Friday, October 22, 2010

Renaming or un-naming dinosaurs?

Are Triceratops and Torosaurus the same or different species, and why does it matter? Paleontologist Jack Horner thinks they are the same, which poses a problem for the famed Peabody Museum - where visitors are greeted by a life-size sculpture identified as Torosaurus. It points up the challenge of naming species from often-fragmentary fossils. Yale paleontologist Nick Longrich, for example, is convinced Horner is wrong. Are the lumpers or the splitters right?

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