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The Fossil Record of Birds — Part 2: Feathered Dinosaurs

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The Fossil Record of Birds — Part 2: Feathered Dinosaurs C h a p t e r 1 5 The Fossil Record of Birds — Part 2: Feathered Dinosaurs Objectives of Chapter 15 for Students: By studying these objectives and knowing this core information, most students should be able to pass all of the tests. 1. The student should know when the Chinese specimens were found. (Page 166) 2. The student should know in what province of what country the “feathered dinosaur” specimens were found. (Page 166) 3. The student should know that some evolution scientists do not consider the Chinese specimens to be feathered dinosaurs but flightless birds. (Page 166) 4. The student should know what two features of the Chinese specimens lead some evolution scientists to believe they are flightless birds. (Page 166) 5. The student should know what two features of the Chinese specimens lead some evolution scientists to believe they are feathered dinosaurs. (Page 166) 6. The student should know how large the Chinese specimens are. (Page 167) 7. The student should know what a feather from a modern bird that can fly looks like, such as a feather from a cardinal or a blue jay. (Page 168) 8. The student should know what a feather from a modern bird that cannot fly looks like, such as a feather from an ostrich, or an emu, or a penguin. List three features of feathers from modern flightless birds that distinguish them from the feathers of modern birds that can fly. (Page 168) 9. The student should know if the feathers from the Chinese specimens appear similar to the feathers of modern flightless birds or if they appear similar to the feathers of modern flying birds. List the three features of the feathers from Chinese specimens to support this answer. (Caption in middle of Page 168) 10. The student should be able to describe why the “feathered dinosaurs” could not be the ancestors of flying birds, such asArchaeopteryx, based on the age of the fossils. (Page 169) (Continued on next page) 255 C h a p t e r 1 5 The Fossil Record of Birds — Part 2: Feathered Dinosaurs Objectives of Chapter 15 for Students (continued): 11. The student should be able to articulate the reason why scientists who oppose evolution object to the idea that the “feathered dinosaurs” from China are the missing link between birds and dinosaurs. (Page 169) 12. The student should know why some scientists who support evolution have raised questions about the authenticity of the Chinese specimens. (Pages 170-175) 13. The student should know what the fossil Confuciusornis looks like on a museum shelf and why this fossil’s appearance is misleading. (Pages 170-175) 14. The student should know how the layers of mortar are hidden on the fossil Confuciusornis. Specifically, what technique did the fossil preparators use to hide the mortar? (Page 171) 15. The student should be able to describe what bones of the fossil specimen Confuciusornis were purposely substituted. What did Dr. Rowe discover concerning the position of one particular bone when he examined the specimen with a CT scan? (Title on top of Page 173) 16. The student should know what scientist (and at what university) discovered that Archaeoraptor liaoningensis was a purposely faked fossil, a feathered fraud. (Pages 174- 175 and caption Page 171) 17. The student should know how this scientist discovered that Archaeoraptor liaoningensis was a fraud. (Pages 174-175) 18. The student should know when (month and year) the CT scan of Archaeoraptor liaoningensis was performed (showing it was a problematic fossil) and then when it was printed in National Geographic magazine (month and year) as being a “feathered dinosaur proving the evolution of birds.” Why was this wrong? (Page 174) 19. The student should know how many bones from other animals were fraudulently substituted in Archaeoraptor liaoningensis and the number of different animals these bones came from. (Page 174) 20. The student should know how National Geographic magazine reported Archaeoraptor liaoningensis in the November 1999 issue. What claims did this (Continued on next page) 256 C h a p t e r 1 5 The Fossil Record of Birds — Part 2: Feathered Dinosaurs Objectives of Chapter 15 for Students (continued): magazine make about this animal despite evidence that the fossil contained irregularities? The student should be able to write out three quotes from this issue. (Page 176) 21. The student should know how National Geographic magazine did a “disservice” to science, according to Dr. Rowe. (End of the first paragraph on Page 177) 22. How long of an article was the original story about Archaeoraptor liaoningensis and how long was the magazine’s retraction of the story later? What part of the magazine was the retraction printed in? (Page 177) 23. According to Dr. Rowe, what profession did the perpetrator of the faked fossil Archaeoraptor liaoningensis belong to? (Page 178) 24. The student should be able to describe what Velociraptor dinosaurs looked like in the movie Jurassic Park and what they look like in some museums today. Is this change justified by the fossil evidence? (Page 179) 25. The student should know if scientists have ever found fossil evidence of Velocirpator dinosaurs having feathers. (Page 179) 26. The student should be able to write out a list of six major historical examples of scientists altering evidence to support the theory of evolution. List them in chronological order from the 19th century to modern times. (Page 179) Note to student: Do not include Confuciusornis in this list. Also note that the two feathered dinosaur examples are on Pages 179 and 174. 27. The student should know how museum artists have used fossils to support widely different scientific positions about the evolution of birds from dinosaurs. (Pages 180-181) 28. The student should know the name of the evolution scientist from the Smithsonian Institution who publicly chided the National Geographic Society for “making news” and “melodramatic assertions”, “editorial propagandizing”, “hype”, “science fiction”, and being “proselytizers of the faith”. (Pages 182-183) 29. The student should know the species names of the two dinosaurs that were on display at a National Geographic exhibit with feathers attached to them. What did Dr. Olson, Curator of Birds at the National Museum of Natural History, have to say about this display? (Pages 182-183) (End of Chapter 15 Objectives) 257.
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