Re: Stegosaurus preparation photos take two...

[don ohmes <d_ohmes@yahoo.com>]

Little event called the American Revolution... :)
PS-- The slugs/ft/lb thing is sort of over too. Or at
least needs to be.

> And regarding spelling... it is "Palaeontology" in
> these shores... what 
> happened?

--- Luis Rey <luisrey@ndirect.co.uk> wrote:
> I think after Scott post there's not very much else
> to say...
> Paleontology is not a pseudo science neither is  a
> whimsical state of 
> mind. That we can add art to it is a completely
> different matter; the 
> bones are there to be studied scientifically. I
> understand though that 
> many field collectors with little paleontological
> training CAN have a 
> better eye than many paleontologists when it comes
> to spot fossils... 
> but that is completely another matter!
> 
> And regarding spelling... it is "Palaeontology" in
> these shores... what 
> happened?
> 
> On 26 Apr 2005, at 03:31, MKIRKALDY@aol.com wrote:
> 
> > Reposted for Scott Hartman:
> > ____
> >
> > Hmm...this didn't go through on my end, so I'll
> send it again to see 
> > if  it
> > works.  Strange, there is no html or anything in
> it...
> >
> > I know  this is a touchy subject...so let me just
> leap right in:
> >
> > I have  personally met Kirby, and I can say that
> he was very pleasant 
> > to me.
> > That  being said, I do not know much about his
> personal life and/or 
> > finances,
> > so I  will forgo any conclusions at this time
> about his ethics, except 
> > to
> > concur with  Dan Varner than Big Al was indeed
> confiscated from his 
> > team by the
> > BLM.
> >
> > I would, however, like to comment on the issue of
> being a  
> > "paleontologist."
> > At our small museum in Wyoming I routinely hear
> people  with no
> > qualifications refer to themselves as
> "paleontologists" simply because 
> >  they dig up
> > dinosaurs and are more knowledgeable than the
> tourists they are  
> > working with.  This
> > grates on me constantly, as I expect the word to
> hold  some value.  I 
> > think a
> > literal examination of the word makes it pretty 
> obvious who a 
> > paleontologist
> > is and isn't.  -ology is defined as: a suffix;  a
> branch of learning; 
> > science,
> > study of...; from Greek word logos.  So...it 
> seems fair to me that a
> > paleontologist is someone who studies and
> contributes to  the science 
> > of
> > paleontology.  In much the same way that people
> who look at  nudie 
> > magazines are not
> > dermatologists, I don't think people who collect
> fossils  as a hobby 
> > (or even a
> > profession, no matter how valuable that service
> may be)  are 
> > paleontologists,
> > regardless of how ethical they are, or how
> wonderful of  human beings.!
> > This
> > isn't an insult to them; I just think that a 
> person must participate 
> > in the
> > science to refer to themselves as a  scientist. 
> To me this means 
> > contributing
> > to the peer-reviewed literature,  regardless of
> educational standing
> > (although it is most common for those with Ph  D's
> to do this 
> > contributing).
> >
> > Now, some private collectors do indeed  publish
> papers, or at least 
> > make
> > presentations at SVP; while I may not think too 
> highly of all the 
> > research these
> > people produce, they are at least participating 
> in the science, so I 
> > don't
> > have any real objection to them referring to 
> themselves as 
> > paleontologists.  On
> > the other hand, someone who simply digs  them up
> (whether for vacation 
> > or
> > vocation) does not automatically become a 
> paleontologist, no matter 
> > how
> > personally satisfying it may be to do  so.
> >
> > Again, I am not applying this claim to anyone in
> particular, but I do  
> > think
> > it's important to attach meanings to words, and it
> seems reasonable to 
> > me
> > that a person must actually do science before she
> or he can call 
> > themselves a
> > scientist.
> >
> >
> > Scott Hartman
> > Zoology &  Physiology
> > University of Wyoming
> > Laramie, WY 82070
> >
> > (307)  742-3799
> >
> >
> Luis Rey
> 
> Visit my website on
> http://www.ndirect.co.uk/~luisrey
> 
>