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Science

Hallucigenia

Hi All,

What is Hallucigenia and what makes it special?

(There may be a free drink for the first correct answer)

Cheers,
China xx


China Doll  Wed 18/10/06 11:03
China Doll
Wed 18/10/06
11:22

Question Author

Thanks Dawkins... It certainly sounds rather special!

(Perhaps it's a way of tracing George Bush's ancestory?!)
ugly_bob
Wed 18/10/06
11:46
Excellent Rating
I thought it was the state of mind caused by drugs such as LSD - but that may cause you to see things with no head and 2 arses I suppose!
China Doll
Wed 18/10/06
11:49

Question Author

Nah Bob.... you wouldn't see that but you could wake up with it in the morning ;0)
theprof
Wed 18/10/06
12:23
Excellent Rating
Brilliant answer dawkins and spot-on.

I'd like to that if I remember rightly, the paleontologists were even more confused as to where its arse was as it was found to have a dark stain at both ends!


theprof
Wed 18/10/06
12:25
Oops should be " I'd like to add that"...
China Doll
Wed 18/10/06
12:31

Question Author

Erm... without meaning to sound too incredulous, how on earth did scientists (who I've always figured were really rather bright,) think that something that had two arses and no head could exist? Or have there actually been other creatures like this that have existed?
China Doll
Wed 18/10/06
14:57

Question Author

Thank you all.

While you're here and to save asking in another thread - does anyone know what a Cealocanth (I'm not sure I've spelt that right) is and if there's anything special about that too?

Thanks again!
China Doll
Wed 18/10/06
15:38

Question Author

A friend of mine studied geology and keeps baffling me today if I'm honest Dawkins.

Basically I have a lot of questions when it comes to science anyway but they're usually a bit more phillosophical in nature. (Today I've been flummoxed completely and because I'm not sure that I'm spelling all the names correctly I didn't think a search engine would be very useful.) I looked up the burgess shale you mentioned earlier but didn't really have time to have a very good look at it.

I've only very recently started using the Science category as I was a bit scared my questions would be laughed at but everyone has been really very helpful and informative.... which unfortunately for you all has encouraged me so I guess I'll be hanging around here a bit in the future.
theprof
Wed 18/10/06
15:53
Excellent Rating
Glad to have you here China Doll. Don't be afraid of posting any question. We're all glad to help and won't laugh - honest.
China Doll
Wed 18/10/06
16:05

Question Author

Thanks very much Prof.... I think I'm going to like it here.
brachiopod
Wed 18/10/06
16:48
Excellent Rating
I remember chatting to Simon Conway-Morris about Hallucigenia and the Burgess Shale fauna.
He described the moment of revelation when he inverted his Hallucigenia model (well, drawing as it was).

I can't recall him using the phrase "it's got two arses", though !!

:o)
steviep165
Thurs 19/10/06
00:10
Excellent Rating
if i remember my degree course correctly china me old doll (lovely too see you here by the way), the burgess shales turned up many species which had never been seen before.
the venerable Stephen J Gould had a good butchers at that them and based a lot of his work on the punctuated equilibrium theory of evolution upon these new species.
how many of the fossil remains where actually correctly reassembled and categorized however, is open to debate.

and here's a hallucigenia for ya petal!!!......

http://www.karencarr.com/Images/Gallery/2004_g allery_hallucigenia.jpg
theprof
Thurs 19/10/06
10:20
Excellent Rating
Furthermore, if you want to see an animation that's had us all in stitches in the lab this morning, have a look here:

http://evolution.berkeley.edu/evolibrary/artic le/_0_0/cambrian_13




China Doll
Thurs 19/10/06
11:45

Question Author

Thanks Stevie... Looks a lot better than the one drawn on a post-it for me last night.

Lol @ Prof.... very good!
brachiopod
Sat 21/10/06
02:11
Excellent Rating
Fantastic! I love the link, theprof, though I nearly broke my moniter turning it upside down "so as I could see it right proper, guv'nor"

" 'ho does them Burgess Shale fauna finks they is, eh? Bleedin' arthropod wannabe's, that's what! "
.

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