaeopteryx catch the larva?
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Dinosaur or not? The definition
Let’s talk about dinosaurs. Not your favorite ones or which ones scare you. Not the difference between herbivores and carnivores. I won’t even mention molluscivores here.
Let’s talk about what makes a dinosaur a dinosaur.
Today’s scientists use a method of classifying all living things. It is called systematics or cladistics. They use specific anatomical features, both internal and external, to organize all life on our planet. They look to see if there is a skeleton or not. How many limbs, if any? They look for the presence or absence of certain physical features. Scientists classify on form not on function. (Although they do make note of behaviors in living animals to see if they can be related to skeletal processes.)
So there is one thing and one thing only that makes a dinosaur a dinosaur. ALL dinosaurs have a hole in their hip socket. ALL of them. This allows the femur to connect to the hip in a different way and it is why dinosaurs, unlike all other reptiles have a more erect stance. This is also why birds are dinosaurs. They have the same hip structure. This is also why pterosaurs are not dinosaurs.
So being a dinosaur has nothing to do with when you were alive or what you ate. It does not matter what your habitat was or what your skin looked like. To be a dinosaur merely means you have a hole in your hip socket.
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New guest blogger
I have many nicknames. As I am sure you do as well. But do you have a custom ordered embroidered trucker cap with yours on it? No? I didn’t think so. Mine shows a tiny Protoceratops andrewsii emerging from its egg. And in pretty pink letters it reads Paleobarbie.
That’s me! Larry asked me to start a discussion about some of my favorite factoids about these dinosaurs and other prehistoric beasties.
Let’s begin with that tiny Protoceratops, my favorite dinosaur. I have always been attracted to the frill that guards their neck and their pointy beak that clearly states “Don’t mess with me.” I am getting ahead of myself. So let’s go back to the beginning. (extra points if you can name that movie.)
When I was younger I spent almost every Sunday at the American Museum of Natural History. My Dad would have to huff and puff up the stairs from the Big Blue Whale all the way to the top floor Fossil Halls. I have always loved dinosaurs. I never dreamed that one day I would work at AMNH as a paleontology educator and yet, I do.
One of the questions I get asked most is “which one is your favorite?” And I answer “protoceratops.” I should mention that they are part of poor Oviraptor’s misfortune. Both animals lived in what is now the Gobi. Oviraptor (egg seizer or thief) was so named when a skeleton was discovered that seemed to show it reaching for a clutch of eggs. They were believed to be Protoceratops eggs. That was in the 1920’s. What we learned in 1993 was that that Oviraptor was merely trying to get back to its own nest. And yet, the name sticks. That’s a story for a different day.
Fast forward. 1994. Adrienne Mayor’s article “Guardians of the Gold “ [Archaeology (Nov-Dec1994): 52-59.] crosses my desk. Then she comes to speak at AMNH. I am fascinated by the idea that mythology could be dictated by fossil finds. I delve into the idea that protoceratops have helped shape the myth of the griffin. Beak of Eagle? Check! Leonine body? Check!! Reptilian tail? Check!!!
But what do YOU think? Which other fossil finds could have sparked one of your favorite myths?
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A third of the way through this voting period
Yikes! Sorry we missed the reminder yesterday.You can still cast your VOTE FOR ELASTIC PARK 21 more times this month, starting today.We have a new guest bloggerBack when we first announced our plan to create Elastic Park, we met Jenny Herdman Lando on Facebook. Jenny had more than just a passing interest in dinosaurs. She works at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. In some of our early discussions about artistically recreating dinosaurs, Jenny mentioned to me some common misconceptions about these prehistoric beasts that she’s always running into. Over the last year, I’ve run into all of them myself. The two most common are that dinosaurs aren’t really extinct, as most of us have been taught, and not all prehistoric creatures are dinosaurs. Rather than take a chance that I’ll make a mistake in reporting on them, I asked Jenny to start writing up some facts that we can share with all of the Elastic Park fans. I hope you enjoy the facts that our new guest blogger has to offer. Spread the word. Get more people to vote with us every day.PLEASE NOTE: Logging in does not cast your vote- you must still click the white VOTE FOR THIS IDEA button! If you’re not sure whether or not your vote registered, check the counter at the bottom of the page. If your vote was successful, it will now show a large “9 votes left”. Oooh, send me more!If you got this note second hand from a friend, you may want to sign up to receive it directly from us each day. Just visit http://elasticpark.com/elastic-park-reminder/ and we’ll add you to our list. Past entries can be found on our Elastic Park blog. Thanks to our friends at GlueDots and Pioneer Balloon for supporting us. ROOOOAAAARR!! (@Rexy sends his love) |
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Start of a new voting week
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Q: What type of tool does a prehistoric reptile carpenter use? Q: Why did the Apatosaurus devour the factory? Q: What materials do dinosaurs use for the floors of their homes?
If you forgot to vote over the weekend, don’t worry. You can still cast your VOTE FOR ELASTIC PARK 23 more times this month, starting today.When were dinosaur bones first discovered?The first dinosaurs appeared over 230 million years ago. That means dinosaur fossils have been around and subject to discovery for quite some time. Ever wonder how ancient civilizations started talking about mythical creatures like dragons and ogres? These weren’t just the creations of active imaginations. References were made over 2,000 years ago to dragon bones being found in China. Those “dragon bones” were very likely early dinosaur finds. These days, new dinosaur species are discovered every few months. What we want to discover are new voters for Elastic Park. Tell your friends about the project! So spread the word. Get more people to vote with us every day.PLEASE NOTE: Logging in does not cast your vote- you must still click the white VOTE FOR THIS IDEA button! If you’re not sure whether or not your vote registered, check the counter at the bottom of the page. If your vote was successful, it will now show a large “9 votes left”. Oooh, send me more!If you got this note second hand from a friend, you may want to sign up to receive it directly from us each day. Just visit http://elasticpark.com/elastic-park-reminder/ and we’ll add you to our list. Past entries can be found on our Elastic Park blog. Thanks to our friends at GlueDots and Pioneer Balloon for supporting us. ROOOOAAAARR!! (@Rexy sends his love) |
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Early Dinos on Film
According to dinosaur.org, the first confirmed appearance of dinosaurs on film was a piece by D.W. Griffith, Man’s Genesis in 1912. While we couldn’t find a clip of that movie online, we did come across this little gem from just 2 years later entitled “Gertie the Dinosaur”
Imagine what that must have been like for movie goers nearly 100 years ago to see such a giant creature on screen… And then think about what it will be like for folks to see our enormous balloon dinos in person! All we need are your votes!
Don’t wait until Monday. Only 24 more chances to cast your VOTE FOR ELASTIC PARK.So spread the word. Get more people to vote with us every day.PLEASE NOTE: Logging in does not cast your vote- you must still click the white VOTE FOR THIS IDEA button! If you’re not sure whether or not your vote registered, check the counter at the bottom of the page. If your vote was successful, it will now show a large “9 votes left”. Oooh, send me more!If you got this note second hand from a friend, you may want to sign up to receive it directly from us each day. Just visit http://elasticpark.com/elastic-park-reminder/ and we’ll add you to our list. Past entries can be found on our Elastic Park blog. Thanks to our friends at GlueDots and Pioneer Balloon for supporting us. ROOOOAAAARR!! (@Rexy sends his love) |
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Definition of dinosaur
What is a dinosaur anyway?Dinosaur: How a giant lizard feels after a tough workout. Don’t wait until Monday. Only 26 more chances to VOTE FOR ELASTIC PARK.Many of us have a tendency to be lazy on weekends. That’s fine much of the time. You can slack off on weekday chores like going to work and feeding the kids, but Elastic Park needs your vote now. Origin of Elastic ParkMy fascination with balloon dinosaurs goes back quite a while. Here’s an excerpt from my first book, Twisting History, which came out back in 1995. I should have realized then that this would turn into something so much bigger.
So spread the word. Get more people to vote with us every day.PLEASE NOTE: Logging in does not cast your vote- you must still click the white VOTE FOR THIS IDEA button! If you’re not sure whether or not your vote registered, check the counter at the bottom of the page. If your vote was successful, it will now show a large “9 votes left”. Oooh, send me more!If you got this note second hand from a friend, you may want to sign up to receive it directly from us each day. Just visit http://elasticpark.com/elastic-park-reminder/ and we’ll add you to our list. Past entries can be found on our Elastic Park blog. Thanks to our friends at GlueDots and Pioneer Balloon for supporting us. ROOOOAAAARR!! (@Rexy sends his love) |
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