Tag: Dinosaur Discovery Museum

Darwin Day at the Dinosaur Discovery Museum: report

February 15, 2015 • 4:11 pm

by Greg Mayer

Jerry has just returned from his Darwin Day activities in Mississippi, and I’m sure we’ll be receiving a report on how things went (including in the culinary department). In the meantime, here’s a report on how things went at the Dinosaur Discovery Museum’s Darwin Day event last weekend.

The museum has one main exhibit hall, having a very large number of dinosaurs (especially theropods); most are high quality reproductions. In the lobby, I set up a temporary exhibit table on the theme of “Highly Evolved Tetrapods”, meaning ones that have lost or rearranged major parts of their skeletons. My table, manned by my son Christian and myself, featured live animals.

The tetrapod table.
The highly evolved tetrapod table.

The hit of the exhibit was Vivian, an adult ball python (Python regius). Many people, as urged to by our signage, asked to see Vivian’s hind legs.

Vivian-- the star of the show.
Vivian– the star of the show.

Most people (even biologists) don’t know that some extant snakes have vestigial hind limbs, and my son and I have always liked to show them off. Once, when he was in grade school, he told a naturalist at a creationist nature camp (admittedly an odd combination) about the legs on a python they had on exhibit. She demurred, but my son, in good faith (he didn’t know they were creationists) persisted, and offered to show the legs to her. She allowed as she had seen the structures, but that they weren’t legs. He again persisted, stating (correctly) that the leg bones and pelvis were still there, and that they were legs. She could only sputter that they were not legs “in my world view”!

Curator of Education Nick Wiersum with a friend.
Nick Wiersum, Curator of Education, ain’t afraid of no toad.

The giant toad (Bufo marinus; called cane toads in Australia, but native from Texas to Argentina) was also quite popular. You can see the large ellipsoid poison glands behind the eye, and the swelling of the body to make swallowing difficult, another defensive attribute. We also had an American toad (Bufo americanus; common throughout most of the eastern United States and Canada) for comparison. Both are good-sized adults.

American Toad vs. Giant Toad
American Toad vs. Giant Toad

We also had Slidey, a red-eared slider (Trachemys scripta elegans); we’ve noted before here on WEIT how highly evolved turtles are.

Slidey the Red-eared Slider
Slidey the Red-eared Slider

My paleontological colleagues Summer Ostrowski and Chris Noto set up a temporary exhibit featuring small, touchable fossils and a very fine selection of plastic animals.

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The plastic animals (all high quality collector-grade pieces) were arranged in correct phylogenetic arrangement. Although you can barely see him under the mammoth’s chin, humanity is represented by a 3D print of Charles Darwin as depicted in the sitting statue of him at the Natural History Museum in London.

The pyhlogeny of plastic animals.
The phylogeny of plastic animals.

Chris and I also gave lectures in the museum’s downstairs class room, on “How Evolution Works” (me) and “What the Fossil Record Tells Us about Evolution”. Nick Wiersum, Curator of Education, led special activities in the main exhibit hall.

DSCN7967
“I once caught a fish, this big.”

I think the event was quite successful, with events suitable for kids, students, and adults. There was a good crowd, from kids through adults, with steady numbers the whole day, and lots of good questions. The attendees included WEIT readers, some who came from Milwaukee and Evanston– thanks so much for the support, and it was good to meet you!

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Thx for pix: Chris Noto, Jim Shea

Darwin Day 2015 at the Dinosaur Discovery Museum in Kenosha, Wisconsin (and at the University of Southern Mississippi)

February 4, 2015 • 11:32 am

by Greg Mayer (and Professor Ceiling Cat):

Darwin Day, Feb. 12, is fast approaching, so start making your plans now. The Dinosaur Discovery Museum in Kenosha, Wisconsin will be holding its event this coming Saturday, February 7, from noon to 5 PM.

Darwin-Day-2015

There will be educational displays (including live herps), activities for children, videos about evolution from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and Chris Noto and I will each be giving public lectures during the afternoon. Chris’s talk will be on  “What the Fossil Record Tells Us About Evolution”, while I’ll be speaking on “How Evolution Works”.  My talk is at 1 PM, Chris’s at 3 PM; each should be about 30 min.

If you’re in southeastern Wisconsin or northeastern Illinois, come by to join the festivities!

*****

Professor Ceiling Cat will be lecturing on Darwin Day in the Deep South, my favorite place to spread the gospel. I’ll be talking about the evidence for evolution and the religious pushback against it, at the University of Southern Mississippi on February 13 (announcement here). There will be books on sale, and the good Professor will sign them; if you say “Felis silvestris lybica” (the wild ancestor of the house cat), you’ll get a cat drawn in your book.

I was going to combine this with an eating trip to nearby New Orleans, but discovered to my horror that that’s during Mardi Gras, an awful time to be nomming in The Big Easy. However, I’m told that Hattiesburg, Mississippi has two world-class barbecue joints. Stay tuned.

Darwin Day, 2014, events in Kenosha, Wisconsin

February 4, 2014 • 2:34 pm

by Greg Mayer

Darwin’s birthday, Feb. 12, is fast upon us, so, for those in the Chicago-Milwaukee corridor, I’d like to announce three upcoming events in Kenosha, Wisconsin, the approximate center of the megalopolis.

First, on Darwin Day itself, Wednesday, February 12, Scott Thomson of the University of Wisconsin-Parkside will be speaking at 7 PM in Greenquist Hall 103 on “Intracellular Stowaways: Cells that Live Within Cells”. There are many symbioses between cells, including the famous one that led to certain bacteria becoming mitochondria and chloroplasts. The talk will pay particular attention to intracellular stowaways found in mosquitoes.

Then, on Thursday, February 13, it’s Science Movie Night in Greenquist Hall 103 at UW-Parkside, with a showing of  “Flock of Dodos” by scientist-turned-filmmaker Randy Olson.

Darwin Day 2014 UWP filmAnd on Saturday, February 15, it’s Darwin Day at the Dinosaur Discovery Museum, including family events on the main floor, and three short talks in the classroom, including one by yours truly on “The Evidence for Evolution“.

Darwin Day 2014 DDM

Also, on Wednesday morning, February 12, from about 8:10 AM to 9 AM I’ll be talking live with Greg Berg on WGTD 91.1 FM’s “Morning Show“, talking about Darwin and the evidence for evolution. On the following morning, Nick Wiersum, Curator of Natural History Education for the Kenosha Public Museums, will also make a brief appearance on the “Morning Show”, about 8:50 AM to 9 AM.

All the events are free and open to the public. UW-Parkside is easily accessible via I-94, and the Dinosaur Discovery Museum is in downtown Kenosha, overlooking Civic Center Park from the west.

The Darwin Day events are the result of a collaboration between the Kenosha Public Museum’s Dinosaur Discovery Museum, the University of Wisconsin-Parkside, and Carthage College. Nick Wiersum of KPM and Chris Noto of UWP are the lead organizers.

Goings on at the Dinosaur Discovery Museum, Kenosha, Wisconsin

March 17, 2013 • 9:52 pm

by Greg Mayer

The Dinosaur Discovery Museum in Kenosha, Wisconsin, is becoming a hotbed of evolutionary activity. I already posted about their Darwin Day celebrations, and now I want to announce an upcoming event in their Spring Lecture series: Life and Death in a Cretaceous Coastal Swamp by my colleague, Prof. Chris Noto. The lecture is this Wednesday, March 20, at 6 PM, and is free and open to the public. His topic will be his work at the Arlington Archosaur Site in Texas, and I’m sure he’ll include a discussion of his work on the feeding habits of giant Cretaceous crocodiles, which we’ve remarked upon here at WEIT before.

Cretaceous crocodile crunching critter (artist's conception)
Cretaceous crocodile crunching critter, by Jude Swales.

The previous event at the Museum was Women in Science Day, which I unfortunately neglected to announce until the day of the event. There was a good turnout nonetheless, as many people, including lots of kids, came to meet the women scientists and see the special exhibits they had set up. My colleagues Drs. Summer Ostrowski and Natalia Taft , joined by MaryRuth Kotelnicki (a trilobite enthusiast who is an adjunct professor at Edgewood College in Madison) entertained and educated the visitors.

Dr. Summer Ostrowski talks with a visitor on Women in Science Day. Her shirt reads "This is what a scientist looks like."
Dr. Summer Ostrowski talks with a visitor on Women in Science Day. Her shirt reads “This is what a scientist looks like.” Note field gear to left, fossils, and a fine selection of plastic extinct animals. How many can you identify?
Dr. Natalia Taft standing next to her exhibi,t which featured the "fishapod" Tiktaalik, which she studied during a postdoctoral fellowship.
Dr. Natalia Taft standing next to her exhibit, which featured the “fishapod” Tiktaalik, which she studied during her postdoctoral fellowship.
A young visitor momentarily glances up from the giant ornamented trilobite she had been examining.
A young visitor momentarily glances up from the giant ornamented trilobite she had been examining.

I was pleased to find that some WEIT readers were able to attend Darwin Day, so perhaps with a less tardy notice than for Women in Science Day, some might have a chance to make the upcoming Cretaceous coastal swamp lecture. Kenosha is close to both Milwaukee and Chicago. I’m also glad to report that the cartoon Charles Darwins from Darwin Day, as I thought they would, have become a permanent part of the signage for the main dinosaur exhibit.

Charles Darwin explains dinosaur evolution.
Charles Darwin explains dinosaur evolution. Note that the dinosaurs in the picture are the same colors as the Marx Toy Co. dinosaurs of the 1950s and 60s. I can’t imagine CD being wrong about something like that, so I guess the toy designers knew what they were doing back then.

Women in Science Day at the Dinosaur Discovery Museum

March 9, 2013 • 8:22 am

by Greg Mayer

Sorry for the late notice, but today, from 1-4 PM, is Women in Science Day at the Kenosha, Wis., Dinosaur Discovery Museum. I know some WEIT readers made it to the Darwin Day festivities there, so I thought I’d mention today’s event as well. Among the women paleontologists participating will be my University of Wisconsin-Parkside colleagues Drs. Summer Ostrowski and Natalia Taft, both of whom specialize on fishes. I’m hoping to stop by during the latter part of the event.

One of the dinosaurs at the Dinosaur Discovery Museum.
One of the dinosaurs at the Dinosaur Discovery Museum.

Happy Darwin’s Birthday and Mardi Gras!

February 12, 2013 • 7:13 am

by Greg Mayer

Well, as previously noted, today is Darwin’s birthday and Mardi Gras. Laissez les bons temps rouler! At the Dinosaur Discovery Museum in Kenosha, Wisconsin, the festivities began on Sunday. I am happy to report that some WEIT readers made it to the Museum for the activities; unfortunately, they had left by the time I arrived fairly late in the day. The Museum exhibits consist of a hall containing a variety of dinosaurs, especially theropods, with most of the skeletons being high quality casts. The hall is big enough to contain a full size Tyrannosaurus, a full size Acrocanthosaurus, and many more.

The main hall of the Dinosaur Discovery Museum.
The main hall of the Dinosaur Discovery Museum.

For Darwin Day, little Charles Darwins, each giving some interesting facts about the dinosaurs, were scattered about the hall. They will remain as part of the permanent exhibit.

Charles Darwin explains feather evolution. The origin of birds is a theme of the Museum. Note CD's own incipient plumage.
Charles Darwin explains feather evolution. The origin of birds is a theme of the Museum. Note CD’s own incipient plumage.

In addition, for Darwin Day my University of Wisconsin-Parkside colleagues Summer Ostrowski and Chris Noto had a table of fossils, casts, models, and kids’ activities set up in the foyer hall.

Drs. Summer Ostrowski and Chris Noto at the DDM's DD celebration.
Drs. Summer Ostrowski and Chris Noto at the DDM’s DD celebration.
Chris Noto as Darwin.
Chris Noto as Darwin.

Also in the foyer, UWP grad student Sean Murphy had turtle shells and turtles on hand to help explain the evolution of turtles. Turtles, the quintessential charismatic mesofauna, have the most radically transformed body plan of any tetrapod: their shoulder and pelvic girdles are inside their rib cage. (Feel where your ribs are, and then your shoulders and hips, and then imagine how you would get both of the latter inside of the former!) The turtles were the hit of the day, and were featured in local news coverage (which I would link to except the Kenosha News website won’t show you anything at all without paying).

Sean Murphy demonstrates turtle shell morphology.
Sean Murphy demonstrates turtle shell morphology.

The turtles held a conference, no doubt favorably comparing their own mature self-knowledge to the frantic insecurities of their human companions.

Rhinoclemmys, Emydoidea, and Terrapene, in conference.
Rhinoclemmys, Emydoidea, and Terrapene, in conference.

Dr. Thomas Carr, director of the Carthage College Institute of Paleontology, which is housed at the Museum, was also on hand.

Thomas Carr and his friend, an Allosaurus.
Thomas Carr and his friend, an Allosaurus.

At the end, after the Museum closed, the dinosaurs had to return to their homes through the snow.

A dinosaur dashes to its car after participating in the Dinosaur Discovery Museum's Darwin Day festivities. Since it turns out that dinosaurs are warm-blooded, the snow was not actually a major problem for the dinosaurs.
A dinosaur dashes to its car after participating in the Dinosaur Discovery Museum’s Darwin Day festivities. Since it turns out that dinosaurs are warm-blooded, the snow was not actually a major problem for the dinosaurs.

Darwin Day at the Dinosaur Discovery Museum

February 8, 2013 • 9:43 am

by Greg Mayer

If you’ll be in or near southeastern Wisconsin on this coming Sunday (instead of being on your way to New Orleans), you’ll want to visit the Dinosaur Discovery Museum in Kenosha (5608 Tenth Avenue,  Kenosha, WI 53140, 262-653-4450) for their Darwin Day event.

Darwin Day

Sunday, February 10, 2013; 1-4pm

An international celebration of science and humanity recognizing the birthday of the father of evolutionary biology, Charles Darwin. Explore the discoveries and life of Charles Darwin, the man who first described biological evolution via natural selection. Learn about his research on natural selection, participate in discussions on evolution, and explore the Museum as an evolutionary biologist. Family crafts and hands-on fun throughout the afternoon.

Do you have a fossil or interesting rock you want to learn more about? Bring it in and have it looked at by a paleontologist.

Darwin in Obama-style poster
An image being used in the Museum’s promotional materials for the event.

My colleagues Drs. Chris Noto and Summer Ostrowski will be there, and I’m going to try to stop by. The Museum is home to the Carthage College Institute of Paleontology, headed by Dr. Thomas Carr.