Tuesday, September 1, 2009 | Science : Evolution and Biology | print version

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Angola: Final frontier for fossils

by Louise Redvers - BBC News

Thanks to rod-the-farmer for the link.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8230511.stm

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In the past, most people who went to Angola were searching for oil, diamonds or landmines.

Now, the country is also proving a big draw for fossil hunters - known in the scientific community as palaeontologists - who have described Angola as a "museum in the ground".

Angola was closed off for many years because of its three-decade long civil war, which only ended in 2002, so few scientists have had the chance to visit.

Those getting the chance now are not leaving disappointed. Louis Jacobs, of the Southern Methodist University in Dallas, says:

"Angola is the final frontier for palaeontology. Due to the war, there has been little research carried out... but now we are getting in finally and there is so much to find.

"In some areas there are literally fossils sticking out of the rocks, it is like a museum in the ground."
...
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8230511.stm

Posted: Tuesday, September 1, 2009 | Permalink

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1. Comment #411528 by Border Collie on September 1, 2009 at 3:47 pm

Fantastic ...

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2. Comment #411529 by Quetzalcoatl on September 1, 2009 at 3:48 pm

This looks fascinating, it'll be interesting to see what new finds are unearthed over the next few years.

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3. Comment #411535 by linbetwin on September 1, 2009 at 4:08 pm

Is the Southern Methodist Univ. a respectable institution or some Creationist diploma mill ?

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4. Comment #411536 by rod-the-farmer on September 1, 2009 at 4:09 pm

I like the part about comparing fossils in Africa and South America....

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5. Comment #411537 by Colwyn Abernathy on September 1, 2009 at 4:11 pm

I imagine they're like pre-adolescents in the proverbial confection emporium...

Or something like that.

Finally, I CAN HAS MOAR MISSING LINKS?

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6. Comment #411542 by infinitum17 on September 1, 2009 at 4:29 pm

it's a moderately respectable university. although they recently got tagged to host the George W. Bush presidential library, after a huge internal battle.

They have a REALLY beautiful campus.

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7. Comment #411546 by mordacious1 on September 1, 2009 at 4:39 pm

Not the safest place to go digging...

SMU actually has some pretty good science departments attended by at least one atheist that I know of...Hi TWP!

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8. Comment #411554 by Anvil on September 1, 2009 at 4:46 pm

Why is there this post in the Alternative Comment Thread?

1. Comment #411529 by Quetzalcoatl:

This looks fascinating, it'll be interesting to see what new finds are unearthed over the next few years.

Other Comments by Quetzalcoatl | Rank This Comment | Flag as: [spam] [offensive]

I thought admin' did all this these days?

Anvil.

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9. Comment #411566 by Erik on September 1, 2009 at 5:32 pm

SMU is a good school and in my experience does not push a religious agenda very hard. Certainly the people I know who went there are not at all devout, nor are the ones I know who went to TCU (Texas Christian University) or Baylor.

I saw the Lucy exhibit when it came through Houston and it was very exciting, although it was a little strange to hear that the remains had been in a drawer at an Ethiopian agency for years. I hope Angola takes care of this heritage well.

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10. Comment #411569 by Quetzalcoatl on September 1, 2009 at 5:44 pm

Anvil-

My posts were being auto-trolled due to a site glitch. It has been corrected now.

I'm back.....muhahahahahahahaha!

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11. Comment #411577 by fossil-fish on September 1, 2009 at 6:07 pm

Fascinating, not just the fossils but the layering effect in the rocks as well. Just love the idea of tripping over a dinosaur.

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12. Comment #411578 by TIKI AL on September 1, 2009 at 6:07 pm

How long before the land mines become fossilized?

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13. Comment #411580 by Crazycharlie on September 1, 2009 at 6:11 pm

The paleontologists going there to do field research should keep one eye on the ground and one looking out behind for thugs carrying machetes & Kalashnikovs. And the eye on the ground not only has to look for fossils but also land mines. Angola has a machete on their flag for crying out loud.

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14. Comment #411625 by el mig on September 1, 2009 at 10:30 pm

Cool. My dream is to own a T-Rex tooth. Some day i have to go to this Angola place

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15. Comment #411719 by PERSON on September 2, 2009 at 8:34 am

The best part of this is that the war ended and they seem to have been able to sustain a comparatively stable situation, IMO. The fossils are a nice bonus. I wonder what the political background to it all is. The WP article suggests they were entangled in the war in the DRoC.

5. Comment #411537 by Colwyn Abernathy on September 1, 2009 at 4:11 pm
More gaps!

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16. Comment #411895 by Gnuatheist on September 2, 2009 at 4:13 pm

El Mig,

If that's really your dream, go to dinosaurstore.com. $2600 and it's yours!

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17. Comment #411950 by el mig on September 2, 2009 at 7:18 pm

16. Comment #411895 by Gnuatheist

No way. For that money i can make a nice trip to Angola.

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18. Comment #412154 by Border Collie on September 3, 2009 at 3:41 pm

linbetwin ... I can't speak from actual experience, but based on local opinion, SMU is a very reputable university, even if it is associated with George W. Bush and the Methodist Church. Rich kid school also. You know what they say about Methodists in Texas ... They're Baptists who can read. I guess that's a start.

Rod ... Along with my original form of heresy ... seeing my first fossil when I was about four and starting to ask questions that pissed my parents off, my second heresy came when I was in the fouth grade and I looked at a map of South America and Africa and "knew", in my little pea brain, that those two continents had been together at one time ... after my first experience with the fossil, I didn't ask many questions that time.

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