Portal:Paleontology

Paleontology is the study of the forms of life existing in prehistoric times, chiefly by studying the fossils of plants, animals, and other organisms. Secular paleontology is based on uniformitarian geology, which holds that there has been no Biblical flood, but instead it is believed the layers of stata represent vast geologic ages. Based on this assumption, paleontologists examine and characterized fossils. Within paleontology, there are branches are areas of specializations based on the particular type of organism. The study of prehistoric humans is known as Paleoanthropology, animal paleontology is Paleozoology, and the branch which studies ancient plants is called Paleobotany.

This is a feathered Deinonychus at the ROM exhibit.

Feathered dinosaurs are theoretical transitional forms required by the evolutionism worldview, which holds that birds have evolved from reptiles in the distant past. Throughout the years, there have been many excavations that claim to have discovered dinosaurs with feathers. While there is no evidence rejecting the idea that there could have been feathered dinosaurs, there is also no evidence proving, without doubt, that there were. There is evidence that in at least some cases these so called feathered dinosaurs are really misidentified birds. Also, most of these fossils are from China, of which they are known to have a fake fossil industry. This places a question mark on all such finds. While some evolutionists believe that dinosaurs are ancestors to our modern day birds, there is no evidence to prove it, but all the evidence against it.

Trilobite from Ordovician-age strata near St. Petersburg, Russia.

Stephen J. Gould (September 10, 1941 – May 20, 2002) is considered one of the best known and most popularly read scientists of the 20th century. Gould believed in evolution and was a paleontologist and professor at Harvard University. Among his contributions to science were his monthly articles with Natural History magazine for 25 years.

Gould graduated from Antioch University with a geology degree and earned his Ph.D. in paleontology from Columbia University four years later. His job descriptions include being Alexander Agassiz Professor of Zoology, Professor of Geology at Harvard University, Curator of Invertebrate Paleontology at Harvard Museum of Comparative Zoology, a member of the Department of the History of Science, and Vincent Astor Visiting Research Professor of Biology at New York University.

"No wonder paleontologists shied away from evolution for so long. It seems never to happen. Assiduous collecting up cliff faces yields zigzags, minor oscillations, and the very occasional slight accumulation of change over millions of years, at a rate too slow to really account for all the prodigious change that has occurred in evolutionary history. When we do see the introduction of evolutionary novelty, it usually shows up with a bang, and often with no firm evidence that the organisms did not evolve elsewhere! Evolution cannot forever be going on someplace else. Yet that's how the fossil record has struck many a forlorn paleontologist looking to learn something about evolution." - Niles Eldredge , "Reinventing Darwin: The Great Evolutionary Debate," 1996, p.95.

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• Dinosaur egg study supports evolutionary link between birds and dinosaurs Fossil eggs reveal how Troodon dinosaur likely hatched its young. University of Calgary, April 18, 2013.
• Dinosaurs did their own version of the dog paddle, U of A researcher says Researchers found paddling marks left by what he suspects was an early tyrannosaur showing that they swam for quite a while using their powerful tail to propel themselves like a crocodile. Edmonton Journal, April 9, 2013.
• Ancient Fossil looks like Today's Acorn Worms Fossils were found in some of the deepest fossil-bearing rocks to be virtually unchanged in 505 million years. ICR News, April 9, 2013.
• Ancient High Arctic camel offers climate change clues The most northerly spot to ever yield camel bones is raising important questions about the future of the warming Arctic. CTV News, Mar. 5, 2013.
• Dr. Richard Dawkins Missing Link Goes Missing says AVC Films Producer Dr. Carl Werner New analysis indicates famous evolution scientist was misled by Nature Magazine article. PRWeB, February 06, 2013.
• Radiocarbon in dino bones: International conference result censored A team of researchers gave a presentation at the 2012 Western Pacific Geophysics Meeting in Singapore, at which they gave C-14 dating results from many bone samples from eight dinosaur specimens ranging from 22,000 to 39,000 years. Creation Ministries International, January 22, 2013.
• Stampeding Dinosaurs Were Actually Swimming Findings, published in the January issue of the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, upends the traditional interpretation of the world's only dinosaur stampede. Yahoo! - ABC News Network, January 18, 2013.
• Fossil find challenges tree of life Organisms long thought to have been the ancestors of early marine creatures may in fact have lived on land. News24, December 12, 2012.
• DNA and bone cells found in dinosaur bone But under measured rates of decomposition, they could not have lasted for the presumed 65 million years. Creation Ministries International, December 11, 2012.
• Australopithecus Was a Well-Adapted Tree Climber New research has confirmed that an extinct type of ape called Australopithecus afarensis was a well-adapted tree climber. ICR Daily Science Updates, November 12, 2012.
• Dinosaur Bone Tissue Study Refutes Critics Researchers confirm morphological, microscopic, and chemical evidence that altered remnants of original dinosaur cells have been discovered. ICR Daily Science Updates, November 5, 2012.
• Huge dinosaurs flee rising waters of Noah’s Flood in Australia Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s Catalyst program reports dinosaur footprints. Creation Ministries International, October 30, 2012.
• Eight Spears found in German Coal Mine The earliest direct evidence of tools shows every indication of human-like expertise in manufacturing. ICR Daily Science Updates, October 8, 2012.
• Pristine Wood Found in Diamond Crater A kimberlite crater in Canada, said to be 53 million years old, yielded exquisitely preserved unfossilized wood. Creation Evolution Headlines, September 19, 2012.
• More ‘dino’ sightings in Papua New Guinea Expedition reports conversations with eyewitnesses—local people who claimed to have recently seen dinosaur-like creatures. Creation Ministries International, August 23, 2012.
• Huge dinosaur fossil found near Drumheller, Alberta Curator of dinosaur palaeoecology at the Royal Tyrrell Museum, said it looked like a huge “log jam” of bones in the dirt. CBC News, Aug 17, 2012.
• New African Fossil Confirms Early Human Variations Three new human-like fossils from Africa have given evolutionists another opportunity to reiterate their confusing philosophy, but the data don't match their story very well. ICR Daily Science Updates, August 13, 2012.
• A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Neanderthal? Neanderthals were thought to be incapable of Paleolithic cave art, but new work coming from sophisticated dating techniques suggests otherwise: Neanderthals may have been artists. Archaeology, Volume 65 Number 5, September/October 2012.
• A. sediba: Another Human "Ancestor" Bites the Dust Bark Nature reports that the creatures had a very notable characteristic in common with chimps, not humans. Evolution News and Views, June 29, 2012.
• Turtles fossilized while mating! The fossil-filled shale deposits at the Messel Pit in Germany have yielded nine pair of turtles. Creation Ministries International, June 21, 2012.
• Neanderthals smarter than previously believed New dating method shows famous paintings were created at the time of the cavemen, not Homo sapiens. The Vancouver Sun, June 15, 2012.
• Neanderthal-Heidelberg Distinction Blurs “Heidelberg Man” fossils appear to overlap with Neanderthals. Creation Evolution Headlines, June 14, 2012.
• Scientists Late to Recognize Human and Giant Mammal Coexistence Vero Beach human fossils finally acknowledged in Nature to have lived side-by-side with mammoths, mastodons, and giant ground sloths, contrary to conventional Evolutionary theory. ICR Daily Science Updates, May 30, 2012.