Dinos

["N. MacLeod" <N.MacLeod@xxxxxxxxx>]

I think Jere hit close to the secret of dinos' success as cultural icons
when he pointed out that the really popular ones are big and different. In
my opinion, "different" is the key. Dinosaurs are the original aliens. They
look like nothing most people have ever seen and this otherness is deeply
attractive. We all crave new sights, sounds, and experiences. Dinosaurs
allow us to fulfill that craving. I think this also explains why people who
are obviously interested in these beasts don't take the time to learn more
about them. At some level the craving is for sheer spectacle. Like looking
at an iceberg, a forest fire, or a really striking skyscraper, the
spectacle can be so overwhelming that the intellectual side gets shut out.
Since spectacle is all most people want from dinosaurs (or any type of
natural history phenomenon) the difference between Jurassic Park and The
Lost World is academic. They are both about spectacle and they both succeed
in that task. Therefore, it doesn't matter that one made a more consistent
attempt to be scientifically accurate. At least, it doesn't matter to many
other than the types of people who subscribe to listservers like PaleoNet.
The trick for us is to learn how to turn this attraction to difference to
some more useful end (= something other than trying to make a buck).


Norm MacLeod





___________________________________________________________________

Dr. Norman MacLeod
Micropalaeontological Research
N.MacLeod@nhm.ac.uk (E-mail)

Department of Palaeontology, The Natural History Museum,
Cromwell Road, London, SW7 5BD

Office Phone: 0171-938-9006
Dept. FAX: 0171-938-9277
E-mail: N.MacLeod@nhm.ac.uk
___________________________________________________________________