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Cary,
Great you are involved in this. I would loosen up the language a bit:
how about instead of "Thank you for your interest in paleontology"
"It's so great you are interested in paleontology. What do you like
best?"
Ask him if he has collected fossils from the rocks. Tell him how
great it is to be out in the field and find stuff. Tell him about the
exciting world of insect fossils. What you love about them.
Good for you. Keep up the good work.
judith harris
emerita professor
university of colorado museum
p.o. box 278
chama, nm 87520
harrisj@valornet.com
On Apr 7, 2006, at 2:21 PM, Cary Easterday wrote:
> Dear colleagues,
>
> I think most of us receive information requests from school kids or
> the general public about paleontology and, of course, dinosaurs.
> How do you reply to such requests? Any tips? Today I replied to
> one such request (below) from a fourth grader in Ohio. You are
> welcome to review, use, edit, or delete my reply below. If you
> have additional recommendations for these general requests, please
> share with the group.
>
> Thank you,
>
> Cary R. Easterday
> PhD student--Geology, Paleobiology, Geoarthropods, Terrestrial
> Ecosystems, GIS, Numerical Modeling, Scientific Photography and
> Illustration
>
> Dept. of Earth and Environmental Sciences
> University of Illinois at Chicago
> 845 West Taylor Street, Room 2440
> Chicago, IL 60607-7059
> xenoblatta@hotmail.com
> phone: 708.707.1030 fax: 312.413.2279
>
> Geological Society of America
> Entomological Society of America
> Paleontological Society
> Society for Sedimentary Geology (SEPM)
> PaleoGeoArthropoda
> The Field Museum
> The Paleobiology Database
> FossilBugz
>
> ----------------------------------------------
> Hi Joey,
>
> Thank you for your interest in paleontology. Paleontology is the
> study of ancient life. Most palaeontologists study fossils of
> ocean creatures (clams, snails, crabs, and starfish) since this is
> where most fossils are preserved. Some paleontologists also study
> fossil of land creatures (plants, insects, mammals, reptiles,
> dinosaurs). I study fossil insects. Paleontologists (people who
> work in paleontology) can work outside ("in the field") or in a
> laboratory. Most paleontologists work for schools, museums, oil
> companies, or US government (US Geological Survey). To be a good
> paleontologist, you should study biology, geology, and math in
> school. Chemistry is another class that will help, but you
> probably won't have that until middle school or high school.
>
> Please contact me if you have any specific questions.
>
> There is a good fossil club in Ohio called, "Dry Dredgers." They
> meet in Cincinnati. For more information, see http://
> drydredgers.org/. There are also many rock and mineral clubs in
> Ohio that have fossil speakers as well. For more information, see
> http://www.rockmanjoe.com/ohioclubs.html
>
> I know of five natural history museums near where you live: Orton
> Geological Museum (at The Ohio State University campus in
> Columbus), Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cincinnati Museum
> Center, Carnegie Museum of Natural History (in Pittsburgh,
> Pennsylvania), and The Field Museum (Chicago, Illinois). Websites
> for more information are:
>
> http://www.carnegiemnh.org/
>
> http://www.cmnh.org/
>
> http://www.fieldmuseum.org/
>
> http://www.geology.ohio-state.edu/modules.php?
> op=modload&name=Dept_Info&file=Facilities
>
> http://www.cincymuseum.org/
>
> I can recommend some websites to learn more about paleontology and
> biology in general:
>
> http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/index.html
>
> http://www.colossal-fossil-site.com/
>
> http://members.cox.net/jdmount/paleont.html
>
> http://www2.nature.nps.gov/geology/paleontology//index.cfm
>
> http://geology.about.com/od/lagerstatten/
>
> http://tolweb.org/tree/phylogeny.html
>
> http://www.mnh.si.edu/
>
> http://www.paleosoc.org/
>
> Good luck!
>
> Cary R. Easterday
>
>
> ----Original Message Follows----
> From: [snipped]
> To: xenoblatta@hotmail.com
> Subject: Paleontology Information Request
> Date: Sat, 1 Apr 2006 05:14:56 -0800 (PST)
>
>
> Joey
>
> [snipped]
>
> Eastlake, OH 44095
>
>
> March 31, 2006
>
> Mr.Cary R Easterday,
> My name is Joey, and I am a fourth grader at Washington
> Elementry School. I am doing an independent study on dinosaurs. An
> independent study is a big research report. I need to learn about
> fossils and paleontology. I need to learn about how to become a
> paleontologist and all the things you do.Would you please send me
> any information you have on these subjects or any other subject on
> dinosaurs. I can take the information through e-mail or U.S.
> mail. Thank you for taking the time to read my letter.
>
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Joey
>
>
>
>
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