Re: [dinosaur] RETRACTION: Oculudentavis, new smallest known Mesozoic bird in amber from Cretaceous of Myanmar

["Yazbeck, Thomas" <yazbeckt@msu.edu>]

It's the icing on the cake...

Not to get too off topic, but I am curious, how *do* paleontologists create names? Are names decided on immediately when a specimen is suspected to be a new taxon? Are they done at the last minute or does the decision vary depending on who is involved (e.g. do lead authors usually get the privilege of naming or can names be decided on collectively?)

I've never really heard a concise explanation of the taxonomic naming process, even when I studied paleo in college. 

Thomas Yazbeck

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From: Thomas Richard Holtz <tholtz@umd.edu>
Sent: Saturday, July 25, 2020 2:03 PM
To: Yazbeck, Thomas <yazbeckt@msu.edu>
Cc: mickey_mortimer111@msn.com <mickey_mortimer111@msn.com>; Gregory Paul <gsp1954@aol.com>; Paul P <turtlecroc@yahoo.com>; dinosaur-l@usc.edu <dinosaur-l@usc.edu>
Subject: Re: [dinosaur] RETRACTION: Oculudentavis, new smallest known Mesozoic bird in amber from Cretaceous of Myanmar

 

Very few people learn Classical languages anymore, and especially not in non-European countries. Hence "Confuciusornis" rather than "Confuciornis".

That said, the etymologically unsound name or the inappropriateness of it with -avis is the least of all problems here.

On Sat, Jul 25, 2020 at 12:21 PM Yazbeck, Thomas <yazbeckt@msu.edu> wrote:

I'm curious about why the authors of Oculudentavis (just typing it feels awful...) didn't realize how bad a name it was. Couldn't somebody have spent an hour making sure it was at least linguistically correct? I'm not a professional paleontologist/zoologist - how long does it typically take to come up with a name for a new taxon?

Thomas Yazbeck

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From: dinosaur-l-request@mymaillists.usc.edu <dinosaur-l-request@mymaillists.usc.edu> on behalf of Paul P <turtlecroc@yahoo.com>
Sent: Friday, July 24, 2020 2:41 AM
To: mickey_mortimer111@msn.com <mickey_mortimer111@msn.com>; Gregory Paul <gsp1954@aol.com>
Cc: dinosaur-l@usc.edu <dinosaur-l@usc.edu>
Subject: Re: [dinosaur] RETRACTION: Oculudentavis, new smallest known Mesozoic bird in amber from Cretaceous of Myanmar

 

On Thursday, July 23, 2020, 05:15:17 PM UTC, Gregory Paul <gsp1954@aol.com> wrote:

> Me thinks this paper should be reinstated with a major correction to the errant parts.


Hmm, I found some small errors in one of my 2018 papers. Can I retract it now and then have a different version of it re-appear with the errors corrected..? Ach, but how to expunge the hardcopies from the printed version of the journal in university libraries all over the world..?

Yes I am being facetious (but I didn't get the impression that GSP was).

Again, a paper that's published cannot be 'disappeared.' It exists from now on, in perpetuity. That's the whole point of the new electronic publishing rules too.

It is a good point that it's a binomial name, and there's nothing wrong with the specific name. It's just that generic name which is going to win awards for being one of the worst of all time.

    Paul P.

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