What About the R.O.U.S's !?

Those were the days, my friend...

We thought they'd never end...

I read about this in "The Independent" (article linked) this morning. This is their "artist's impression":

I'd like to know why neither of the guys who discovered it were commemorated in the name. (And who is Joseph Oartia(?)) ?

No clue who good old Joe is, but it is common to name new species after a mentor, a former teacher, a famous researcher in your field, etc. It is considered snobbism to name one (at least the first one) after oneself. It happens, but it's neither common, nor strictly speaking, done, as I believe the British English idiom goes. ("I say, old boy, that's just not done, you know." Accompanied by a withering gaze, of course...)

Now, we'd have wanted a pretty good cat to catch that rous...

Good point - just not done. I was assuming that Andy & Ernie dug it up - not actually identified & named it. On re-reading (noting that they published in "Proceedings B"), I concur.

Hi Roger,

Interesting article. We know of huge mammals (megalotherium) and sharks (carcharidon megalodon). Why not giant rodents?

In the illustration, do the shaded parts represent parts of the skull that were missing? If so, the whole lower jaw and the upper teeth were not observed in the remains. This tells me that they don't REALLY know what the teeth looked like and, if they were using the structure of the teeth to identify it as a rodent, it is inconclusive.

Most remains are not found completely intact and, if a conception of the animal is to be displayed, there must be some scientific, logical route to display the parts that were not there. I don't know what kind of process is involved in this and, being the cynic that I am, I have to wonder if there is a high degree of subjectivity involved.

Roger, I do not mean to pry but you don't by any chance happen to have six fingers on your right hand?

Having more than five would be inconceivable.

Best Regards,

Mike

Mikerho,

You Said "Roger, I do not mean to pry but you don't by any chance happen to have six fingers on your right hand? "

Maybe I do, maybe I don't, I just wish people would stop walking up to me saying "Hello, my name is Inigo Montoya, you killed my father, prepare to die". I hate when that happens.

Vizzini: HE DIDN'T FALL? INCONCEIVABLE.
Inigo Montoya: You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

One of my granddaughters was born with six fingers on each hand. Folklore has it as a sign of royal blood. The extras were vestigial, with very little cartilage in them and were easily removed.

I wanted to keep them in the freezer for my granddaughter, but my daughter overruled me.

But to veer back on topic - yes there is some scientific, logical route to display the parts that were not there. By comparing the pieces of the new skull with the skulls of other similar fossils, scientists can make a best guess. It is a guess, but it's based on reasonable and logical assumptions.

Rats that big live in the bayou out back of my house, they are known to eat small dogs and are particularly fond of eating house cats (Del...).

Good news is that the gators keep the rat population down....