[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index][Subject Index][Author Index]

Re: synapsids (was RE: pdf request)



On Wed, June 13, 2012 6:24 pm, Joe Gilvary wrote:
> Ar 6/13/2012 5:38 PM, scríobh Thomas R. Holtz, Jr.:
>> The idea of a synapsid-archosaur or synapsid-diapsid clade clade has a
>> long history (Diaptosauria; early non-computerized cladistic
>> analyses, etc.) And you can certainly pick out a few characters to
>> support it (thecodonty, for one). But it doesn't pop out in the
>> really comprehensive studies of Permo-Triassic critters.
>>
> I would appreciate pointers to any info you (or others) have on early,
> non-computerized cladistic analyses.
>
Not to put too fine a point on it: WHY?!?!?!

That is, since we've had 25 years or more of actual computer-generated
phylogenetic analyses of increasing sophistication, why do you want
pointers on the "I just pull data out of some orifice and draw a branching
diagram to fit my favored hypothesis" method.

Oh, wait. I actually just described the non-computerized cladistic
analysis method...

If you want to look them up, do scholar.google.com searches on "cladistic
analysis" or "phylogenetic analysis" and specify a date earlier than
(let's say) 1985.

Basically, before Phylip, Hennig86, and PAUP (no "*", just "PAUP"),
cladistic analyses had to be done by hand. For analyses with more than 6
or 7 operational taxonomic units and a dozen or so characters, this would
be very "computationally" (i.e., pen & paper) time consuming.

Thomas R. Holtz, Jr.
Email: tholtz@umd.edu   Phone: 301-405-4084
Office: Centreville 1216
Senior Lecturer, Vertebrate Paleontology
Dept. of Geology, University of Maryland
http://www.geol.umd.edu/~tholtz/
Fax: 301-314-9661

Faculty Director, Science & Global Change Program, College Park Scholars
http://www.geol.umd.edu/sgc
Fax: 301-314-9843

Mailing Address:        Thomas R. Holtz, Jr.
                        Department of Geology
                        Building 237, Room 1117
                        University of Maryland
                        College Park, MD 20742 USA