false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1180824534m/1080806.jpg 1080806 2 Since fossils have presumably existed for millions of years, why don't we see much paleontological thought from ancient writers? Classics scholar Adrienne Mayor suggests that we can, in fact, learn much about the Greek and Roman attitudes toward fossils if we turn to a surprising source of data and theory: their myths. In <I>The First Fossil Hunters</I>, she explores likely connections between the rich fossil beds around the Mediterranean and tales of griffins and giants originating in the classical world. Striking similarities exist between the <I>Protoceratops</I> skeletons of the Gobi Desert and the legends of the gold-hoarding griffin told by nomadic people of the region, and the fossilized remains of giant Miocene mammals could be taken for the heroes and monsters of earlier times. Mayor makes her case well, but, as with all interpretive science, the arguments are inconclusive. Still, her novel reading of ancient myth--and her critique of the modern scientific mythology that seeks to explain the lack of classical paleontological thinking--is compelling and thought-provoking.<p> The final chapter of <I>The First Fossil Hunters</I> is an engrossing and occasionally quite funny look at "Paleontological Fictions" dating back several thousand years; the false tritons and centaurs give P.T. Barnum and his successors a much longer genealogy than previously thought. Whether or not you accept Mayor's analysis of Greek and Roman thinking, <I>The First Fossil Hunters</I> should open your eyes to new possibilities about our distant past. <I>--Rob Lightner</I> 1067541 2000 The First Fossil Hunters: Paleontology in Greek and Roman Times. total:16|5:4|4:7|3:2|2:3|1:0| 16 60 33 6 5 1 false false Tue Apr 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sun Aug 24 13:44:40 -0700 2008 Sun Aug 24 13:49:32 -0700 2008
She breaks down Greek myths into scientific explanations involved in paleontology (e.g. the griffin as Gobi desert fossils of the protoceratops). Very well researched and incredibly fascinating.

Also, she replied to my feedback email, grant...more...]]> 4 1 false false Tue Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon Jul 07 16:35:30 -0700 2008 Mon Jul 07 16:48:43 -0700 2008 4 1 false false Thu Aug 28 15:28:26 -0700 2008 Thu Aug 28 15:29:03 -0700 2008 2 0 false false Tue Nov 25 09:39:25 -0800 2008 Tue Nov 25 09:39:25 -0800 2008 2 0 false false Wed Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Mon Jul 16 07:13:27 -0700 2007 Mon Oct 15 09:09:58 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Jun 15 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri May 29 16:52:44 -0700 2009 Mon Jun 15 09:21:33 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Mon Oct 19 10:21:57 -0700 2009 Mon Oct 19 10:22:01 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Sun Aug 09 12:23:38 -0700 2009 Sun Aug 09 12:23:38 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Sun Jul 26 10:39:53 -0700 2009 Sun Jul 26 10:39:53 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Mon Jul 13 06:13:16 -0700 2009 Mon Jul 13 06:13:21 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Mon Jun 22 09:04:55 -0700 2009 Mon Jun 22 09:05:00 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Sun May 17 18:58:23 -0700 2009 Sun May 17 18:58:23 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Sun Dec 06 11:29:41 -0800 2009 Sun May 03 16:37:47 -0700 2009 Sun Dec 06 11:29:41 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Fri Apr 17 16:57:24 -0700 2009 Fri Apr 17 16:57:24 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Fri Mar 13 21:32:12 -0700 2009 Fri Mar 13 21:32:12 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Fri Mar 06 10:38:26 -0800 2009 Fri Mar 06 10:38:30 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Sun Mar 01 17:35:11 -0800 2009 Sun Mar 01 17:35:11 -0800 2009 2 0 false false Tue Jan 27 17:00:41 -0800 2009 Tue Jan 27 17:00:41 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Mon Jan 05 13:17:01 -0800 2009 Mon Jan 05 13:22:14 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Fri Jan 02 15:23:34 -0800 2009 Fri Jan 02 15:23:35 -0800 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=1080806