Modern videography provides an ever-widening window into subsea echinoderm life with vast potential for new knowledge. Supported by video evidence throughout, this Element begins with time-lapse video made in 1983 on film, using an off-the-shelf camera, flash, and underwater housings. Although quality has now been significantly improved by digital imagery, films from over thirty years ago captured crinoid feeding behavior previously unknown and demonstrated a great potential to learn about many other aspects of their biology. This sequence is followed by several examples of recent digital videography from submersibles of deep-sea crinoids and remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) (stalked and unstalked), as well as close-up video of crinoids in aquaria. These recent studies enabled a new classification of crinoid arm postures, provided detailed views of food particle capture, and revealed a wide range of behaviors in taxa never before seen in life.

The ideal textbook for non-science majors, this lively and engaging introduction encourages students to ask questions, assess data critically and think like a scientist. Building on the success of previous editions, Dinosaurs has been thoroughly updated to include new discoveries in the field, such as the toothed bird specimens found in China and recent discoveries of dinosaur soft anatomy. Illustrations by leading paleontological illustrator John Sibbick and new, carefully-chosen photographs, clearly show how dinosaurs looked, lived and their role in Earth history. Making science accessible and relevant through clear explanations and extensive illustrations, the text guides students through the dinosaur groups, emphasizing scientific concepts rather than presenting endless facts. Grounded in the common language of modern evolutionary biology - phylogenetic systematics - students learn to think about dinosaurs the way that professional paleontologists do.

Knowledge of the evolutionary history of birds has much improved in recent decades. Fossils from critical time periods are being described at unprecedented rates and modern phylogenetic analyses have provided a framework for the interrelationships of the extant groups. This book gives an overview of the avian fossil record and its paleobiological significance, and it is the only up-to-date textbook that covers both Mesozoic and more modern-type Cenozoic birds in some detail. The reader is introduced to key features of basal avians and the morphological transformations that have occurred in the evolution towards modern birds. An account of the Cenozoic fossil record sheds light on the biogeographic history of the extant avian groups and discusses fossils in the context of current phylogenetic hypotheses. This review of the evolutionary history of birds not only addresses students and established researchers, but it may also be a useful source of information for anyone else with an interest in the evolution of birds and a moderate background in biology and geology.

The stable chromium (Cr) isotope system has emerged over the past decade as a new tool to track changes in the amount of oxygen in earth's ocean-atmosphere system. Much of the initial foundation for using Cr isotopes ( 53Cr) as a paleoredox proxy has required recent revision. However, the basic idea behind using Cr isotopes as redox tracers is straightforward-the largest isotope fractionations are redox-dependent and occur during partial reduction of Cr(VI). As such, Cr isotopic signatures can provide novel insights into Cr redox cycling in both marine and terrestrial settings. Critically, the Cr isotope system-unlike many other trace metal proxies-can respond to short-term redox perturbations (e.g., on timescales characteristic of Pleistocene glacial-interglacial cycles). The Cr isotope system can also be used to probe the earth's long-term atmospheric oxygenation, pointing towards low but likely dynamic oxygen levels for the majority of Earth's history.

The history of life on earth is largely reconstructed from time-averaged accumulations of fossils. A glimpse at ecologic-time attributes and processes is relatively rare. However, the time-sensitive and predictability of echinoderm disarticulation makes them model organisms to determine post-mortem transportation and allows recognition of ecological-time data within paleocommunity accumulations. Unlike many other fossil groups, this has allowed research on many aspects of echinoderms and their paleocommunities, such as the distribution of soft tissues, assessment of the amount of fossil transportation prior to burial, determination of intraspecific variation, paleocommunity composition, estimation of relative abundance of taxa in paleocommunities, determination of attributes of niche differentiation, etc. Crinoids and echinoids have received the most amount of taphonomic research, and the patterns present in these two groups can be used to develop a more thorough understanding of all echinoderm clades.

The quantification of morphology through time is a vital tool in elucidating macroevolutionary patterns. Studies of disparity require intense effort but can provide insights beyond those gained using other methodologies. Over the last several decades, studies of disparity have proliferated, often using echinoderms as a model organism. Echinoderms have been used to study the methodology of disparity analyses and potential biases as well as documenting the morphological patterns observed in clades through time. Combining morphological studies with phylogenetic analyses or other disparate data sets allows for the testing of detailed and far-reaching evolutionary hypotheses.

Echinoderms elaborate a calcite skeleton composed of numerous plates with a distinct microstructure (stereom) that can be modelled into different shapes thanks to the use of a transient amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC) precursor phase and the incorporation of an intraorganic matrix during biomineralization. A variety of different types of stereom microarchitecture have been distinguished, each of them optimized for a specific function. For instance, a regular, galleried stereom typically houses collagenous ligaments, whereas an irregular, fine labyrinthic stereom commonly bears muscles. Epithelial tissues, in turn, are usually associated with coarse and dense stereom microfabrics. Stereom can be preserved in fossil echinoderms and a wide array of investigating methods are available. As many case studies have shown, a great deal of important paleobiological and paleoecological information can be decoded by studying the stereom microstructure of extinct echinoderms.

The principles of stratigraphic paleobiology can be readily applied to the nonmarine fossil record. Consistent spatial and temporal patterns of accommodation and sedimentation in sedimentary basins are an important control on stratigraphic architecture. Temperature and precipitation covary with elevation, causing significant variation in community composition, and changes in base level cause elevation to undergo predictable changes. These principles lead to eight sets of hypotheses about the nonmarine fossil record. Three relate to long-term and cyclical patterns in the preservation of major fossil groups and their taphonomy, as well as the occurrence of fossil concentrations. The remaining hypotheses relate to the widespread occurrence of elevation-correlated gradients in community composition, long-term and cyclical trends in these communities, and the stratigraphic position of abrupt changes in community composition. Testing of these hypotheses makes the stratigraphic paleobiology of nonmarine systems a promising area of investigation.

The theory of evolution unites the past, present, and future of living things. It puts humanity's place in the universe into necessary perspective. Despite a history of controversy, the evidence for evolution continues to accumulate as a result of many separate strands of amazing scientific sleuthing. In The Story of Evolution in 25 Discoveries, Donald R. Prothero explores the most fascinating breakthroughs in piecing together the evidence for evolution. In twenty-five vignettes, he recounts the dramatic stories of the people who made crucial discoveries, placing each moment in the context of what it represented for the progress of science. He tackles topics like what it means to see evolution in action and what the many transitional fossils show us about evolution, following figures from Darwin to lesser-known researchers as they unlock the mysteries of the fossil record, the earth, and the universe. The book also features the stories of animal species strange and familiar, including humans-and our ties to some of our closest relatives and more distant cousins. Prothero's wide-ranging tales showcase awe-inspiring and bizarre aspects of nature and the powerful insights they give us into the way that life works. Brisk and entertaining while firmly grounded in fundamental science, The Story of Evolution in 25 Discoveries is a captivating read for anyone curious about the evidence for evolution and what it means for humanity.

Trilobite! is an unashamedly trilobito-centric view of the world unravelling the history of the exotic, crustacean-like animals which dominated the seas for three hundred million years. These arthropods witnessed continents move, mountain chains elevated and eroded; they survived ice ages and volcanic eruptions, evolving and adapting exquisitely to their environment. They watched through their crystal eyes whilst life evolved. Their own evolution calibrated geological time itself.

Structured like a detective story, this is a light, but highly informative account of the wonders of scientific discovery.

This volume reviews the meaning of taxonomic statements and considers our present knowledge regarding the number and characteristics of species among living and extinct primates, including man and his ancestors. They also examine the relationship of behaviour changes and selection pressures in evolutionary sequences. First published in 1964.

The attraction of selenium isotopes as a paleoenvironmental tracer lies in the high redox potential of selenium oxyanions (SeIV and SeVI), the dominant species in the modern ocean. The largest isotopic fractionations occur during oxyanion reduction, which makes selenium isotopes a sensitive proxy for the redox evolution of our planet. As a case study we review existing data from the Neoarchean and Paleoproterozoic, which show that significant isotopic fractionations are absent until 2.5 Ga, and prolonged isotopic deviations only appear around 2.3 Ga. Selenium isotopes have thus begun to reveal complex spatiotemporal redox patterns not reflected in other proxies.

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD), which involves using computers to simulate fluid flow, is emerging as a powerful approach for elucidating the palaeobiology of ancient organisms. Here, Imran A. Rahman describes its applications for studying fossil echinoderms. When properly configured, CFD simulations can be used to test functional hypotheses in extinct species, informing on aspects such as feeding and stability. They also show great promise for addressing ecological questions related to the interaction between organisms and their environment. CFD has the potential to become an important tool in echinoderm palaeobiology over the coming years.

The diversity crisis in paleontology refers not to modern biota or the fossil record, but rather how our discipline lacks significant representation of individuals varying in race, ethnicity, and other aspects of identity. This Element is a call to action for broadening participation through improved classroom approaches as described in four sections. First, a brief review of the crisis and key concepts are presented. Next, culturally responsive pedagogy and related practices are introduced. Third, specific applications are offered for drawing cultural connections to studying the fossil record. Finally, recommendations including self-reflection are provided for fostering your own cultural competency. Our discipline offers much for understanding earth history and contributing new knowledge to a world impacted by humans. However, we must first more effectively welcome, support, and inspire all students to embrace meaning and value in paleontology; it is critical for securing the future of our field.

This book provides a wealth of geomathematical case history studies performed by the author during his career at the Ministry of Natural Resources Canada, Geological Survey of Canada (NRCan-GSC). Several of the techniques newly developed by the author and colleagues that are described in this book have become widely adopted, not only for further research by geomathematical colleagues, but by government organizations and industry worldwide. These include Weights-of-Evidence modelling, mineral resource estimation technology, trend surface analysis, automatic stratigraphic correlation and nonlinear geochemical exploration methods. The author has developed maximum likelihood methodology and spline-fitting techniques for the construction of the international numerical geologic timescale. He has introduced the application of new theory of fractals and multi fractals in the geostatistical evaluation of regional mineral resources and ore reserves and to study the spatial distribution of metals in rocks. The book also contains sections deemed important by the author but that have not been widely adopted because they require further research. These include the geometry of preferred orientations of contours and edge effects on maps, time series analysis of Quaternary retreating ice sheet related sedimentary data, estimation of first and last appearances of fossil taxa from frequency distributions of their observed first and last occurrences, tectonic reactivation along pre-existing schistosity planes in fold belts, use of the grouped jackknife method for bias reduction in geometrical extrapolations and new applications of the theory of permanent, volume-independent frequency distributions.

Tracking initial ocean (de)oxygenation is critical to better constrain the coevolution of life and environment. Development of thallium isotopes has provided evidence to track the global manganese oxide burial which responds to early (de)oxygenation for short-term climate events. Modern oxic seawater thallium isotope values are recorded in organic-rich sediments deposited below an anoxic water column. An expansion of reducing conditions decrease manganese oxide burial and shifts the seawater thallium isotope composition more positive. Recent work documents that thallium isotopes are perturbed prior to carbon isotope excursions, suggesting ocean deoxygenation is a precursor for increased organic carbon burial. This Element provides an introduction to the application of thallium isotopes, case studies, and future directions.

The 'detective' power of stable isotopes for processes that occurred in the past, and for elucidating mechanisms at the molecular level, has impressed researchers over the past 100 years, since the time when isotopes of elements were first discovered. While most are interested in the normalized abundance ratios of two isotopes of an element, further power was unleashed when researchers investigated the relationship of three or more isotopes of the same element, e.g. 16O, 17O, and 18O for oxygen. This Element focuses on the history of discovery of triple isotope effects, the conceptual framework behind these effects, and major lines of development in the past few years of triple oxygen isotope research.

The practice of paleontology has an aesthetic as well as an epistemic dimension. Paleontology has distinctively aesthetic aims, such as cultivating sense of place and developing a better aesthetic appreciation of fossils. Scientific cognitivists in environmental aesthetics argue that scientific knowledge deepens and enhances our appreciation of nature. Drawing on that tradition, this Element argues that knowledge of something's history makes a difference to how we engage with it aesthetically. This means that investigation of the deep past can contribute to aesthetic aims. Aesthetic engagement with fossils and landscapes is also crucial to explaining paleontology's epistemic successes.

A free open access ebook is available upon publication. Learn more at www.luminosoa.org. The Scarcity Slot is the first book to critically examine food security in Africa's deep past. Amanda L. Logan argues that African foodways have been viewed through the lens of 'the scarcity slot,' a kind of Othering based on presumed differences in resources. Weaving together archaeological, historical, and environmental data with food ethnography, she advances a new approach to building long-term histories of food security on the continent in order to combat these stereotypes. Focusing on a case study in Banda, Ghana that spans the past six centuries, The Scarcity Slot reveals that people thrived during a severe, centuries-long drought just as Europeans arrived on the coast, with a major decline in food security emerging only recently. This narrative radically challenges how we think about African foodways in the past with major implications for the future.

From the author of the bestselling ESCAPING FROM EDEN. Do our world mythologies convey our ancestors' ideas about God? Or are they in reality ancestral memories of extra-terrestrial contact? How do ancient stories of contact, adaptation and abduction relate to people's experiences around the world today? The Scars of Eden will take you around the world to hear first-hand from ancestral voices alongside contemporary experiencers and world-renowned researchers. Recent revelations from US Navy, the Pentagon, and French Intelligence bring the reader right up to date in examining what has been forgotten and remembered, hidden and disclosed. If world mythologies, including the Bible, have confused the idea of God with ancient ET visitations, what difference does it make? How does it impact society today? And why is this cultural taboo so widespread and, for the author, so personal?

New online resources are opening doors for education and outreach in the Earth sciences. One of the most innovative online earth science portals is Macrostrat and its mobile client Rockd - an interface that combines geolocated geological maps with stratigraphic information, lithological data, and crowd-sourced images and descriptions of outcrops. These tools provide a unique educational opportunity for students to interact with primary geological data, create connections between local outcrops and global patterns, and make new field observations. Rockd incorporates an aspect of social media to its platform, which creates a sense of community for users. This Element outlines these resources, gives instructions on how to use them, and provides examples of how to integrate these resources into a variety of paleontology and earth science courses.

People hold a variety of prior conceptions that impact their learning. Prior conceptions that include erroneous or incomplete understandings represent a significant barrier to durable learning, as they are often difficult to change. While researchers have documented students' prior conceptions in many areas of geoscience, little is known about prior conceptions involving paleontology. In this Element, data on student prior conceptions from two introductory undergraduate paleontology courses are presented. In addition to more general misunderstandings about the nature of science, many students hold incorrect ideas about methods of historical geology, Earth history, ancient life, and evolution. Of special note are student perceptions of the limits of paleontology as scientific inquiry. By intentionally eliciting students' prior conceptions and implementing the pedagogical strategies described in other Elements in this series, lecturers can shape instruction to challenge this negative view of paleontology and improve student learning.

Lecturing has been a staple of university pedagogy, but a shift is ongoing because of evidence that active engagement with content helps strengthen learning and build more advanced skills. The flipped classroom, which delivers content to students outside of the class meeting, is one approach to maximize time for active learning. The fundamental benefit of a flipped class is that students learn more, but ensuring student preparation and engagement can be challenging. Evaluation policies can provide incentives to guide student effort. Flipping a class requires an initial time commitment, but the workload associated with evaluating student work during the course can be mitigated. The personal interactions from active learning are extremely rewarding for students and instructors, especially when class sizes are small and suitable room layouts are available. Overall, flipping a course doesn't require special training, just a willingness to experiment, reflect, and adjust.

Research-led, research-oriented, and research-based teaching incorporate research into teaching to different degrees. Research-led teaching focuses on content and informs students about current research findings, while research-oriented teaching focuses on techniques and often occurs in research methods courses. In research-based teaching, students participate in research. Through this involvement, they benefit from improved content knowledge, research skills, and life skills, as well as enhanced personal development. Research-embedded courses can make such benefits available to a wide range of students. Best practices in experiential learning and the incorporation of research in teaching include intentionality, planning, authenticity, reflection, training, monitoring, assessment, and acknowledgment. In this Element, these principles of best practice are illustrated by courses with embedded student research. Guidelines are presented for how to plan and execute a semester-long course-embedded research project, as well as alternative and shorter-term approaches. Research-based teaching provides challenges for students and faculty, but the benefits for all stakeholders are strong.

University dinosaur courses provide an influential venue for developing aptitude beyond knowledge of terrestrial Mesozoic reptiles. Passion for dinosaurs, when properly directed, can trigger interest in science and be used to develop critical thinking skills. Examination of dinosaur paleontology can develop competence in information analysis, perception of flawed arguments, recognition of persuasion techniques, and application of disciplined thought processes. Three methods for developing critical thought are outlined in this Element. The first uses dinosaur paleontology to illustrate logical fallacies and flawed arguments. The second is a method for evaluating primary dinosaur literature by students of any major. The final example entails critique of dinosaur documentaries based on the appearance of dinosaurs and the disconnect between scientific fact and storytelling techniques. Students are owed more than dinosaur facts; lecturers should foster a set of skills that equips students with the tools necessary to be perceptive citizens and science advocates.