Re: Campbell's even crazier than a MANIAC? (archeopteryx climbing)

[Michael Habib <mhabib5@jhmi.edu>]

Dino Guy Ralph wrote:

> "Nova: The Four-Winged Dinosaur" addresses the issue of the femoral 
> position
> of _Microraptor_ and the question of the aerodynamic function of the 
> hind
> limb feathers, pitting Norell, Ellison and Brougham against (who else?)
> Martin and Burnham, while also briefly dusting off the "debate" over 
> the
> theropodan ancestry of birds for those who have been out of the loop 
> for the
> last 40 years.

Interestingly enough, while the model used by Norell, Ellison, and 
Brougham seems to involve rather less fudge factor, both teams tried to 
force the hindlimb feathers to point laterally in some fashion - a 
starting assumption which may not be very robust.

Cheers,

--Mike


Michael Habib, M.S.
PhD. Candidate
Center for Functional Anatomy and Evolution
Johns Hopkins School of Medicine
1830 E. Monument Street
Baltimore, MD 21205
(443) 280 0181
habib@jhmi.edu