In 1912, a fossil known as the piltdown man was found in Piltdown, England by an amateur archeologist named Charles Dawson. Dawson found this fossil after three years of digging in the Piltdown gravel pit. He then announced the discover of two skulls that appear to be part of a primitive hominid and ancestor of a man. This discovery helped Arthur Kieths' theory that the human brain increased in size before walking up right. In 1953 a team of researchers at the British Museum- Kenneth Oakley, Wilfred Le Gros Clark, and Joseph Weiner- put the skull and jaw through many scientific tests. They were shocked to find out the skull was a fake.
There is a want and need for success by all humans, and I believe the one at fault let the want for success to take over. This hoax was a wrong doing that did negatively effect the science community and some scientific theories. The find supported scientific ideas and led scientist in certain directions that were not entirely correct. In 1949, the hoax was discovered when scientist, Kenneth Oakley, used a fluorine test to date the fossils. The fossils were found to be a lot more recent than previously thought by several hundred thousand years. Later (1953) an investigation led to the discovery of the fabrication. The skull fragments were found to be stained in an effort to make the specimen appear older and the jaw was found to belong to an orangutan, while the teeth were that of a chimpanzee’s. After being examined under a microscope, they saw the teeth were filed down, in which was an obvious attempt at deceit.
I believe removing the "human" factor from science is not necessary. Everything in life has human mistakes and science should as well. Science wouldn't be what it is today without the creativity and ideas of humans. This hoax teaches us not to always take things at face value. You can't always believe certain sources, considering they could be false no matter how real or true it sounds. With many hoaxes like this, we continue to learn lessons about our own ideas and opinions.
Tuesday, January 27, 2015
Tuesday, January 20, 2015
Homologous and Analogous traits
1. Homologous traits
a. A whale has blubber and flippers to swim and survive in the ocean while humans live on land with limbs to walk and move around.
b. The bone structures are very similar, they are very different. A whale flipper is used to swim while the human arm does many different things. Both species each have a large upper arm bone and the lower part of the limb is made up of two bones - a larger bone on one side and a smaller one on the other.
c. The common ancestor between whales, humans, and other mammals is a rat-like organism called a Dormaalocyon Latouri. They share a similar nervous system and organ system, as well as all being mammals.
d.
2. Analogous traits
a. An octopus is a cephalopod that lives in the ocean while a human is a mammal that lives on land.
b. The eye of an octopus and a human is an analogous trait. Similarly, they both have lenses to react to light, a pupil that is able to restrict incoming light, a retinal surface, and an optic nerve.The eyes also differ in a few ways. The eyes focus light on the retina in different ways. Humans focus their eyes by changing the shape of the lenses using the ciliary muscle while an octopus focuses by moving the lens closer or further away from the retina, as a camera would do. The cellular organization is also very different.
c. The common ancestor is known to be bilateria. The common genes and the larger number of conserved genes show that this could have led to the evolution of the camera eye.
d.
a. A whale has blubber and flippers to swim and survive in the ocean while humans live on land with limbs to walk and move around.
b. The bone structures are very similar, they are very different. A whale flipper is used to swim while the human arm does many different things. Both species each have a large upper arm bone and the lower part of the limb is made up of two bones - a larger bone on one side and a smaller one on the other.
c. The common ancestor between whales, humans, and other mammals is a rat-like organism called a Dormaalocyon Latouri. They share a similar nervous system and organ system, as well as all being mammals.
d.
2. Analogous traits
a. An octopus is a cephalopod that lives in the ocean while a human is a mammal that lives on land.
b. The eye of an octopus and a human is an analogous trait. Similarly, they both have lenses to react to light, a pupil that is able to restrict incoming light, a retinal surface, and an optic nerve.The eyes also differ in a few ways. The eyes focus light on the retina in different ways. Humans focus their eyes by changing the shape of the lenses using the ciliary muscle while an octopus focuses by moving the lens closer or further away from the retina, as a camera would do. The cellular organization is also very different.
c. The common ancestor is known to be bilateria. The common genes and the larger number of conserved genes show that this could have led to the evolution of the camera eye.
d.
Tuesday, January 13, 2015
Wednesday, January 7, 2015
Historical Influences on Darwin
Charles Malthus influenced Darwin with his knowledge of the growths and declines of populations. Darwin was very interested in this idea and studied it so he could apply it to his research.
Malthus was well known for is work in 1798, Essay on the Principle of Population. He was Economist and was very interested in human population throughout history. He discussed famine, war and disease, and how they effected population. His ideas were often argued by religious leaders.
Darwin was very interested in how the human population grew faster then the production of food. He watched as it led to many deaths due to starvation. He discovered population would have to level out at some point. This influenced one of Darwin's most popular idea "survival of the fittest." Malthus's ideas seemed to support all of Darwin's research of the Galapagos Finches and the adaptations of their beaks. This idea of "survival of the fittest" not only applies to the natural populations but also human populations as well. Malthus's ideas of overpopulations helped mold the idea of natural selection. After Darwin read Essay on the Principle of Population he saw a lot of his researched ideas being reflected on. "[He gave] Malthus a large portion of the credit for shaping their ideas and helping to hone the Theory of Evolution, and in particular, their ideas of Natural Selection"(http://evolution.about.com/od/scientists/p/Thomas-Malthus.htm).
Malthus was well known for is work in 1798, Essay on the Principle of Population. He was Economist and was very interested in human population throughout history. He discussed famine, war and disease, and how they effected population. His ideas were often argued by religious leaders.
Darwin was very interested in how the human population grew faster then the production of food. He watched as it led to many deaths due to starvation. He discovered population would have to level out at some point. This influenced one of Darwin's most popular idea "survival of the fittest." Malthus's ideas seemed to support all of Darwin's research of the Galapagos Finches and the adaptations of their beaks. This idea of "survival of the fittest" not only applies to the natural populations but also human populations as well. Malthus's ideas of overpopulations helped mold the idea of natural selection. After Darwin read Essay on the Principle of Population he saw a lot of his researched ideas being reflected on. "[He gave] Malthus a large portion of the credit for shaping their ideas and helping to hone the Theory of Evolution, and in particular, their ideas of Natural Selection"(http://evolution.about.com/od/scientists/p/Thomas-Malthus.htm).
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