Posted on 06/09/2015 12:22:24 PM PDT by ETL
Dinosaur fossils, it was long thought, are simple objects. The fossilization process leaves the overall shape of a dinosaur's bones intact, but all the microscopic structures inside them the blood cells, connective fibers, and other sorts of soft tissue inevitably decay over time.
The photo above, from a new study published today in Nature Communications and led by Sergio Bertazzo of Imperial College London, shows an extremely zoomed-in view of a 75-million-year-old theropod claw, taken from the London Natural History Museum's collection. When researchers scraped tiny pieces off the fossil and looked at them under an electron microscope, they found tiny structures that look a lot like collagen fibers present in our own ligaments, tendons, and bones.
In other dinosaur fossils, the researchers found features that resemble red blood cells. Tests showed that they have a similar chemical composition to the blood of an emu (a bird thought to be a relatively close relative to dinosaurs).
The idea that dinosaur fossils might harbor soft tissue first surfaced about a decade ago, when paleontologist Mary Schweitzer found evidence of blood cells preserved inside T. rex fossils.
But what's so exciting about this new study is that the fossils used, unlike Schweitzer's, aren't particularly well-preserved. Susannah Maidment, one of the paleontologists who worked on the paper, called them "crap" specimens. If they have preserved soft tissue inside them, it could be a sign that thousands of other fossils in museum collections do too.
Sorry, I don't have any of their preserved cell tissue, but I have some pretty well preserved pics of Racquel Welch...
And just in time for Jurassic World coming out......
or more exactly, the emu is a dinosaur
Tyrannosaurid theropod dinosaurs were blond...
Who knew. ;-)
That was my very first thought heh.
“It could also be a sign that they’re not as old as previously believed.”
Blasphemy!!!
"When researchers scraped tiny pieces off the fossil and looked at them under an electron microscope, they found tiny structures that look a lot like collagen fibers present in our own ligaments, tendons, and bones."
The photo above, from a new study published today in Nature Communications and led by Sergio Bertazzo of Imperial College London, shows an extremely zoomed-in view of a 75-million-year-old theropod claw, taken from the London Natural History Museum's collection. When researchers scraped tiny pieces off the fossil and looked at them under an electron microscope, they found tiny structures that look a lot like collagen fibers present in our own ligaments, tendons, and bones.
In fact, she didn’t radiocarbon date dino fossils.
She has said her finds in no way support a recent age for the fossils of dinos.
> One thing that does bother me, though, is that young earth creationists take my research and use it for their own message, and I think they are misleading people about it. Pastors and evangelists, who are in a position of leadership, are doubly responsible for checking facts and getting things right, but they have misquoted me and misrepresented the data. They’re looking at this research in terms of a false dichotomy [science versus faith] and that doesn’t do anybody any favors... I do go to pretty conservative churches. One time I was visiting a church and the pastor got up and started preaching a sermon about people not being related to apes, and he started talking about this scientist in Montana who discovered red blood cells in dinosaur bones — he didn’t know I was in the audience — and it was my research he was talking about! Unfortunately, he got everything wrong. I just got up and left. I don’t feel that I’m discrediting God with the work I’m doing, I think I am honoring him with the abilities he’s given me. One of the churches I go to is very conservative — But the pastor and I have discussed what I do, and we have agreed to disagree on some things. I think that’s the appropriate attitude to have — after all, God is the only one who knows for sure — he is the only one who was there.
http://biologos.org/blog/not-so-dry-bones-an-interview-with-mary-schweitzer
http://discovermagazine.com/2006/apr/dinosaur-dna
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Higby_Schweitzer
...Bduh, bduh, um, bduh, 6,000 years, bduh, bduh...
***She has said her finds in no way support a recent age for the fossils of dinos.***
Of course she said that..... she has to say it or she loses all cred with the “scientific community”.
Occam’s Razor would say it’s not as old as they think.... but if that is true evolution is out the window and they would have acknowledge a creator.
We can’t be having that, can we?
Perhaps they’ll recognize that neither the 80 million year estimate, nor the 6,000 year assertion tell the story.
"An Ecumenical Christian minister, Bakker has said there is no real conflict between religion and science, and that evolution of species and geologic history is compatible with religious belief. Bakker views the Bible as an ethical and moral guide, rather than a literal timetable of events in the history of life. He has advised non-believers and creationists to read the views put forward by Saint Augustine, who argued against a literal understanding of the Book of Genesis.[8]"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_T._Bakker#Religious_beliefs
Birds, ARE dinosaurs, or at least the only surviving species of the dinosaur cline. Dinosaurs still exist. We see them every day.
“You sure? They continued describing tiny fibers which do seem to be present in that photo...”
Yes. In the original report it is listed as Fig. 2.c, Emu blood.
Make that: “Bob Bakker, who you see on just (ABOUT) every one of the televised dinosaur documentaries,...
Oh my! SHE could play with THIS old fossil any day! I would need to drop a blue pill, and in an hour it will kick in. But, in an hour I will have forgotten why I took it!
“Occams Razor would say its not as old as they think.... “
Occam’s Razor would say that if it is not that old we would be finding the protein remains in all the fossils ... but we do not.
“When does the dino park open????”
I dunno, but I’m not going: I hear they eat lawyers.
Aren’t the Chinese talking about the great dragon in the sky? - The Milky Way?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.