Junior presents dinosaur research

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Hoenig

Brontosauruses never existed.
In his lecture to a diverse cross-section of campus last week, junior Matt Hoenig debunked this myth and addressed other challenges and misconceptions about paleontology.
According to Hoenig, a 19th century paleontologist completed a partial Apatosaurus body with the head from another dinosaur, creating the Brontosaurus.
“Our ideas about dinosaurs are constantly getting better and changing,” Hoenig said. “We can make logical, well-supported assertions about ancient life despite never having seen it alive.”
Hoenig walked his audience through the methods paleontologists employ to make inferences about the lives of dinosaurs. He demonstrated that the fossil record proves T. Rex are carnivores through brain shape, eye placement, and fossilized teeth marks on other dinosaurs.
“I thought the presentation was absolutely outstanding,” professor of biology Anthony Swinehart said. “I’m not one for excessive praise, so saying that is significant. Except for a few quibbles, I thought he could’ve been a professor up there.”
Hoenig kindled his passion for paleontology last summer, digging fossils with Swinehart at the Hell Creek Formation in South Dakota. They dug up Linda the Edmontosaurus, an herbivore with self-sharpening teeth and the second most common dinosaur in the formation.
“He had essentially no training in paleontology prior to this course,” Swinehart said. “Some of it he learned during course, he did some preparation for the presentation. Because of the course he’s become fascinated by it.”
Junior Lily Carville said she attended because she will be doing the same thing next year for her research at a similar site, but she’ll be digging up a triceratops. “I just wanted to see what to expect when I go.”
Hoenig explained concepts simply and clearly, “in laymen’s terms,” Senior Kristen Torvimen said. “I could understand things I didn’t think I could understand.”
In his conclusion, Hoenig transitioned from long-dead dinosaurs to animals currently going extinct. Of all the animals that have ever existed, he said, 99.9 percent have gone extinct. He showed three endangered species: the tiger, the kakapo, (the world’s only flightless parrot) and the coelacanth (a deep sea fish).
“Although we don’t have T-Rex running around and eating stuff,” he said, “we have a lot of interesting animals to enjoy.”