Re: new boook on functional morphology

["Nicholas J. Pharris" <pharrinj@PLU.edu>]

On Tue, 23 Jan 1996, GROSS CORY WALTER wrote:

> >     Is there a possibility that the funny Pachyrhinoceros "nore 
> >lump" sported a big huge horn?  Like they showed in the PBS 
> >"Dinosaurs" series.  Also, how similar is the Pachyrhino nose bump 
> >to the new Two Medicine ceratopsian (I can't remeber if its 
> >Achelosaurus or Einosaurus (sic) that has the similarly messy 
> >looking bone in that area). 
> >
> >LN Jeff
> >
> 
>     'Allo again,
>             I sincerly doubt that Pachyrinoceros (or is that 
> Pachyrinosaurus? I've heard both...) 

It's Pachyrhinosaurus, P-A-C-H-Y-R-H-I-N-O-S-A-U-R-U-S, with an "h" after 
the "c", another one after the "r," and a "saurus" on the end.

> had a big-ass horn on its snout.
> Just recently I was studying the beast for art purposes and I 
> couldn't help but notice that it has an absolutely huge head 
> in comparison to its body already; that problem would be compounded 
> by one of _The Dinosaurs_ style horns. The only way I can see it 
> being able to hold its head up with one of those is for it to have 
> an incredibly muscled neck and perhaps some kind of counter balance 
> at the rear.
>             I don't know what it's worth, but that's what I think...

All opinions are worth a great deal.  

The idea was, I believe, that the 
large horn would be composed of keratin, the substance which makes up 
hair, fingernails, feathers, scales, rhino horns, and the outer sheath of 
cow horns, which is quite lightweight.

The frill helped counterbalance the front of the head; the neck 
musculature was indeed very powerful; and the body behind the forelimbs 
was considerably heavier than the head.

> 
> Cory Gross
> artist,writer,philosopher,scientist
> gros4891@adc.mtroyal.ab.ca
> 
>                     "Sanity, you're a madman!!"-The Tick 
>

Goodbye and good luck! 

Nick Pharris
Pacific Lutheran University
Tacoma, WA 98447
(206)535-8204
PharriNJ@PLU.edu

"If you can't convince them, confuse them." -- Harry S. Truman