Posted on 12/07/2011 7:49:16 PM PST by SunkenCiv
Nearly 100 years after a set of fossil remains were uncovered, an international team of scientists has discovered a new species of dinosaur.
The new discovery, a horned dinosaur named Spinops sternbergorum (pronounced "SPIN-ops stern-berg-OR-uhm"), roamed the Earth approximately 76 million years ago, during the Late Cretaceous period, in southern Alberta, Canada, according to a press release.
Spinops sternbergorum is named after its spiny face, and combines with the name of the original discoverers, a father and son fossil collecting team. The duo, Charles H. and Levi Sternberg, found the prehistoric remains back in 1916. The Telegraph reports the fossils were excavated from a quarry in the vicinity of a "bone bed" of fossils.
Upon finding the skulls, the two men noticed the uniqueness of the remains and shipped the fossils off to the Natural History Museum in London. Upon arrival at the museum, the pieces were considered "too scrappy" for exhibit, and the dinosaur remains were placed in storage for decades. They remained shelved until they were pulled out and cleaned for study after experts recognized the importance of these previously unobserved fossils.
Spinops sternbergorum is described as a smaller cousin of Triceratops. The prehistoric animal was a plant-eater estimated to weigh about two tons during its era.
The press release described the dinosaur as having "a single large horn projected from the top of the nose, and a bony neck frill sported at least two long, backward-projecting spikes as well as two forward-curving hooks."
It is these characteristics that differentiate Spinops from other known horned dinosaurs...
The full details of this discovery and formal naming of the new dinosaur species are outlined in the December issue of the journal Acta Palaeontologica Polonica.
(Excerpt) Read more at digitaljournal.com ...
In before the Helen Thomas photo!
As Dr. Schweitzer says: “If it walks like a duck . . . “
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/nature/schweitzer-qa.html
In her Nature article, she also noted that her findings stood everything that was currently believed (a faith synonym) about fossils would have to be “rethought” in light of Sue.
Ping for later inclusion of Cretaceous High Yearbook
LOL!
Did someone say spinops?!
Cheers!
:’)
:’) The facility in Florida where the alien bodies are kept is way more interesting. :’)
Ugh, that’s even worse than She Who Must Not Be Named.
:’) The reason these went extinct was those horns, they couldn’t reach their food.
Gah! Cool post, BTW...
The "soft tissue" is fossil material resembling the original, not fresh tissue.
Image: Mary Higby Schweitzer with the cast of a Tyrannosaurus rex. (Photo courtesy of North Carolina State University).
Eastern Montana's B. rex now yields female bone tissue -- The discovery not only means that B. rex was female, but it signifies the end of a scientific treasure hunt, according to Schweitzer who announced her discovery in the June 3 issue of the journal Science. Researchers have long predicted they would find medullary tissue in dinosaurs, but they hadn't found it until it appeared in the hind thigh bones of B. rex, Schweitzer said. Scientists expected to find the tissue in dinosaurs because other evidence linking birds and dinosaurs is so robust and all female birds have medullary tissue. ... "It was surprising how much interest the first paper generated, perhaps because people have predicted that this (medullary) bone tissue would be present, while no one expected soft tissue," Schweitzer said.
Dinosaur Shocker by Helen Fields, Smithsonian magazine, May 2006 -- [snip] Meanwhile, Schweitzer's research has been hijacked by "young earth" creationists, who insist that dinosaur soft tissue couldn't possibly survive millions of years. They claim her discoveries support their belief, based on their interpretation of Genesis, that the earth is only a few thousand years old. Of course, it's not unusual for a paleontologist to differ with creationists. But when creationists misrepresent Schweitzer's data, she takes it personally: she describes herself as "a complete and total Christian." On a shelf in her office is a plaque bearing an Old Testament verse: "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." ... Young-earth creationists also see Schweitzer's work as revolutionary, but in an entirely different way. They first seized upon Schweitzer's work after she wrote an article for the popular science magazine Earth in 1997 about possible red blood cells in her dinosaur specimens. Creation magazine claimed that Schweitzer's research was "powerful testimony against the whole idea of dinosaurs living millions of years ago. It speaks volumes for the Bible's account of a recent creation." This drives Schweitzer crazy. Geologists have established that the Hell Creek Formation, where B. rex was found, is 68 million years old, and so are the bones buried in it. She's horrified that some Christians accuse her of hiding the true meaning of her data. "They treat you really bad," she says. "They twist your words and they manipulate your data." For her, science and religion represent two different ways of looking at the world; invoking the hand of God to explain natural phenomena breaks the rules of science. After all, she says, what God asks is faith, not evidence. "If you have all this evidence and proof positive that God exists, you don't need faith. I think he kind of designed it so that we'd never be able to prove his existence. And I think that's really cool." [/snip]Here are some of the topics from the FRchives:
It would look much better if I were to do it over today. :’)
Why are the YE Creationists so afraid of a much older earth. Isn’t that more majestic than the magic wand type of creation they insist on? Also, talk about misinterpreting information, how could anyone think that the Bishop Usher could identify an exact month, day and year by calculating back the begats, which have nothing like that exact information in them.
All puns are groaners but I literally winced at this one. Well played sir.
I blame the Three Stooges.
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