Thursday, 24 January 2008
Sunday, 20 January 2008
MYSTERIOUS DESIGN : ACROSS THE UNIVERSE
The Fossil Huntress was intrigued by astrophysicist George Smoot's stunning new images from deep-space surveys. His ideas prod us to ponder how the cosmos -- with its giant webs of dark matter and mysterious gaping voids -- got built this way.
read more | digg story
Saturday, 19 January 2008
Sunday, 6 January 2008
ORCA MAX'INUX
Orca, Black Fish or Killer Whale — these toothed whales in the oceanic dolphin family are one of the most recognized species in the world.
These large marine mammals are easily distinguished by their black-and-white colouration, large dorsal fin and a sleek, streamlined body. You can often get a peek at their top fin and just enough of their distinctive white eye patch to id
Their genus name Orcinus means "of the kingdom of the dead."
In the Kwak̓wala language of the Kwakiutl or Kwakwaka'wakw, speakers of Kwak'wala, of the Pacific Northwest, orca or killer whales are known as max̱'inux̱.
Thursday, 3 January 2008
Burgess Shale 2008
BURGESS
SHALE
2008
For those of you who are interested in seeing the magnificent fossils of the Burgess Shale or hiking to the Mt. Stephen Fossil Beds, here is the updated information for 2008:
Reservations are taken at 9AM to Noon and 1PM to 3PM local time on Mondays to Fridays. General Information for registering for the Guided Hikes to the:
Burgess Shale – Walcott Quarry
Mt. Stephen Fossil Beds and the
Climate Change Hike
Payment must be made at the time of registering for each hike. There is a no refund policy and the fee for making changes to the schedule of the hike once the registration has been made is $20 CAD per person. There is no answering machine on the 1-800-343-3006, if you wish to leave a message please phone the administration number at: 250-343-6006. Office hours during weekdays only.
The residential mailing addresses with postal/zip code is required for each person in your group. At the time of registering the name and address of the person registering is required and the additional names and addresses can be emailed to: info@burgess-shale.bc.ca at a later date, but prior to the date of the hike. The method of payment is master card, visa or personal cheques approved by the Director. Cheques must be received within one week from the date of registration or the registration will be cancelled. You can fax your credit card information to: 250-343-6426 no cover page is required.
The payment for the hike will be processed and you and a confirmation and waiver form will be emailed to you. The confirmation form provides you with the details of the hike, the meeting places and times and what you need to bring with you during the hike. The waiver form must be filled in, signed in the appropriate places and witnessed by a friend or neighbour. Bring the completed waiver form with you and hand it to your guide on the morning of the hike. Do not mail the waiver form. A legal guardian must sign for children under the age of 19 years.
Please provide us with the place you are staying and a contact phone number of where you can be reached on the night prior to the hike. This is necessary in the event that bad weather results in delays or cancellation of the hike or we need to change the meeting place. Sorry, cell phones do not work in here in Field. If the Foundation cancels the hike for whatever reason, you will be provided with a full refund.
Burgess Shale – Walcott Quarry
Mt. Stephen Fossil Beds and the
Climate Change Hike
Payment must be made at the time of registering for each hike. There is a no refund policy and the fee for making changes to the schedule of the hike once the registration has been made is $20 CAD per person. There is no answering machine on the 1-800-343-3006, if you wish to leave a message please phone the administration number at: 250-343-6006. Office hours during weekdays only.
The residential mailing addresses with postal/zip code is required for each person in your group. At the time of registering the name and address of the person registering is required and the additional names and addresses can be emailed to: info@burgess-shale.bc.ca at a later date, but prior to the date of the hike. The method of payment is master card, visa or personal cheques approved by the Director. Cheques must be received within one week from the date of registration or the registration will be cancelled. You can fax your credit card information to: 250-343-6426 no cover page is required.
The payment for the hike will be processed and you and a confirmation and waiver form will be emailed to you. The confirmation form provides you with the details of the hike, the meeting places and times and what you need to bring with you during the hike. The waiver form must be filled in, signed in the appropriate places and witnessed by a friend or neighbour. Bring the completed waiver form with you and hand it to your guide on the morning of the hike. Do not mail the waiver form. A legal guardian must sign for children under the age of 19 years.
Please provide us with the place you are staying and a contact phone number of where you can be reached on the night prior to the hike. This is necessary in the event that bad weather results in delays or cancellation of the hike or we need to change the meeting place. Sorry, cell phones do not work in here in Field. If the Foundation cancels the hike for whatever reason, you will be provided with a full refund.
For information regarding group bookings please call Randle Robertson at 1-800-343-3006.
If you require additional information please refer to our website: http://www.burgess-shale.bc.ca/
If you require additional information please refer to our website: http://www.burgess-shale.bc.ca/
Monday, 31 December 2007
CARCHARDONTOSAURUS GOES EXTINCT TWICE
Carcharodontosaurus iguidensis from the Cenomanian of Nigeria and published in this months issue Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. This fellow almost had the misfortune of going extinct twice!
Tooth fragments collected by Charles Depéret and J. Savornin in 1927 were misplaced before this meat-eater could ever be described and when additional material was collected in Egypt in the 1930’s it also came to an unfortunate end. Sent to German paleontologists in Munich to describe, the fossils were lost in the rubble as Allied Forces bombed the building in which they were housed during WW II.
But the rocky history and luck of Carcharodontosaurus iguidensis improved when paleontologist Paul Sereno found cranial material on a Moroccan dig in 1996. That find combined with material collected the following year in Nigeria were examined by Sereno and Steve Brusatte, a paleobiologist at the University of Bristol in England, and Paul Sereno and determined to be a new species, not C. saharicus as originally thought.
The massive skull, neck and bone fragments belonged to Carcharodontosaurus iguidensis, one of the largest dinosaurs ever found. Carcharodontosaurus differs from C. saharicus, his smaller Saharan coursin, both in the maxilla and braincase. Carcharodontosaurus iguidensis walked upright and was a massive beast, weighing in at an impressive 3.2 tons.
Extending upwards of 14 meters (44 ft), nearly as long as Tyrannosaurs, alive today they could easily peer through a second story window - a menacing thought as they were well-equipped hunters with sizable teeth.The climate was much warmer when Carcharodontosaurus iguidensis and C. saharicus roamed the Earth and the seas much higher. Beyond geographic distance, the raised sea level may have been what set these therapods apart. Shallow seas separated what is now Morocco and Nigeria and this separation may have prompted the development of the unique characteristics define the two species.. Perhaps more abundant prey and favorable conditions allowed Carcharodontosaurus iguidensis to grow to their huge size while C. saharicus remained a smallish 1.6 meters (5.2 ft).
While not a reptile, C. saharicus has been compared with modern Crocodylia, another group who first appeared in the Cretaceous, as they share similar inner ear anatomy and cerebrum size relative to total brain. Like many therapods prior to the 1930’s, the African species were originally misgrouped into the genus Megalosaurus. Paleontologist Ernst Stromer von Reichenbach corrected this error.
After taking a closer look at their anatomy, particularly their dentition, he renamed them Carcharodontosaurus in 1931 citeing their "mainly Carcharodon-like teeth", which were "not recurved, almost bilaterally symmetrical but with convex edges” The Carcharodontosaurids were a group of gigantic carnivorous carcharodontosaurid dinosaurs that lived 98 to 93 million years ago.
Carcharodontosaurus means 'shark lizard', after the shark genus Carcharodon, an apt handle as they were ominous killers with enormous jaws and long, serrated teeth, some as long as eight inches.
Tooth fragments collected by Charles Depéret and J. Savornin in 1927 were misplaced before this meat-eater could ever be described and when additional material was collected in Egypt in the 1930’s it also came to an unfortunate end. Sent to German paleontologists in Munich to describe, the fossils were lost in the rubble as Allied Forces bombed the building in which they were housed during WW II.
But the rocky history and luck of Carcharodontosaurus iguidensis improved when paleontologist Paul Sereno found cranial material on a Moroccan dig in 1996. That find combined with material collected the following year in Nigeria were examined by Sereno and Steve Brusatte, a paleobiologist at the University of Bristol in England, and Paul Sereno and determined to be a new species, not C. saharicus as originally thought.
The massive skull, neck and bone fragments belonged to Carcharodontosaurus iguidensis, one of the largest dinosaurs ever found. Carcharodontosaurus differs from C. saharicus, his smaller Saharan coursin, both in the maxilla and braincase. Carcharodontosaurus iguidensis walked upright and was a massive beast, weighing in at an impressive 3.2 tons.
Extending upwards of 14 meters (44 ft), nearly as long as Tyrannosaurs, alive today they could easily peer through a second story window - a menacing thought as they were well-equipped hunters with sizable teeth.The climate was much warmer when Carcharodontosaurus iguidensis and C. saharicus roamed the Earth and the seas much higher. Beyond geographic distance, the raised sea level may have been what set these therapods apart. Shallow seas separated what is now Morocco and Nigeria and this separation may have prompted the development of the unique characteristics define the two species.. Perhaps more abundant prey and favorable conditions allowed Carcharodontosaurus iguidensis to grow to their huge size while C. saharicus remained a smallish 1.6 meters (5.2 ft).
While not a reptile, C. saharicus has been compared with modern Crocodylia, another group who first appeared in the Cretaceous, as they share similar inner ear anatomy and cerebrum size relative to total brain. Like many therapods prior to the 1930’s, the African species were originally misgrouped into the genus Megalosaurus. Paleontologist Ernst Stromer von Reichenbach corrected this error.
After taking a closer look at their anatomy, particularly their dentition, he renamed them Carcharodontosaurus in 1931 citeing their "mainly Carcharodon-like teeth", which were "not recurved, almost bilaterally symmetrical but with convex edges” The Carcharodontosaurids were a group of gigantic carnivorous carcharodontosaurid dinosaurs that lived 98 to 93 million years ago.
Carcharodontosaurus means 'shark lizard', after the shark genus Carcharodon, an apt handle as they were ominous killers with enormous jaws and long, serrated teeth, some as long as eight inches.
Thursday, 27 December 2007
Fossil Field Trip to the Olympic Peninsula
One of the most beautiful drives in the Pacific Northwest is the coastline along the Olympic Peninsula from Port Angeles to Neah Bay. This stretch of coastline is also home to the Clallam Formation, a thick, mainly marine sequence of sandstones and siltstones that line the northwestern margin of the Olympic Peninsula, western Washington. The sequence offers plentiful fossils for those keen to make the trek.
The beautifully preserved clams, scallops and gastropods. The fossils found at Clallam are mostly shallow-water from the late Eocene to Miocene. Time, tide and weather permitting, a site well worth visiting is the south flank of a syncline at Slip Point, near Clallam BayGetting there…
Directions: From Vancouver it is a 5-6 hour drive to the Olympic Peninsula. Head South on Oak or Knight to connect up with Hwy 99 to the US border and continue South on Hwy 5, past Bellingham, take Hwy 20 to Anacortes.Head South on Hwy 20 until you get to the Keystone Jetty. Take the ferry from Keystone to Port Townsend. From Port Townsend take Hwy 20 until it connects with Hwy 101. Turn right onto Hwy 101 and head West.
You will pass through Port Angeles. This is an excellent place for you to top up your food stores and fill up with gas. Just after Port Angeles, look for a sign for Hwy 112 (towards Joyce, Neah Bay & Seiqu). Turn right and head West. It is about another 30 kms from Port Angeles to Whiskey Creek.From the turn-off it is about 10 miles to Joyce. This little town has restaurants and gas stations. From Joyce it is another 3 miles to our campsite at Whiskey Creek where Joe or Ronee can help direct you to your cabin or campsite.
Where to stay…
We will be staying at the Whiskey Creek Campsite, 1385 Whiskey Creek Beach Road, Port Angeles, WA, 98363, Tel: (360) 928-3489. Whiskey Creek is a saltwater beach on the Strait of Juan de Fuca, 19 miles west of Port Angeles off Highway 112 – 3 miles west of Joyce. The owners are Joe and Ronee, P.O. Box 130, Joyce, WA, 98343.The Whiskey Creek Campsite is open from May 1st to Oct 1st for tenting and year-round for their cabins. Cabins range in price from $70 - $80US/night and sleep 4. They are all right on the ocean except for one, which is set back a ways. Several of the cabins have in-suite washroom, incl. Showers, kitchenette & stoves.
Codfish Cottage is all propane and has an elevated Queen bed and a hide-a-bed. The higher priced cabins are full propane and the cheaper ones are wood heat. They book up early, so call early.For camping, each site holds 4 and is $15.00/night and an additional $2.50 for every extra person. They do not showers, electricity or phones. There is a general store in Joyce, just 3 miles East, that sells food, ice, propane, firewood, etc. The campsite is dog friendly. Dogs must be kept on a leash and all poop scooped. They charge $2.00/day.Cabins: H Jasper Inn ($70/night sleeps 4) H HH H CQ H CF*
Please note that the Lyre River Campsite closed permanently as of Sept 2003. What to bring…If anyone is joining us, they want to purchase a Washington State map. Maps are available at many of the gas stations once you cross the border. Runners or hiking boots, rubber boots, sandals, sunscreen, food and US$ for gas and ferries. You’ll also want a backpack, chisel, newspaper to wrap fossils, hammer, goggles, gloves, hat and outer wear. A notebook and pencil for field notes.
Tide & Ferry Info…
Tide Tables On-line: http://www.portangeles.org/20.htmlwww. harbourtides.com (look for Crescent Bay, WA)Washington Ferry Info: Tel: 1-800-84FerrySidney, Vancouver Island: Tel: (250) 656.1531
Tuesday, 18 December 2007
OYSTERS: TLOXTLOX
While rare today, these are British Columbia’s only native oyster. Had you been dining on their brethren in the 1800s or earlier, it would have been this species you were consuming. Middens from Port Hardy to California are built from Ostrea lurida.
These wonderful invertebrates bare their souls with every bite. Have they lived in cold water, deep beneath the sea away from the suns rays and heat? Are they the rough and tumbled beach denizens whose thick shells have formed to withstand the pounding of the sea?
Is the oyster in your mouth thin and slimy having just done the nasty spurred by the warming waters of Spring? Is this oyster a local or was it shipped to your current local and if asked would greet you with "Kon'nichiwa?" Not if the beauty on your plate is indeed Ostrea lurida.
We have been cultivating, indeed maximizing the influx of invasive species to the cold waters of the Salish Sea. But in the wild waters off the coast of British Columbia is the last natural abundant habitat of the tasty Ostrea lurida in the pristine waters of Nootka Sound. The area is home to the Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations who have consumed this species boiled or steamed for thousands of years. Here these ancient oysters not only survive but thrive — building reefs and providing habitat for crab, anemones and small marine animals.
Oysters are in the family Ostreidae — the true oysters. Their lineage evolved in the Early Triassic — 251 - 247 million years ago.
In the Kwak̓wala language of the Kwakiutl or Kwakwaka'wakw, speakers of Kwak'wala, of the Pacific Northwest, an oyster is known as t̕łox̱t̕łox̱. I am curious to learn if any of the Nuu-chah-nulth have a different word for an oyster. If you happen to know, I would be grateful to learn.
Sunday, 9 December 2007
Wednesday, 28 November 2007
BLUE JAYS: KWASK'WAS
Blue Jays are in the family Corvidae — along with crows, ravens, rooks, magpies and jackdaws. They belong to a lineage of birds first seen in the Miocene — 25 million years ago.
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Their Binomial name, Cyanocitta cristata means, crested, blue chattering bird. I might have amended that to something less flattering, working in a Latin word or two for shrieks and screams — voce et gemitu or ululo et quiritor. While their plumage is a visual feast, their bird chatter leaves something to be desired.
These beautifully plumed, blue, black and white birds can be found across southern Canada down to Florida. The distinctive blue you see in their feathers is a trick of the light. Their pigment, melanin, is actually a rather dull brown. The blue you see is caused by scattering light through modified cells on the surface of the feather as wee barbs.
Blue jays like to dine on nuts, seeds, suet, arthropods and some small vertebrates.
If you are attempting to lure them to your yard with a bird feeder, they prefer those mounted on trays or posts versus hanging feeders. They will eat most anything you have on offer but sunflower seeds and peanuts are their favourites.
They have a fondness for acorns and have been credited with helping expand the range of oak trees as the ice melted after the last glacial period.
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Their cries are quite helpful if you are an animal living nearby and concerned about predators.
In the Kwak̓wala language of the Kwakiutl or Kwakwaka'wakw, speakers of Kwak'wala, of the Pacific Northwest, a Blue Jay is known as kwa̱skwa̱s.
The Kwak’wala word for blue is dzasa and cry is ḵ̕was'id. For interest, the word for bird song in Kwak'wala is t̕sa̱sḵwana.
Tuesday, 27 November 2007
Qualicum Beach: The Gem of Vancouver Island
Qualicum Beach, a quaint community just 47 kms or 30 minutes north of Nanaimo. Offering everything the year-round traveler could want.
Whether its the beach that draws you or the leisurely stroll through town, you have many options for your oceanside visit. Visit the local galleries, boutiques and cafes that make Qualicum feel like a European village or check out their famous garage sales for their many bargains.
The outdoor enthusiast will appreciate the long stretches of sandy beach, old growth forests, nearby mountains with winter skiing and mild climate for year-round golf.
A trip to Qualicum Beach is a bit like visiting a garden county in England, all hanging baskets and clipped lawns. There are many hidden treasures in the area.
You could take in the fresh air and hike the alpine trail leading to Mount Arrowsmith Lookout or follow gentle paths amongst the 850 year old Douglas Firs at MacMillan Park’s Cathedral Grove.
There are fossils to be found... though not extracted from the park at Englishman River Falls or you could explore the Crystalline interior of the Horne Lake underground caves - an intriguing side trip just west of the town of Qualicum. Those in the know travel to these moist refuges to take in the quiet and walk in wonder and shadow with the help of one of the local guides.
No trip to Qualicum Beach is complete without a trip to the Qualicum Museum.
Here you’ll see the life-time collection of Graham Beard, co-author of West Coast Fossils and Chair of the Vancouver Island Paleontological Museum Society. With his wife, Tina, a talented artist and fossil collector in her own right, he has been actively collecting fossils on Vancouver Island for over 30 years.
Getting there:
From the Departure Bay ferry terminal in Nanaimo, stay to your right and head up the hill and head north on the Island Hwy north. Take the Qualicum turn-off. The road heads straight through this picturesque little town, past quaint little coffee shops and continues to the seashore. To visit the Qualicum Museum, turn left onto Sunningdale just as you cross the railroad tracks.
The museum is at the end of the street. They have a sweet interglacial walrus found in Qualicum and a nice selection of other local fossils.
Whether its the beach that draws you or the leisurely stroll through town, you have many options for your oceanside visit. Visit the local galleries, boutiques and cafes that make Qualicum feel like a European village or check out their famous garage sales for their many bargains.
The outdoor enthusiast will appreciate the long stretches of sandy beach, old growth forests, nearby mountains with winter skiing and mild climate for year-round golf.
A trip to Qualicum Beach is a bit like visiting a garden county in England, all hanging baskets and clipped lawns. There are many hidden treasures in the area.
You could take in the fresh air and hike the alpine trail leading to Mount Arrowsmith Lookout or follow gentle paths amongst the 850 year old Douglas Firs at MacMillan Park’s Cathedral Grove.
There are fossils to be found... though not extracted from the park at Englishman River Falls or you could explore the Crystalline interior of the Horne Lake underground caves - an intriguing side trip just west of the town of Qualicum. Those in the know travel to these moist refuges to take in the quiet and walk in wonder and shadow with the help of one of the local guides.
No trip to Qualicum Beach is complete without a trip to the Qualicum Museum.
Here you’ll see the life-time collection of Graham Beard, co-author of West Coast Fossils and Chair of the Vancouver Island Paleontological Museum Society. With his wife, Tina, a talented artist and fossil collector in her own right, he has been actively collecting fossils on Vancouver Island for over 30 years.
Getting there:
From the Departure Bay ferry terminal in Nanaimo, stay to your right and head up the hill and head north on the Island Hwy north. Take the Qualicum turn-off. The road heads straight through this picturesque little town, past quaint little coffee shops and continues to the seashore. To visit the Qualicum Museum, turn left onto Sunningdale just as you cross the railroad tracks.
The museum is at the end of the street. They have a sweet interglacial walrus found in Qualicum and a nice selection of other local fossils.
Saturday, 17 November 2007
Friday, 16 November 2007
Thursday, 15 November 2007
Thursday, 8 November 2007
Sunday, 21 October 2007
HOWE SOUND CORRIDOR
A short 90-minute drive north of the city of Vancouver, the nation's gateway to the Pacific, is a recreational Shangri-La that attracts four season adventurers from around the globe to ski, board, hike, mountain bike, kayak and climb the local peaks. This treasure trove wilderness playground stretches along the breathtaking Sea-to-Sky Highway affording breathtaking views of the Pacific as it follows Highway 99 north out of the sparkling gem of Vancouver from Lions Bay, through Squamish and Garibaldi and into the picturesque Whistler Valley.
As you drive out of the city, look at the mountains to the north. Grouse, Cypress and Seymour mountains provide easy access skiing for the happy winter adventurer and a beautiful backdrop to the young city of Vancouver, Canada's third-largest metropolis, year-round.
While the city sits on relatively young sandstone and mudstone, the North Shore Mountains are made from granite that formed deep within the Earth more than 100 million years ago.
Following Highway 99, you’ll hug the coastline of Howe Sound, a glacially carved fiord which extends from Horseshoe Bay (20 km northwest of Vancouver) to the hamlet of Squamish. The road is perched high above the water, blasted into the rock of the steep glacial-valley slope and has been the chosen path for First Nation hunters, early explorers, the miners of the Gold Rush and now the rush of tourism.
Carved from the granitic mountainside high above Howe Sound, this scenic pathway has been a rich recreation corridor and traditional First Nation hunting ground for many years.
Steeped in a First Nations history, bountiful wildlife and gorgeous vistas, the Whistler corridor is considered by many to be one of the most beautiful spots on the globe with something for everyone.
Saturday, 20 October 2007
Wednesday, 17 October 2007
Saturday, 13 October 2007
Tuesday, 9 October 2007
Pterodactyl-Inspired Unmanned Aerial Vehicle with Multimodal Locomotion
IT SEEMS WE ALL LOVE BIG BIRD... THOUGH IN THIS CASE IT IS A PTERODACTYL INSPIRING THE SCIENTISTS INSTEAD OF A LARGE YELLOW FELLOW INSPIRING THE MASSES...
View abstract, session no. 260, paper no. 12: Pterodactyl-Inspired Unmanned Aerial Vehicle with Multimodal Locomotion at:
http://a-c-s.confex.com/crops/2008am/webprogram/Paper47647.html
View abstract, session no. 260, paper no. 12: Pterodactyl-Inspired Unmanned Aerial Vehicle with Multimodal Locomotion at:
http://a-c-s.confex.com/crops/2008am/webprogram/Paper47647.html
Saturday, 22 September 2007
Wednesday, 5 September 2007
Neanderthals.. not the coolest of the cool kids
Scientists have determined that Neandertals had big mouths that they were able to open unusually wide. No great surprise given their large craniums and strong facial musculature, but what is more interesting is that we have now sequenced their DNA and determined that they did not interbreed with modern homeo sapien sapiens. They may have over lapped in time, but not in genes...
Do you suppose Neanderthals died out because of some lack of evolutionary skill or perhaps their small, inbred population with a sea of genetic mutations and mouths gaped widely meant the cooler kids, the homo sapien hipsters, just wouldn't play nice, hang out and interbreed?
Do you suppose Neanderthals died out because of some lack of evolutionary skill or perhaps their small, inbred population with a sea of genetic mutations and mouths gaped widely meant the cooler kids, the homo sapien hipsters, just wouldn't play nice, hang out and interbreed?
Thursday, 9 August 2007
Wednesday, 11 July 2007
Thursday, 5 July 2007
Monday, 2 July 2007
Monday, 11 June 2007
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