[HN Gopher] Fossils found in Somerset by girl, 11, 'may be of la...
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       Fossils found in Somerset by girl, 11, 'may be of largest-ever
       marine reptile'
        
       Author : keepamovin
       Score  : 49 points
       Date   : 2024-04-20 11:14 UTC (11 hours ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (www.theguardian.com)
 (TXT) w3m dump (www.theguardian.com)
        
       | dosinga wrote:
       | Article says: Justin Reynolds and his daughter Ruby. I'm sure Dad
       | is proud and all and doesn't mind being left out of the headline,
       | but it does make it a bit click-bait-y
        
         | dvfjsdhgfv wrote:
         | Frankly, I understand him and I bet many (if not most) dads
         | would do the same.
        
           | potatosalad21 wrote:
           | College application essay to study paleontology writes itself
        
       | hanniabu wrote:
       | Looking at those objects on the table, I would never think they
       | were bone fossils if I found them
        
       | thaumasiotes wrote:
       | > The team have named the species _Ichthyotitan severnensis_ ,
       | meaning "giant fish lizard of the Severn".
       | 
       | I wonder what part of that they think means "lizard".
        
         | hnoyrnndd wrote:
         | Not ichthyo (meaning fish), but ichthyo as in a _shortened_
         | form of ichthyosaur.
         | 
         | It's a stretch.
        
         | Doctor_Fegg wrote:
         | Also, it should arguably be Sabrinensis. cf
         | https://operatoday.com/2020/05/herbert_howells_missa_sabrine...
        
       | buggy6257 wrote:
       | A young girl, Ruby Reynolds (alliterative name), makes a large
       | scientific discovery.
       | 
       | ...This is how comic hero backstories start.
       | 
       | I look forward to Dinogirl or whatever (far better) name she
       | comes up with!
        
         | marginalia_nu wrote:
         | Hmm, I wonder what abilities the bite of a radioactive fossil
         | would confer.
        
       | throwaway63467 wrote:
       | I hope she gets to name it!
        
       | Tagbert wrote:
       | This makes Ruby a modern-day, Mary Anning, combing the beach and
       | discovering ichthyosaur fossils.
       | 
       | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Anning
        
       | batmaniam wrote:
       | Who gets naming rights in these cases? If I find a fossil, but
       | some other scientist classifies it, do I still get rights to name
       | it? Is there a legal framework around this, or is it just whoever
       | has the biggest ego wins?
        
         | hansvm wrote:
         | https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/2009-08-28
         | 
         | https://www.smbc-comics.com/index.php?db=comics&id=1523#comi...
        
         | Blahah wrote:
         | The name is usually assigned in a publication, but there is a
         | long and wonderful tradition of involving laypeople in the
         | naming, and/or naming it after them.
        
       | mneedham wrote:
       | My family lives down near Blue Anchor and we visit the beaches
       | there most years. The cliffs are absolutely packed with fossils.
       | My kids love it.
        
       | jszymborski wrote:
       | I wonder how many times people have unknowingly come across
       | fossils of unknown species and use them as paper weights, book-
       | ends, or skipping stones.
        
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       (page generated 2024-04-20 23:02 UTC)