Submitted by Sean Williams on Fri, 11/20/2009 - 15:06
A top paleontologist has discovered the remains of five ancient crocodile species in the Sahara desert. Paul Sereno, National Geographic's resident expert in the field, has dubbed the suite of SuperCrocs after the characteristics they share with other modern animals. The group, found on a windswept stretch of rock and dunes, are proof of an obscure era when the crocs roamed the southern land mass of Gondwana, some 100 million years ago.
The most spectacular of the five is SuperCroc itself, weighing in at a whopping 8 tons, and measuring over 40 feet. Four of the five had 'upright' legs which stretched out below them, rather than those of today's species which come out from the side. The list includes such oddities as DuckCroc and the flat-faced PancakeCroc.
The last day of the Moscow conference 2009 was its most interesting: the topics were fascinating, the discussion was hot and, finally, the heating started! The first part of the day was dedicated to the excavations and research of Fayoum and started with a wonderful story by Ian Shaw from the University of Liverpool about new fieldwork at the Medinet el-Gurob Harem Palace town. The site was unaccessible during 1960s and 1970s due to its being a military territory; thus it was in a bad condition. Yet now archeologists are finally able to do their work.
Submitted by Intertexty on Fri, 04/17/2009 - 11:55
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Cleopatra: Portrait of a Killer. The very title of the latest BBC documentary draws instant connotations. It’s not everyday that the most famous woman in history and a 19th century cut-throat villain would merge in the consciousness. But that illustration floods into one’s head as the chosen BBC subtitle reminds of Patricia Cornwell’s famous 2002 Casebook on Jack the Ripper. The documentarian Neil Oliver would have us believe that Cleopatra the Seventh was capable of showing the very same malice and cold calculations as the unidentified killer. To those of us wondering about the two thousand years of speculation over love, beauty, betrayal, darkness, and truth, and whether Cleopatra was a skilled politician or ruthless slayer, the title may come as a disappointing giveaway. Thankfully this docudrama has a lot more to say.
A top paleontologist has discovered the remains of five ancient crocodile species in the Sahara desert. Paul Sereno, National Geographic's resident expert in the field, has dubbed the suite of SuperCrocs after the characteristics they share with other modern animals. The group, found on a windswept stretch of rock and dunes, are proof of an obscure era when the crocs roamed the southern land mass of Gondwana, some 100 million years ago.
