In Memoriam

Dan Varner, artist of things paleontological, has passed away, survived by his wife. I am immensely affected by this loss because Dan was one of those very open, cheery sorts who gave earnest advice and did great art. I met him in person in 1999 at the SVP in Denver, where he, to my utter shock and amazement, said he liked my art and pointed out a piece he specifically enjoyed to prove it. Artists sometimes want a measure of themselves from others, to know that there is an impact where their art is concerned. Dan affirmed this for me, I think, more than anyone ever had, because up until then, he was a name who made money from his art and was known and liked. That means something to me still.

The title banner for this website is crafted from the skull of Globidens dakotaensis, a taxon not much unlike the one Mike Everhart talks about here. Dan’s illustration graces the top of that post, and I still cannot think of Globidens without thinking of that image. The impact was enough that I am drawn back to the page whenever I contemplate this unusual mosasaur, which Dan got to illustrate for his friend, and so for now, it will always be my mental memorial to what Dan said to me back then.

[I'm sorry if the writing on this post is much more jumbled than mine usually is. It's hard to just think about this without some measure of emotionality slipping through.]

Recap-orama, 2011 Edition

I wanted to try out a “Best of” for this blog, as a way to pull back readers to things they may have missed, or to bring back attention to things they glossed over, or things I flubbed. Also, things I am proud of.

Holiday Hiatus

I’m going to take a break for a while while I collate my thoughts, focus on work, and spend some time piecing together a few projects (including handling Measuring Caenagnathus‘ Jaw, discussing reasons Why Eshanosaurus is Probably Not a Therizinosauroid, and trying to finish up my end of a project with another on a taxon closer to my longer-term interests). I may occasionally break this to discuss a paper, as I did recently with Denver Fowler et al.’s discussion on predatory behavior in eudromaeosaurs (the references therein include a link to the actual paper, which is well worth the read). Until I come back, I leave you all with this:

Slow News Day

I assume everyone in at least the United States who read this and those few in other countries that recognize the day are getting over their Thanksgiving tryptophan injections, shortly after their return from SVP in Las Vegas. In a way, I am glad I missed Las Vegas for SVP as that would be the second time I’d been there, and I didn’t much care for the place at the time. The Las Vegas Natural History Museum is a nice place, at least, so at least a shout out to those guys manning the place for their very open and approachable exhibits. I am exceptionally fond on the sabrecat (or at least, I was when I was there).

I know I said I would give a summary review of what I found interesting coming out of the SVP talks this year, but I have been otherwise occupied and the low posting should have reflected this. Despite, Mark Wildman has been doing a good job of summing up a variety of talks at SVP, so I will just point you to Saurian. The recent posts concerning the event and posters should be interesting.

What Does and Does Not Matter

I’m a relativist, and as such have a tendency for trying to see others’ perspectives on given subjects. But we cannot always be relativists, as we must make certain essential decisions that can only be based on our personal perceptions. In a way, the capacity is what makes us human: We can chose to decide not to.