Sighing

[Martin Tillett <mtillett@umd5.umd.edu>]

        I have found some of the commentary on this thread interesting and  
worthy of discussion. While some may feel that it is not science but more a
form of popular culture, I personally feel there is merit in continuing the
thread. I teach public school science and provide several programs to k-12
students and inservice programs to other educators that relate to fossils,
dinosaurs, prehistoric life, geologic history etc. One observation I have
made over the years  is that children and adults alike have numerous mis-
conceptions based on experiences with toy dinosaurs as well as with other
media encountered during their impressionable years. 
        I often find myself devoting time and energy trying to get students
to recognize that much of what they have been exposed to is misleading or
inaccurate. When I do inservice programs with other educators, I will pass
out examples of commercial educational products on dinosaurs and prehistoric
life and ask the teachers to examine the materials for accuracy of content.
While some materials are superlative others are fraught with misconceptions.
Many teachers are not knowledgeable enough to know how to select the better
product for use in their classroom. While much of this thread has focused
on dinosaur replicas and the need to have more accurate models reflecting what
is current in dinosaur science, there is a need to extend this into other
educational media as well.
        I often like to introduce dinosaurs to my students by having them e
examine illustrations and portraits from the turn of the century and then
comparing them with more contemporary pictures. Obvious differences exist and
are easily perceived by children. A favorite approach is to show a dozen
different pictures of T Rex. All of them are a different color. Ask the students
what color is the true color and most will say green. That is the color that
T Rex is most often viewed as having. Occasionally I'll get a student that is
perceptive enough to say that scientists and artists don't know what color they
were. I will sometimes pass out bones from a cow or a dog among the students
and the group will infer some aspects of the life of the animal based on teeth
and bone structure. Ask them to identify the color of the cow and dog and a
lot of guesses will be offered but eventually the group acknowledges that they
are not certain. I've seen teachers give students dinosaur illustrations to
color and expected them to color the dinosaurs correctly based on their assump-
tions of what was correct.
        Contrasting old ideas with current ideas is a lesson on the nature of
science and scientists. I too would like to see more inexpensive models that
reflect current ideas. This would give knowledgeable teachers an opportunity
to provide students with an activity based experience to compare models based
on ideas and understandings from scientists at a point and time in the history
of dinosaur study that is in conflict with current theories. This could be ex-
tended into an analysis of print and popular culture media across time as well.
I still recall seeing a book in the early seventies by an author named Stout.
He had painted pictures suggesting color patterns similar to what is observed
with living species today. This was a far cry from the dull greys, browns and
greens I grew up with in the dino books I read as a child. The idea of patterns
and variations in color seems more universally accepted in print media but I
see very little when examining models. My five year old son does have a JP model
of dilophosaurus that has a color pattern but that is one of the few I have se
seen. Although there is no hard evidence to suggest that the color patterns or
variations existed, it exposes children to the notion that scientists don't
always agree and that expression of ideas need not to be based entirely on
tangible evidence.
        Maybe museums with professional paleontologists that are getting into th
the business of marketing educational products through museum stires and ca
the business of marketing educational products through museum stores and 
catalogs should review some of the products for scientific accuracy before
selling them to the public. A visit to the Dinosaur Store in the Smithsonian
Museum of Natural History reveals a product line that goes from realistic to
absurd. Parents and teachers purchasing items from such a store in the middle
of the museum might assume that the toy or text is based on fact or current
theory. Maybe the store needs a dino whimsy area distinguished from the dino
science area. I don't object to creative writing and modeling with dinosaurs,
I am concerned that some people and children in particular don't make the
distinction and will broadcast their misconception among others. Imagine if
the U.S. Postal Service had consulted with Vertebrate Paleontologists at the
Smithsonian prior to the issue of the "Brontosaurus" postage stamp. I hear that
the Postal Service plans to issue stamps in 1995 with either a dinosaur or 
fossil theme. I hope they focus on some level of accuracy in their stamp designs
for this year.
        A few years ago, the Maryland State Legislature named a State Fossil,
a snail Ecphora quadricostata. After becoming the State Fossil by law it was
revealed that it should have been Ecphora gardenere. After taking the hit for
their incompetence on the naming of a State Fossil the legislature has been
very reluctant to name a State Dinosaur even though legislation was introduced
twice when Governor Schaefer was in office. It is a real challenge to teachers
to try and present information to students that is scientifically accurate or
acceptable about prehistoric life when so much misinformation abounds. I truly
believe that dinosaur related products and media will continue to have a place
in generating student interest in science. For many students, their first real
exposure to science will be in a lesson on dinosaurs. There should be some
level of accountability regarding the accuracy of the product if it is sold
for educational purposes. 
        Since the release of JP, I have made a point of asking my students
what time period did T Rex, Triceratops, and Velociraptor live. They are all
certain that it was the Jurassic Period. Thankyou Mr. Crichton and Spielberg.
Martin Tillett
Science Instructor
H.B. Owens Science Center
9601 Greenbelt Road
Lanham, Maryland 20706
mtillett@UMD5.UMD.EDU