Earth Science Club of Northern Illinois - ESCONI

English Fossil Auction Coming June 2

From Skinner Auctions: The Natural History collection featured in the June Science, Technology & Clocks auction comprises over 125 lots of ancient history, including complete dinosaur skeletons, eggs and other bone fragments, a wooly mammoth tusk, fossilized fish, shark’s teeth, a sea scorpion, ammonites, trilobites, crinoids and more. Many lots of classic Jurassic fossils from the Lyme Regis, Dorset England were the property of pioneer collector Mary Anning and others carry the original catalogue labels of famed mid-19th century London dealer Bryce McMurdo Wright. For more information, please call Jay Dowling at 508-970-3131 or email science-tech@skinnerinc.com.

English Fossil Auction Coming June 2

From Skinner Auctions: The Natural History collection featured in the June Science, Technology & Clocks auction comprises over 125 lots of ancient history, including complete dinosaur skeletons, eggs and other bone fragments, a wooly mammoth tusk, fossilized fish, shark’s teeth, a sea scorpion, ammonites, trilobites, crinoids and more. Many lots of classic Jurassic fossils from the Lyme Regis, Dorset England were the property of pioneer collector Mary Anning and others carry the original catalogue labels of famed mid-19th century London dealer Bryce McMurdo Wright. For more information, please call Jay Dowling at 508-970-3131 or email science-tech@skinnerinc.com.

Richard Leakey Speaks On Evolution

Written by Associated Press via Washington Post - (hat tip Floyd whose daughter, Dr. Rebecca Ackermann, is a professor in the department of archaeology at the University of Cape Town, a former Leakey Scholar.)

Paleoanthropologist Richard Leakey predicts end is near on debate over evolution

... “If you look back, the thing that strikes you, if you’ve got any sensitivity, is that extinction is the most common phenomena,” Leakey says. “Extinction is always driven by environmental change. Environmental change is always driven by climate change. Man accelerated, if not created, planet change phenomena; I think we have to recognize that the future is by no means a very rosy one.”

Any hope for mankind’s future, he insists, rests on accepting existing scientific evidence of its past....

read more

Events in June - July, 2012

June 22- 24	Lawrence Co. Rock Club 47th Annual Gem, Mineral & Fossil Show & Swap Fr: 10-6:30, Sa: 9-6:30, Su: 10-4. Free admission. Monroe County Fairgrounds, at Airport Road and Hwy. 45 near Bloomington, IN. Contact Dave Treffinger: (812) 295-3463
July 19	"History of Area Coal Mining" - Presentation  by Dick Joyce 7pm at Braidwood City Hall Refreshments and mingling at the Museum afterward. 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM  http://www.braidwoodhistoricalsociety.org/apps/calendar/showEvent?calID=6439203&eventID=182898222
July 26-29	A Celebration of Agates -  Internationally recognized agate experts and enthusiasts. Thursday - Agate seminars. Friday - Sunday Show with dealers, exhibits and speakers. AFMS & MWF Annual Meetings, with Awards Banquet on Saturday evening. Hopkins High School, Lindbergh Center, Minnetonka, MN. Info: www.minnesotamineralclub.org

 

Hawthorne Hill Nature Center Needs Rocks & Fossils!

Hawthorne Hill Nature Center needs rocks! They are creating a family-friendly rock collection area. They are looking for all different kinds of rocks and would appreciate if you would contact them if you have rocks to donate - whatever you would like to donate – interesting shaped or naturally-colored rocks, stream stones, fossil-laden rocks, minerals, etc.  How cool!

This October, Hawthorne Hill Nature Center will be celebrating their very first “Rock Out” Month at HHNC and throughout Elgin with special programs at the nature center, Elgin Public Museum, and Elgin History Museum.

To donate rocks & fossils, please contact:

April Anderson
Naturalist
Hawthorne Hill Nature Center
28 Brookside Drive  (physical address  not for mail)
Elgin, IL  60123
847 531 7055

New Photographs

Photos of trip to St. Paul Indiana Quarry and Mid America Paleontology were just added:

http://www.esconi.org/photos/st_paul_indiana_quarry/index.html

http://www.esconi.org/photos/midamerica_paleontology_2/index.html

Chicagoland Gem, Mineral Show This Weekend

This Memorial Day weekend, at the Chicagoland Gem, Mineral and Fossil show, nationally-known dealers, demonstrations, educational exhibits, lapidary arts, jewelry exhibits, faceting, cabochon cutting, polishing gemstones, silversmithing, beading, wire wrapping, geode splitting, a silent auction, childrens' rock area - and jewelry repair - will all be available!

Saturday, May 26, 2012 10am - 6pm
Sunday, May 27, 2012  10am - 5pm

Adults - $5.00
Seniors- $3.00
Students (13-17) - $3.00
Children (Under 13) Free

FREE PARKING
iNDOORS - AIR CONDITIONED - FOOD AVAILABLE 

DuPage County Fairgrounds
2015 W. Manchester Rd.
Wheaton, IL 

 

Turtle the Size of a Small Car

Via NC State University: (hat tip Floyd) -

Reconstruction of Carbonemys preying upon a small crocodylomorph. Artwork by Liz Bradford

"... A prehistoric turtle big enough to eat crocodiles has been discovered in Columbia. The turtle lived about 60-million-years ago, and was about the size of a small car.

The fossils were discovered in a coal mine in northern Colombia, in 2005. And has thusly been named Carbonemys cofrinii, ‘coal turtle’. With a skull about the size of a football, and a shell that’s about five and a half feet long.

“We had recovered smaller turtle specimens from the site. But after spending about four days working on uncovering the shell, I realized that this particular turtle was the biggest anyone had found in this area for this time period — and it gave us the first evidence of giantism in freshwater turtles,” Cadena says..."

GOLD Field Trip to Bricoe Mounds - Sun 5/27

This field trip is being held by Les Marszalek, President of GOLD (Greater Oak Lawn Diggers).

If you are interested, meet at the boat house at 11 AM on Sunday 5/27/12.  The boat house is by Canal Street on the I&M Canal off of Route 6 and Canal Street.

At 11:30 AM, the attendees will head out for a tour of Briscoe Mounds (see bottom of page).

If you have further questions about his Sunday May 27th Fieldtrip to Briscoe Mounds, contact Les at (708) 501-0677.

ESCONI Field Trip Announced - Sat-Sun 6/2-3 - Cahokia Mounds

Cahokia Mounds State Park Field Trip, Saturday June 2^nd and Sunday June 3rd. Contact Bryan Nugent (630) 960-5147 to register or for additional information. There is no admission fee but a suggested donation of $4 for adults and $2 for children ($10 max. per family). Events and programs are free, unless otherwise noted. Workshops and classes require pre-registration and fees paid to instructors. For more information, call 618-346-5160. Cahokia Mounds is located in Collinsville, Illinois off Interstates 55/70 and 255. Cahokia Mounds is just fifteen minutes east of St. Louis, Missouri.

Much more information can be found by downloading this Field Trip document (.pdf).

Rebellatrix

Via UPI - Ancestor of living 'fossil fish' described

An ancestor of coelacanths, "living fossil" fish thought extinct until a live one was caught in 1938 off South Africa, has been identified, paleontologists say.

Unlike living coelacanths, which are slow-moving fish with peculiar broad tails, the extinct ancestor had a tuna-like forked tail and was probably a fast-moving, shark-like predator, Canadian researchers from the University of Alberta report in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology.

Read more: http://www.upi.com/Science_News/2012/05/03/Ancestor-of-living-fossil-fish-described/UPI-17481336077936/#ixzz1u819yvpJ

 

Do You Know Who Owns This Fossil?

Need help! Do you know which member owns this fossil (and brought it to be photographed for the new book?) If so, please send email to esconiclub@yahoo.com or call Jack Wittry or reply in the comment section of this post or call a board member listed in the newsletter. Thank you! 
Click on photo to embiggen. 

Who Owns This Mazon Fossil?

Need help! Do you know which member owns this fossil (and brought it to be photographed for the new book?) If so, please send email to esconiclub@yahoo.com or call Jack Wittry.
 

Profile on Self-Taught Paleontologist in Maryland

Via Washington Post - Tireless tracker rewrote the book on dinosaurs in Maryland (hat tip Don B.)

...Wiry, voluble, energetic 73-year-old Ray Stanford could almost pass for a paleontologist. But his hair is a little too short, his beard too trim, his button-down shirt too tucked. And he talks too fast. This Texan is an amateur, although he disdains that term. He’s self-taught, a gentleman naturalist.

And now he’s leading me to the Stanford Museum: his living room...No dinosaur footprints in Maryland? There were stampedes of them...

Call for Volunteer Help on CGMA Show

ESCONI is one of five Chicagoland clubs in Chicagoland Gem and Mineral Society. The other clubs are Chicago Rocks and Minerals Society, DesPlaines Geological Society, Elgin Rocks and Minerals Club and West Suburban Lapidary Club. All the members join together to put on the biggest, best rockin' show!

So, what can ESCONI members do to support this show? Here are some ideas:

1. Volunteer three hours at the Admission Desk, Friday 9-3 setup or Sunday take down
2. Bring minerals, fossils for the silent auction or for the childrens' rock area
3. Provide an exhbit
4. Demonstrate at a table

If you can provide any help at all, it will be greatly appreciate and you can get into the show free! Also, ESCONI will receive some money for member support.

To sign up for any volunteer activity, call John Good at 630-377-0197.  If you want to bring material for the silent auction or the childrens' area - just bring on Fri, Sat. or Sun.

New Field Trip Announced

There will be an ESCONI Field Trip to the Vulcan (was Larson) Quarry on Barber Greene Road in Sycamore, IL on June 16th 2012, from 9 to noon. Sign up by sending me an email with the number of people and their names. I will acknowledge by return email. By request of the quarry management, the trip is limited to 20 people.

Rules:
1. Must be an ESCONI member.
2. Must be at least 18 years old.
3. Must wear a hard hat and boots.

Be there by 9AM. Park by the metal office on the south side of Barber Greene Rd. We will go through site-specific training before going into the quarry area. Bring your MSHA Part 46 certificate if you have one. It isn't required - just nice to have.

The rock exposed here is Late Ordovician (Maquoketa Group) to Early Silurian (Wilhelmi Fm.). Hammers are usually not needed. Bring a bucket, plastic bags to hold fossils, and something to wrap them in (like TP) if they are delicate.

The most common fossils are brachiopods and bryozoans, but there are also trilobites, crinoids, cystoids, cephalopods and conularids.

I can send directions or a map for anyone who is unfamiliar with the quarry.

Dave
email - fossil54@att. net

DNA May Resolve Origin of European Agriculture

Via PhysOrg:

The genetic profiles of three Neolithic hunter-gatherers and one farmer who lived in the same region of modern-day Sweden about 5,000 years ago were quite different - a fact that could help resolve a decades-old battle among archaeologists over the origins of European agriculture, said study leader Mattias Jakobsson, a population geneticist at Uppsala University in Sweden.

Sierra Mountains Rapidly Rising

Via The Record-Courier - Geologist: Sierra growing at rapid rate, by Mike Wolterbeek, University of Nevada, Reno

... scientific evidence from the University of Nevada, Reno, shows the entire Sierra Nevada range is rising at the relatively fast rate of 1 to 2 millimeters every year.

“The exciting thing is we can watch the range growing in real time,” University of Nevada, Reno's Bill Hammond, lead researcher on the multi-year project to track the rising range, said. “Using data back to before 2000 we can see it with accuracy better than 1 millimeter per year. Perhaps even more amazing is that these miniscule changes are measured using satellites in space.”...

Lost City Found in Gulf of Cambay

Via BBC - (hat tip - Rich K.)

The remains of what has been described as a huge lost city may force historians and archaeologists to radically reconsider their view of ancient human history.

Marine scientists say archaeological remains discovered 36 metres (120 feet) underwater in the Gulf of Cambay off the western coast of India could be over 9,000 years old... more

 

 

Bryan Syke's New Book - DNA USA: Genetic Portrait of America

Interesting interview of Bryan Syke's, including discussion of Clovis controversy, by Leonard Lopate of WNYC about Syke's new book:  DNA USA: A Genetic Portrait of America.

Geneticist Bryan Sykes discusses examining America, one of the most genetically diverse countries in the world, through its DNA, and what it says about how we perceive race. His book DNA USA: A Genetic Portrait of America takes readers on a historical genetic tour, interviewing genealogists, geneticists, anthropologists, and everyday Americans about their ancestral stories.