Tag Archives: fossils

Going on Four (Billion)

Posted on September 4, 2016 by Ron Miksha

A paper published last week in Nature, claims that life began at 3.7 (billion years ago). This is the latest in a rather faltering progression of our best guesses of the date life started on Earth. Biblical literalists are still … Continue reading →

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100 Years of Drift: Part 2

Posted on February 4, 2016 by Ron Miksha

It’s been 100 years since Alfred Wegener proposed his idea of continental drift. Today’s blog continues the story we began yesterday – the tale of Wegener’s life and the development of his grand idea of mobile continents. This time, we’ll … Continue reading →

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Another day, another dinosaur

Posted on July 8, 2015 by Ron Miksha

You have to wonder when all the dinosaurs will be found. When will nothing remain to be discovered? That day is apparently a long way off. New dinosaurs keep popping out of the ground. In my home province, Alberta, it’s … Continue reading →

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What happens when a Young Earth Creationist discovers a 60,000,000-year-old fossil?

Posted on May 29, 2015 by Ron Miksha

Originally posted on Primate's Progress:
Nearly perfect fish fossil specimens found in a block of sandstone excavated in the northwest Calgary community of Evanston. Photo by Darla Zelenitsky, University of Calgary Fortunately, Edgar Nernberg of Calgary is a keen…

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In Pursuit of Dead Squishy Things

Posted on March 25, 2015 by Ron Miksha

If you spend a little time at your favourite dinosaur museum, you are sure to hear parents explain to their child that the T-rex about to swallow the kid’s head is just a bunch of dead bones. “Quit bawling, Johnny. … Continue reading →

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Geology President’s Day

Posted on February 16, 2015 by Ron Miksha

Americans get a day off today. It’s an occasion to remember the American presidents, especially Abraham Lincoln and George Washington, two of the February-birthday presidents. (The other two were William Harrison and Ronald Reagan.) On this day, Washington, Lincoln, and … Continue reading →

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Dinos 101: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know

Posted on December 15, 2014 by Ron Miksha

Want to know about dinosaurs? You’re in luck. The University of Alberta is offering a free 12-week course, a MOOC (Massive Online Open Course) starting January 3rd. I am thinking of signing up for it – the course is offered … Continue reading →

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The Age of Man?

Posted on November 6, 2014 by Ron Miksha

Well, this is not the Age of Aquarius. Last week, geologists met in Berlin to discuss  renaming our current geological epoch – the Holocene. They say it began when the ice age ended, 11,700 years ago. The geologists in Berlin … Continue reading →

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Popular, but Wrong

Posted on September 24, 2014 by Ron Miksha

We don’t usually celebrate a man’s death, and we are not doing that here. But William Matthew (1871-1930) died on this date in 1930, and his appearance on my geo-calendar was a reminder to me to think about this popular … Continue reading →

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Doodling Mary Anning

Posted on May 21, 2014 by Ron Miksha

Today Google has a doodle honouring Mary Anning, one of palaeontology’s pioneers. The reason Google chose Anning on this day?  It remembers her birthdate – she would have been 215 years old today. Alas, she didn’t reach 50. Here is … Continue reading →

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