Fabulous Fossils

"Fabulous Fossils is a timely and significant contribution to the history of science and evolutionary paleontology. It details humanity's interest and developing understanding of trilobites from the recovery of these fossils at 15,000 year-old Paleolithic sites, to the 18th century appreciation that they were arthropod fossils. This volume elaborates on the development of modern trilobite research in Australia and a number of American, European, and Asian countries"--Publisher's description.

In bold, colorful, graphic nonfiction format, Fantastic Fossils tells three captivating stories about early paleontology and the popular figures who helped develop the field, including Anning, Cope, and Marsh. These richly-illustrated, high-interest stories are perfect for the reluctant reader, and the engaging, informative narratives are accessible introductions to the engrossing history of paleontology.

Dig into the world of geology with the Rock On! series! Fantastic Fossils introduces readers to the different types of fossils and how they form, from petrifaction and carbonization to molds, impressions, and amber. Chapters discuss key fossils finds, such as perfectly preserved mammoths and the dinosaur-like, feathered archaeopteryx. Readers will be introduced to scientists who made important discoveries and contributions to the study of fossils. They will also learn about the way we use fossils today, in the form of fossil fuels. A colorful geologic time scale spreads across two pages and an at-home experiment provides the opportunity for hands-on experience. Full-color photographs will draw in the reader while easy-to-read text breaks down complex concepts. Glossary words in bold, an index, and phonetic spellings for those hard-to-pronounce geologic terms enhance and supplement the text. Checkerboard Library is an imprint of ABDO Publishing Company.

Nothing fills us with a sense of wonder like fossils. What looks at first like a simple rock is in fact a clue that reveals the staggering diversity of ancient environments, the winding pathways of evolution, and the majesty of a vanished earth. But as much as one might daydream of digging a hole in the backyard and finding a Tyrannosaurus, only a few places contain these buried treasures, and when a scientist comes across a remnant of prehistoric life, great care must be taken. What do budding paleontologists need to know before starting their search? In Fantastic Fossils, Donald R. Prothero offers an accessible, entertaining, and richly illustrated guide to the paleontologist’s journey. He details the best places to look for fossils, the art of how to find them, and how to classify the major types. Prothero provides expert wisdom about typical fossils that an average person can hope to collect and how to hunt fossils responsibly and ethically. He also explores the lessons that both common and rarer discoveries offer about paleontology and its history, as well as what fossils can tell us about past climates and present climate change. Captivating illustrations by the paleoartist Mary Persis Williams bring to life hundreds of important specimens. Offering valuable lessons for armchair enthusiasts and paleontology students alike, Fantastic Fossils is an essential companion for all readers who have ever dreamed of going in search of traces of a lost world.

Age is just a number and getting old doesn't mean you can't have fun. It just means you know how to get away with it... Viagra, Snuff, and Rock ‘n’ Roll Fossdyke Retirement Home has seen its fair share of quirky characters, but it’s never seen the likes of these four geriatric musicians who form a band called Fossils. Chaos erupts after winning a national competition, when a local DJ who entered their recording into the contest labels Fossils as a vibrant young rock band. Fearing the English press persecuting them and their families when they find out the truth, the four flee England until they can resolve their situation. Follow the madcap adventures of Britain’s most irreverently lovable elderly rockers as they trip, stumble, and fall into one situation after another while traveling around Southeast Asia evading adoring fans, journalists, and a ruthless record producer. Viagra, Snuff, and Rock ‘n’ Roll

This book discusses the history of invertebrate fossil understanding and classification by exploring fossil studies between the 15th and 18th centuries. Before the modern age, the understanding of fossil findings went through several phases. The treatment by philologists, philosophers and historians of natural sciences involved religious, sometimes folkloristic, aspects before scientific ones. This work showcases and assesses these original findings by carrying out a bibliographical, and above all iconographical research, aimed at finding the first printed images of the objects that we now know as fossils. From here, the authors provide an understanding of the true nature of fossils by analyzing them through modern academic viewpoints, and describing each fossil group from a paleontological and taxonomic point of view, retracing their treatment in the course of the centuries. As a point of reference for each fossil group treated, the authors have considered indispensable the use of ancient prints as evidence of the first iconographic sources dedicated to fossils, starting from those in the late fifteenth century, dedicated to the most common groups of invertebrates without neglecting a necessary exception, the ichthyodontolites, fundamental in the discussion in Italy on the interpretation of the organic origin of fossils, and from the end of the sixteenth century to about half of the eighteenth century. The abundant iconographic apparatus used, often unpublished or specially reworked, is essential and functional to the understanding of the various aspects addressed, a visual complement to the text and vice versa, designed and used taking its cue from the need imposed on early scholars to document their discoveries visually. Among the chosen images there is no shortage of original attributions to fossil finds that have been poorly understood or misidentified until now. The English translation of this book from its Italian original manuscript was done with the help of artificial intelligence (machine translation by the service provider DeepL.com). A subsequent human revision of the content was done by the authors.

Those opposed to the teaching of evolution often make well-rehearsed claims about science that sound powerful and convincing. This work seeks to serve as a resource for addressing over 400 of the most prevalent claims made by creationists. Each claim is followed by a scientifically valid rebuttal.

This two-volume edited book highlights and reviews the potential of the fossil record to calibrate the origin and evolution of parasitism, and the techniques to understand the development of parasite-host associations and their relationships with environmental and ecological changes. The book deploys a broad and comprehensive approach, aimed at understanding the origins and developments of various parasite groups, in order to provide a wider evolutionary picture of parasitism as part of biodiversity. This is in contrast to most contributions by parasitologists in the literature that focus on circular lines of evidence, such as extrapolating from current host associations or distributions, to estimate constraints on the timing of the origin and evolution of various parasite groups. This approach is narrow and fails to provide the wider evolutionary picture of parasitism on, and as part of, biodiversity. Volume two focuses on the importance of direct host associations and host responses such as pathologies in the geological record to constrain the role of antagonistic interactions in driving the diversification and extinction of parasite-host relationships and disease. To better understand the impact on host populations, emphasis is given to arthropods, colonial metazoans, echinoderms, mollusks and vertebrates as hosts. In addition, novel techniques used to constrain interactions in deep time are discussed ranging from chemical and microscopic investigations of host remains, such as blood and coprolites, to the statistical inference of lateral transfer of transposons and host-parasite coevolutionary dynamics using molecular divergence time estimation.