Wednesday, June 14, 2006

Bigfoot found - in museum

The Idaho Museum of Natural History in Pocotello is opening a large exhibit on the state's legendary occupant, Bigfoot ot sasquatch. According to curator Linda Deck, the museum is not taking any position on the creature's reality. In addition to artifacts related to the Patterson/Gimlin Bigfoot film, the exhibit includes art and sculpture of Bigfoot, from old Native American cultures to the present day and a variety of casts, hair samples, etc.

COMMENT: I've always thought that science educators are missing an opportunity by shying away from or dismissing the sasquatch question. Even if you consider the animal's existence to be a long shot (as I do) or outright silly and impossible, it still works as a teaching tool. Students could, for example, study the environment of the Pacific Northwest and analyze the climate, available nutrition, etc. in the process of determining whether suitable ape habitat exists or what kind of ape might be adapted to the conditions there.

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