Posted on 08/13/2003 9:02:05 PM PDT by nwrep
2 hours, 55 minutes ago
|
|
By RAMOLA TALWAR BADAM, Associated Press Writer
BOMBAY, India - U.S. and Indian scientists said Wednesday they have discovered a new carnivorous dinosaur species in India after finding bones in the western part of the country.
|
The new dinosaur species was named Rajasaurus narmadensis, or "Regal reptile from the Narmada," after the Narmada River region where the bones were found.
The dinosaurs were between 25-30 feet long, had a horn above their skulls, were relatively heavy and walked on two legs, scientists said. They preyed on long-necked herbivorous dinosaurs on the Indian subcontinent during the Cretaceous Period at the end of the dinosaur age, 65 million years ago.
"It's fabulous to be able to see this dinosaur which lived as the age of dinosaurs came to a close," said Paul Sereno, a paleontologist at the University of Chicago. "It was a significant predator that was related to species on continental Africa, Madagascar and South America."
Working with Indian scientists, Sereno and paleontologist Jeff Wilson of the University of Michigan reconstructed the dinosaur skull in a project funded partly by the National Geographic (news - web sites) Society.
A model of the assembled skull was presented Wednesday by the American scientists to their counterparts from Punjab University in northern India and the Geological Survey of India during a Bombay news conference.
Scientists said they hope the discovery will help explain the extinction of the dinosaurs and the shifting of the continents how India separated from Africa, Madagascar, Australia and Antarctica and collided with Asia.
The dinosaur bones were discovered during the past 18 years by Indian scientists Suresh Srivastava of the Geological Survey of India and Ashok Sahni, a paleontologist at Punjab University.
When the bones were examined, "we realized we had a partial skeleton of an undiscovered species," Sereno said.
The scientists said they believe the Rajasaurus roamed the Southern Hemisphere land masses of present-day Madagascar, Africa and South America.
"People don't realize dinosaurs are the only large-bodied animal that lived, evolved and died at a time when all continents were united," Sereno said.
The cause of the dinosaurs' extinction is still debated by scientists. The Rajasaurus discovery may provide crucial clues, Sereno said.
India has seen quite a few paleontological discoveries recently.
In 1997, villagers discovered about 300 fossilized dinosaur eggs in Pisdura, 440 miles northeast of Bombay, that Indian scientists said were laid by four-legged, long-necked vegetarian creatures.
Indian scientists said the dinosaur embryos in the eggs may have suffocated during volcanic eruptions.
Huh? Where did I say that. Like I said, I prefer to keep my faith personal.
I am sorry you don't want to discuss the Bible. In my experience, you are the first Christian who has ever not wanted to. I am very surprized.
Anyway have a nice day.
p.s. If you throw arguments out there that state we are alone and the Bible says so, you should not be surprized that folks would like to see your side of the picture.
You just said that you don't want to discuss your belief and claim to believe what it says. These two don't go together. Jesus didn't say go and keep your belief personal. You are not being very straight forward with where you are coming from.
If the theory of evolution is a 'worldview', what political system does it tell us we should adopt? What does it tell us about the proper penalty for murder? What foods does it say we should or should not eat? How does it advocate we spend our free time?
One bit of rebuttal, but not addressed to that certain person who is now on Virtual Ignore:
If evolution leads to such horrible things, as that person alleges, why wasn't Darwin, the arch-eeevil-lou-shunist himself, a rapist, murderer, dictator, etc.? Of the thousands of biology teachers, who among them has been convicted of such atrocities? Of the thousands of people doing biological research, how many go on to be mass murderers? How many of the world's dictators were serious students of biology? Stalin was a seminary student; Hitler a would-be artist and architect, but there are no biologists among the world's monstrous tyrants. Isn't it odd that those who are the most exposed to this ghastly theory seem somehow to lead quiet, peaceful, law-abiding lives.
Will any of this quell the wild accusations? No, of course not. That's why Virtual Ignore is the only solution.
Evolutionist is not the word I would use.
I accept that the evolutionary model is the best we have from the evidence gathered to date.
Mostly I post about what I do know. Orbit theory, spacecraft, astronomy, etc. It rather quickly goes over my head during the biology, paleontology, and geology discussions here. Albeit, since my dad was a PhD geologist, I learned something about geology as I grew up. :-)
Many people used biblical views to justify the cleansing/purification of non-christian peoples from their impure path. A sick philosophy, but not really in any way promoted by the bible (and I really do mean that most sincerely).
Christianity has a worldwide moral implication, inasmuch as anyone who doesn't follow that worldview is doomed to eternal torment. May as well kill 'em now, then?
How can you fit God or faith into a scientific model or a mathematical equation?
I had a thought the other day as I walked down the hall of this large avionics manufacturing factory inwhich I work. It seemed that almost everyone I saw had some kind of a rather nasty infirmity. One guy was 400 lbs and could barely walk, one guy was in an electric wheel chair and had twisted limbs. One guy had a shrunken arm, most of us wore glasses, many had very clumsy inefficient walks as if they had had broken limbs.
It occurred to me that we have come to a point in technology where the least fit do just fine. It really took very little time for this to be the case too. Only a few hundred years ago most of these people would probably not be alive. So if evolution were true then the whole concept is blown out the window by man and his ability to invent things. Now there is no reason for us to improve.
The other thing is that if you consider how fast we went from bible technology to today's technology, it is really silly to imagine that man could have lived in caves for 2 million years and then exponentially accelerated his development in the last 2000 years.
Logically, that would be a democracy that would eventually degenerate into anarchy or totalitarianism
Could you briefly sketch how a theory that species arose from mutation followed by natural selection tells us we should govern ourselves by means of an unstable democracy?
What does it tell us about the proper penalty for murder?
Whatever the village decides.
Again, could you briefly sketch how the above theory leads to the precept that we should do whatever the village decides? After all, Adolf Hitler, whom you claim was guided by Darwinism, thought it should be whatever he decided.
What foods does it say we should or should not eat?
Whatever one would prefer.
It's not much a world view if it doesn't tell us what food to eat or how to spend our free time, is it? And I'm really hazy on why you think it tells us to govern ourselves democratically. After all, there are many many kinds of social organization in nature, and I can't think of one species that organizes itself democratically.
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.