Science is a method of knowing and not a set of established facts. Even though this is widely ack... more Science is a method of knowing and not a set of established facts. Even though this is widely acknowledged in the literature of science education, it is not so in the perception of the general public. Therefore, it is little wonder that when a “scientific fact” changes due to the discovery of new evidence, students raised on the notion of fact-based science may become confused and begin to mistrust science. Involvement in actual scientific experience, however, can make a difference. Once students participate in scientific endeavors, they see science as an active process, something ongoing instead of something completed. Few experiences compare with the paleontological field trip as an educational tool for exemplifying the basic method of science. We believe the following reasons make frequent field trips worth incorporating into the standard science curriculum at all grade levels.
Suppose You are given one hour to tell someone about paleontology. The audience is naive but inte... more Suppose You are given one hour to tell someone about paleontology. The audience is naive but interested. They want to know something about paleontology but have not previously received, and may ever again receive, formal instruction in the subject. What will you choose to talk about?
ABSTRACT The first occurrence of the ?Cnidarian fossil Plumalina n. sp. is documented from mid Si... more ABSTRACT The first occurrence of the ?Cnidarian fossil Plumalina n. sp. is documented from mid Silurian strata of central and western New York State. This new discovery extends the lower limit of this group's range approximately 35 million years, from Eifelian (Middle Devonian) to Wenlockian (mid Silurian).First described by James Hall in 1858 and best known from the Upper Devonian of New York, Plumalina is also noted from Middle Devonian strata in New York and Germany. More recently, a single poorly preserved specimen of Plumalina n. sp. was collected from calcareous shales of the Silurian Rochester Shale of western New York. Comparison of the new specimen with Middle and Upper Devonian forms reveals a morphologic transition not previously recognized. Trends include: 1) an overall increase in the number of side branches or pinnae along the main axis (rachis), and 2) an apparent increase in thickness of pinnae. Most Upper Devonian specimens possess encrusting rhynchonellid brachiopods attached to the main axis and embryonic individuals attached to robust pinnae. The presence of these epibionts supports the notion that Upper Devonian forms had a more rigid morphology. The angle of attachment of pinnae along the rachis has been used by previous authors as an important criterion for designating the three known species. We feel this criterion is unreliable, since several nearly complete specimens of Plumalina plumaria and P. densa display a consistent change in attachment angle, from 80-82 degrees in distal portions to 50-55 degrees near the apex. This change in attachment angle is a result of normal colony growth or astogeny. Plumalina has been classified as a graptolite, a lycopod, a gorgonian and a hydrozoan by previous authors. Although the new specimen provides no definitive evidence of its systematic position, its general morphology and taphonomy strongly suggests affinities with modern plumularian hydrozoans.
Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 2000
The Cap-aux-Os Member (of Emsian age) of the Battery Point Formation, Gaspé Bay, Québec, comprise... more The Cap-aux-Os Member (of Emsian age) of the Battery Point Formation, Gaspé Bay, Québec, comprises coastal and fluvial deposits containing abundant, well-preserved remains of early land plants (embryophytes). Metres-thick sandstone bodies represent the deposits of the main river channels, including some that were tidally influenced. Thinner sandstone bodies within mudstone successions represent deposits of crevasse splays-levees, lacustrine deltas, tidal channels, flood-tidal deltas and washovers. Mudstone-dominant strata represent backswamps and marshes, lakes, coastal bays and tidal flats. Certain plants (trimerophytes, Huvenia and Sciadophyton) are particularly common on the moist, upper parts of near-coastal channel bars. They apparently germinated and grew rapidly on freshly exposed muds deposited during floods or exceptionally high tides. In situ zosterophylls are most common in backswamp and marshy areas, where they formed extensive, relatively longlived stands. It is uncerta...
Science is a method of knowing and not a set of established facts. Even though this is widely ack... more Science is a method of knowing and not a set of established facts. Even though this is widely acknowledged in the literature of science education, it is not so in the perception of the general public. Therefore, it is little wonder that when a “scientific fact” changes due to the discovery of new evidence, students raised on the notion of fact-based science may become confused and begin to mistrust science. Involvement in actual scientific experience, however, can make a difference. Once students participate in scientific endeavors, they see science as an active process, something ongoing instead of something completed. Few experiences compare with the paleontological field trip as an educational tool for exemplifying the basic method of science. We believe the following reasons make frequent field trips worth incorporating into the standard science curriculum at all grade levels.
Suppose You are given one hour to tell someone about paleontology. The audience is naive but inte... more Suppose You are given one hour to tell someone about paleontology. The audience is naive but interested. They want to know something about paleontology but have not previously received, and may ever again receive, formal instruction in the subject. What will you choose to talk about?
ABSTRACT The first occurrence of the ?Cnidarian fossil Plumalina n. sp. is documented from mid Si... more ABSTRACT The first occurrence of the ?Cnidarian fossil Plumalina n. sp. is documented from mid Silurian strata of central and western New York State. This new discovery extends the lower limit of this group's range approximately 35 million years, from Eifelian (Middle Devonian) to Wenlockian (mid Silurian).First described by James Hall in 1858 and best known from the Upper Devonian of New York, Plumalina is also noted from Middle Devonian strata in New York and Germany. More recently, a single poorly preserved specimen of Plumalina n. sp. was collected from calcareous shales of the Silurian Rochester Shale of western New York. Comparison of the new specimen with Middle and Upper Devonian forms reveals a morphologic transition not previously recognized. Trends include: 1) an overall increase in the number of side branches or pinnae along the main axis (rachis), and 2) an apparent increase in thickness of pinnae. Most Upper Devonian specimens possess encrusting rhynchonellid brachiopods attached to the main axis and embryonic individuals attached to robust pinnae. The presence of these epibionts supports the notion that Upper Devonian forms had a more rigid morphology. The angle of attachment of pinnae along the rachis has been used by previous authors as an important criterion for designating the three known species. We feel this criterion is unreliable, since several nearly complete specimens of Plumalina plumaria and P. densa display a consistent change in attachment angle, from 80-82 degrees in distal portions to 50-55 degrees near the apex. This change in attachment angle is a result of normal colony growth or astogeny. Plumalina has been classified as a graptolite, a lycopod, a gorgonian and a hydrozoan by previous authors. Although the new specimen provides no definitive evidence of its systematic position, its general morphology and taphonomy strongly suggests affinities with modern plumularian hydrozoans.
Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 2000
The Cap-aux-Os Member (of Emsian age) of the Battery Point Formation, Gaspé Bay, Québec, comprise... more The Cap-aux-Os Member (of Emsian age) of the Battery Point Formation, Gaspé Bay, Québec, comprises coastal and fluvial deposits containing abundant, well-preserved remains of early land plants (embryophytes). Metres-thick sandstone bodies represent the deposits of the main river channels, including some that were tidally influenced. Thinner sandstone bodies within mudstone successions represent deposits of crevasse splays-levees, lacustrine deltas, tidal channels, flood-tidal deltas and washovers. Mudstone-dominant strata represent backswamps and marshes, lakes, coastal bays and tidal flats. Certain plants (trimerophytes, Huvenia and Sciadophyton) are particularly common on the moist, upper parts of near-coastal channel bars. They apparently germinated and grew rapidly on freshly exposed muds deposited during floods or exceptionally high tides. In situ zosterophylls are most common in backswamp and marshy areas, where they formed extensive, relatively longlived stands. It is uncerta...
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