Fossil Ida: extraordinary find is 'missing link' in human evolution

Mottleydude said:
Evolutionary implications aside, this fossil is worthy of such attention as this is one of the best examples of fossil perservation I've ever seen. It's just nothing short of spectacular.
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I wouldn't dispute that, Mott.

It's just that, despite very few palien...paleont...fossil experts having had the chance to have a good look at it, the press have already gone overboard on buying into "the missing link" hype.

In a rare moment of non-knowitallness, i'll leave the judgements up to the evolutionists who haven't got shares in the 'Fossil Ida' action figure.
 
charver said:
I wouldn't dispute that, Mott.

It's just that, despite very few palien...paleont...fossil experts having had the chance to have a good look at it, the press have already gone overboard on buying into "the missing link" hype.

In a rare moment of non-knowitallness, i'll leave the judgements up to the evolutionists who haven't got shares in the 'Fossil Ida' action figure.
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It doesn't look much like Dad to me. But then I often forgot how he looked..
 
charver said:
Part of me hopes it is a big old fraud.

I'm not sure how i'm going to cope once it is revealed that the man i called Granddad was, in actual fact, nothing but a rather cunning saucer-eyed lemur.
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That wouldn't bother you if you were an American. I often tell people with great pride about how one of my Irish Ancestors who imigrated to the US was hanged for steeling a horse. Nothing says you're a proud American like Granddad being hanged for stealing a horse. :)
 
charver said:
I wouldn't dispute that, Mott.

It's just that, despite very few palien...paleont...fossil experts having had the chance to have a good look at it, the press have already gone overboard on buying into "the missing link" hype.

In a rare moment of non-knowitallness, i'll leave the judgements up to the evolutionists who haven't got shares in the 'Fossil Ida' action figure.
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Ahh yes and as I stated earlier, I'd like more information on it my self and I am a biolger.....biolget......err life science guy.
 
Watermark said:
You have to remember Soc, it isn't plugging a missing link, it's opening up two more.
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LOL DO HUMANS HAVE TAILS? THAT FOSSIL HAS A TAIL! IT LOOKS NOTHING LIKE A HUMAN. How did that fossil just MAGICALLY one day lose it's tail and become human? idiots. . .
 
Grind said:
LOL DO HUMANS HAVE TAILS? THAT FOSSIL HAS A TAIL! IT LOOKS NOTHING LIKE A HUMAN. How did that fossil just MAGICALLY one day lose it's tail and become human? idiots. . .
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No one said that. You've just assumed it. It's the press guys who don't know bupkus who called it a missing link. It's possibly a tranistional species from earlier mammals like Lemurs and early primates.

BTW, some humans do have vestigial tails.
 
Mottleydude said:
No one said that. You've just assumed it. It's the press guys who don't know bupkus who called it a missing link. It's possibly a tranistional species from earlier mammals like Lemurs and early primates.

BTW, some humans do have vestigial tails.
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.................................................................................
 
Mottleydude said:
No one said that. You've just assumed it. It's the press guys who don't know bupkus who called it a missing link. It's possibly a tranistional species from earlier mammals like Lemurs and early primates.

BTW, some humans do have vestigial tails.
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You do realize that he was making a generalization joke, right?

I digress...

According to what I have gathered on the subject this is, quite likely, the species from which diverged two separate lines of evolution, one that produced us, and one that produced our animal primate cousins.
 
Mottleydude said:
Evolutionary implications aside, this fossil is worthy of such attention as this is one of the best examples of fossil perservation I've ever seen. It's just nothing short of spectacular.
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Why then was such a spectacular find kept secret for so long?

Why haven't for conclusive determinations been resolved in all this time?

I'm a firm believer in evolution and I find the human journey the most fascinating study ever .. however, I'm not yet convinced this is as spectacular a find as billed.
 
We begin with the headline of this post:

Fossil Ida: extraordinary find is 'missing link' in human evolution

Then we read the story:

Scientists have discovered an exquisitely preserved ancient primate fossil that they believe forms a crucial "missing link" between our own evolutionary branch of life and the rest of the animal kingdom.

It occurs to me, on several occasions in the past, scientists have claimed to find the proverbial "missing link" but it turned out to be a false alarm. To be honest, this doesn't look like something linking neanderthal man or homo erectus to anything else in the primate family, it simply looks like a monkey fossil. Granted, it's probably some previously unknown species of primate, that is usually the case with these false alarms. But to make the completely unscientific and faith-based leap from a fossil discovery to finding the missing link in human evolution from primates, is amazing.

Science does not make conclusions, it explores possibilities. Yet, this find gets Motts panties wet... We might as well close all churches down and end religion, because this proves man evolved from a single-cell organism, so God isn't real. Only a faith-based Atheist would hold such a closed-minded view of science. People like that, should learn to check their faith at the door, when exploring science.

From a theological perspective, even IF this find proves to be the missing link, and completely confirms a documented evolutionary process of man, it still can't beat the trump card... God created Science!

....But I think it's a nice looking, well preserved, monkey fossil. That's all.
 
Dixie said:
We begin with the headline of this post:

Fossil Ida: extraordinary find is 'missing link' in human evolution

Then we read the story:

Scientists have discovered an exquisitely preserved ancient primate fossil that they believe forms a crucial "missing link" between our own evolutionary branch of life and the rest of the animal kingdom.

It occurs to me, on several occasions in the past, scientists have claimed to find the proverbial "missing link" but it turned out to be a false alarm. To be honest, this doesn't look like something linking neanderthal man or homo erectus to anything else in the primate family, it simply looks like a monkey fossil. Granted, it's probably some previously unknown species of primate, that is usually the case with these false alarms. But to make the completely unscientific and faith-based leap from a fossil discovery to finding the missing link in human evolution from primates, is amazing.

Science does not make conclusions, it explores possibilities. Yet, this find gets Motts panties wet... We might as well close all churches down and end religion, because this proves man evolved from a single-cell organism, so God isn't real. Only a faith-based Atheist would hold such a closed-minded view of science. People like that, should learn to check their faith at the door, when exploring science.

From a theological perspective, even IF this find proves to be the missing link, and completely confirms a documented evolutionary process of man, it still can't beat the trump card... God created Science!

....But I think it's a nice looking, well preserved, monkey fossil. That's all.
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Mott: :blowup:
 
yesitsme said:
with ankle bones that have never been seen before?
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Excuse me, but what is so extraordinary about never-before-seen ankles on a never-before-found species of primate? I would think there are probably a number of things about this fossil, which we've not seen before. This doesn't mean something is proven, or speculations are supported.

If we were watching an illusionist make himself disappear, and then reappear in separate glass enclosures.... does the fact that there was lots of smoke, mean that he really made that happen?
 
Dixie said:
Excuse me, but what is so extraordinary about never-before-seen ankles on a never-before-found species of primate? I would think there are probably a number of things about this fossil, which we've not seen before. This doesn't mean something is proven, or speculations are supported.

If we were watching an illusionist make himself disappear, and then reappear in separate glass enclosures.... does the fact that there was lots of smoke, mean that he really made that happen?
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Actually, scientists had discovered this particular primate about 30 years ago, but only bits and pieces. This is the complete critter. It is interesting to note that it looks very much like scientists had speculated it would work. I don't have a link for this because I discussed this just this afternoon with a Ph.D is Biology. And no one really expected that believers in the creation MYTH would believe this any more than they have ever believed any science that conflicts with their religious beliefs.
 
blackascoal said:
Why then was such a spectacular find kept secret for so long?

Why haven't for conclusive determinations been resolved in all this time?

I'm a firm believer in evolution and I find the human journey the most fascinating study ever .. however, I'm not yet convinced this is as spectacular a find as billed.
Click to expand...

I can't answer the first question and I'm not sure I understand your second question as for a spectacular find, it is one. Most fossils of complex vertibrates are very incomplete the level of quality of this speciman is remarkable indeed. Right down to seeing the outline of it's musculature, it's fur coat and even to contents of it's belly. Just simply amazing fossil preservation. From that point of view, this is a very remarkable fossil specimen.

As for it's scientific implications, I can't possibly advance any opinions as not enough information has been provided on this organisms anatomy, homology and phylogeny to discuss any evolutionary implications it may represent.
 
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Dixie said:
We begin with the headline of this post:

Fossil Ida: extraordinary find is 'missing link' in human evolution

Then we read the story:

Scientists have discovered an exquisitely preserved ancient primate fossil that they believe forms a crucial "missing link" between our own evolutionary branch of life and the rest of the animal kingdom.

It occurs to me, on several occasions in the past, scientists have claimed to find the proverbial "missing link" but it turned out to be a false alarm. To be honest, this doesn't look like something linking neanderthal man or homo erectus to anything else in the primate family, it simply looks like a monkey fossil. Granted, it's probably some previously unknown species of primate, that is usually the case with these false alarms. But to make the completely unscientific and faith-based leap from a fossil discovery to finding the missing link in human evolution from primates, is amazing.

Science does not make conclusions, it explores possibilities. Yet, this find gets Motts panties wet... We might as well close all churches down and end religion, because this proves man evolved from a single-cell organism, so God isn't real. Only a faith-based Atheist would hold such a closed-minded view of science. People like that, should learn to check their faith at the door, when exploring science.

From a theological perspective, even IF this find proves to be the missing link, and completely confirms a documented evolutionary process of man, it still can't beat the trump card... God created Science!

....But I think it's a nice looking, well preserved, monkey fossil. That's all.
Click to expand...

The problem is Dixie, is that those were the words of uninformed journalist. It's not clear what the Journalist meant. Did they mean "Is this a link in human evolution? Did they mean that this is an important transitional species? Or did the journalist just throw out a term with our really understanding what it meant? I suspect that it's the later.
 
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