Fossil Hunting

Shared by Azni

Learning Specialist, Petrosains

Where are the dinosaurs' ears?

Try this busking!
Do you know that you can make sounds using this sound machine? It's so easy to make! You only need 3 things that you can easily get at home. Here are the materials needed. A string 40 cm long, a paper cup and a toothpick. 

Steps

1. Make a hole at the bottom of the paper cup. 
2. Take a string and get it through the hole under the paper cup. 
3. Tie a toothpick to the end of the string that is in the paper cup. 

This activity requires you to observe the sound produced when you pull the strings. Get your finger tips wet before you pull your fingers down the string. Do you hear a sound? If yes, try to make sounds of animals such as a clucking hen or a gecko by squeezing it at the right tempo.

Why is the sound coming from the cup louder?

This is an example of how a sounding board works. The vibrations from the string would be almost silent without the cup, but when we add the cup, it spreads the vibrations and amplifies them (makes them louder). A piano for example uses wood to act as a sounding board that makes the instrument louder.

Watch the full series of Petrosains Jurassic Adventure videos at https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL3AZBh1FXS19CM0IzS1DJOjCkNyD-kAJG

So come over to #Petrosains and have fun with our current theme, Jurassic Adventure!

Posted by Ayu

Petrosains

De-Extinction: Should We?

Woolly Mammoth

Bucardo

Extinction happens when an organism or species no longer exists.  Gone forever!  Kaput! What if we could reverse extinction?  DE-EXTINCT these organisms.

Dodo Bird

Some scientists find the idea of bringing back to life long extinct organisms exciting!  They have experimented but without long lasting success.  The last wild goat, the bucardo or Pyrenean ibex, was officially announced extinct in 2000 with the death of Celia, a female bucardo.  On July 30, 2003, a team of Spanish and French scientists succeeded in cloning the bucardo but unfortunately the newborn died within 10 minutes.  It struggled to breathe due to its deformed lungs.  That was the bucardo.  How about bringing back organisms that had perished millions of years ago?  Do remember that DNA decays as soon as an organism dies.

Megarachne

Now with the availability of new technology, scientists are now optimistic that they will succeed.

What is de-extinction?  You may call it resurrection biology or species revivalism.  Basically it is the process of creating an organism (which is a member of or resembles an extinct species) or a breeding population of such organisms.  Sounds simple?  It’s not.  It’s complicated and complex!

Dinosaurs

There are mixed responses to de-extinction and a controversy is brewing.  What are the possible implications?

Pros

1. Scientific knowledge

    Offer insights into evolution & natural resources that are currently unavailable to us.

2. Technological advancement

   Big step forward for genetic engineering.

3. Environmental benefits

 Threatened or damaged ecosystems could be restored with the help of certain extinct      species.

4. Justice

  We owe it to these species to resurrect them if people are the cause of their extinction.

5. Wonder

  Cool to see extinct species brought to live.

Cons

1. Animal welfare

  Exploiting animals solely for human purposes & may harm the de-extinct species.

2. Health

  Species could carry retroviruses or pathogens when brought back to life.

3. Environment

 De-extinct species would be alien & potentially invasive due to their changed habitats &  food sources.  Hence their roles in these changed ecosystems could be too.

4. Political

 De-extinction may change priorities in other fields of science.

5. Moral

 Is de-extinction playing God, or just plain wrong? It may also have unforeseen  consequences.

Shared by Azni

Learning Specialist, Petrosains

Brontosaurus Hidup Kembali!

Benarkah? Kalau benar, di manakah ia?

Setelah beberapa dekad para saintis mengesahkan bahawa Brontosaurus, sejenis dinosaur yang dikategorikan dalam famili Diplodocida adalah sebenarnya tidak wujud kerana ia memiliki ciri-ciri yang sama dengan Apatosaurus, iaitu sejenis dinosaur yang juga berada di dalam famili yang sama di samping Diplodocus, tetapi kajian saintifik terkini telah membuktikan sebaliknya.

Kredit imej: Davide Bonadonna, Milan, Italy. Creative commons license CC- BY NC SA

Memang benar Brontosaurus telah hidup kembali! Tetapi  bukan secara fizikal tetapi secara pengkelasan ciri-ciri dalam penamaan taksonomi. Brontosaurus adalah sejenis dinosaur yang pernah mendiami bumi satu ketika dahulu. Brontosaurus ataupun juga dikenali sebagai 'thunder lizards' adalah dinosaur yang berbadan besar, memiliki leher yang panjang dan juga ekor yang panjang (seperti dalam gambar di atas).

Genus Brontosaurus telah diberi dan dinamakan pada tahun 1879 oleh seorang ahli paleontologi, Othinel Charles Marsh. Walaubagaimanapun, pada tahun 1903, seorang lagi ahli paleontologi , Elmer Riggs telah mendapati bahawa Brontosaurus mempunyai ciri-ciri yang serupa dengan Apatosaurus.  Oleh sebab Apotosaurus telah dikelaskan terlebih dahulu pada tahun 1877 mengikut sistem penamaan saintifik, keutamaan diberikan terhadap spesies terdahulu. Nama 'Apatosaurus' kekal dan ini menyebabkan 'Brontosaurus' dikatakan 'pupus'.

 Sumber: https://peerj.com/articles/857/

Kini, semuanya telah berubah! Brontosaurus hidup kembali! Bukan dari segi fizikal tetapi berdasarkan kajian pada fosil Brontosaurus, ia telah membuktikan kumpulan dinosaur ini berhak memperoleh genusnya sendiri. Ataupun dengan erti kata lain dinosaur ini layak dipanggil dengan nama asalnya iaitu 'Brontosaurus'! Hasil kajian menunjukkan perbezaan ciri-ciri yang nyata pada bahagian tulang leher di antara Brontosaurus dan Apatosaurus. Brontosaurus mempunyai leher yang lebih panjang dan sedikit lebar menurut ketua ahli paleontologi di New University of Lisbon di Portugal.

Kajian yang telah dijalankan adalah merangkumi 300 kajian laman muka surat yang menganalisa sebanyak 477 perbezaan ciri fizikal pada 81 spesimen sauropoda ini yang mengambil masa selama lima tahun termasuk melibatkan beberapa kali lawatan ke muzium koleksi spesimen di Eropah dan Amerika Syarikat. 

Bacaan lanjut boleh diperolehi di:-

1. https://peerj.com/articles/857/

2. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-brontosaurus-is-back1/

3. http://www.thestar.com.my/Lifestyle/Features/2015/04/16/The-Brontosaurus-is-back-Prodigal-dino-returns-to-lexicon/

Posted by Ayu

Petrosains