Fossils and Fiction
By Travis Holland
Fossils and FictionMar 31, 2022
The Science of Dance at Prehistoric Body Theater
Ari Dharminalan Rudenko, the artistic director of Prehistoric Body Theater, discusses his background and how his childhood fascination with dinosaurs led him to combine dance and science communication. He explains the formation of Prehistoric Body Theater in Surakarta, Indonesia, and its focus on accuracy in science communication.
Ari also shares his collaboration with palaeontologists and the challenges of incorporating scientific knowledge into dance performances and the process of choosing specific prehistoric animals as characters in his performances.
Prehistoric Body Theater uses stagecraft and set design to create a portal for the audience's imagination, allowing them to journey into deep time. The performances incorporate prosthetic elements and clay-textured sets to create a sensory experience. The company aims to tour their work globally and continue to bridge the gap between art and science.
Check out more about Prehistoric Body Theater https://www.prehistoricbody.org/
Jac O'Connor's Art and Science
Jac O’Connor is a PhD researcher in the Evans EvoLab at Monash University. Jac undertakes a fascinating mix of research and creative work including immensely detailed 3D reconstructions of extinct animals. This conversation charts Jac's journey into and through palaeo.
Check out @PalaeoJac on Instagram for more.
A dinosaur travel agent
Zach Vanasse, founder and director of Dinosaur Trips, discusses his journey in creating a unique travel company that offers dinosaur-themed trips. He shares his childhood fascination with dinosaurs and how it led him to combine his passion for palaeontology with his experience in the travel industry. Zach explains the offerings of Dinosaur Trips, which include visits to museums, dinosaur digs, and other attractions in various destinations. He emphasises that the trips cater to both dinosaur enthusiasts and curious travellers who want to explore destinations through the lens of palaeontology.
For more info, check out DinosaurTrips.com
'The Jurassic Park Book' Part 2
In this conversation, Dr. Catherine Pugh and Dr. Ross Garner discuss their chapters in 'The Jurassic Park Book' and provide new perspectives on the classic 1990s blockbuster. Dr. Pugh analyses a play called 'The Jurassic Parks' that riffs on the film and explores themes of family and grief. Dr. Garner focuses on the role of merchandise and franchising in the Jurassic Park franchise and the lack of academic attention towards it.
They also discuss the impact of Jurassic Park on dinosaur fandom and the genre of eco-horror. The conversation explores the themes of environmental impact, the future of the Jurassic Park franchise, the portrayal of dinosaurs as animals or monsters, and the use of dinosaurs as agents of punishment. The discussion also touches on the tension between realism and spectacle in the films, the changing debates and viewpoints within the franchise, and the engagement with cultural and scientific debates. The conversation highlights the unique nature of the Jurassic Park series in actively engaging with these themes on screen.
This is Part 2 of coverage of 'The Jurassic Park Book', edited by Dr Matt Melia and published by Bloomsbury.
More info:
- The Jurassic Park Book https://www.bloomsbury.com/au/jurassic-park-book-9781501384844/
- Cinergie Journal: 'Franchising Jurassic Park' https://cinergie.unibo.it/issue/view/1234
- Dr Catherine Pugh's website https://catherine-pugh.co.uk/
- Dr Ross Garner's university profile https://profiles.cardiff.ac.uk/staff/garnerrp1
Diprotodon with Bronwyn Saunders
Bronwyn Saunders, a children's author and citizen scientist, discusses her book 'Diprotodon: A Megafauna Journey' and the importance of Australian megafauna. She shares her journey as a writer and the research process she went through to write the book. Bronwyn also mentions her author inspirations and hints at future projects.
More:
- Follow Bronwyn's Facebook page
- Buy Diprotodon: A Megafauna Journey
- We have a copy of Diprotodon to give away - drawn April 10, 2024. See the Fossils and Fiction Instagram for details.
Aussie theropods with Jake Kotevski
Jake Kotevski is a PhD candidate at Monash University studying Australian theropods, specifically megaraptorids. Are they just big raptors? Find out in our wide-ranging discussion about the known knowns, the known unknowns, and some speculation on the unknown unknowns. Jake also describes his journey into palaeontology and how the pieces fit together between Australia, South America, Antarctica and Asia.
Follow Jake's work on Instagram @theropods_down_under
'The Jurassic Park Book' - Part 1
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More info:
The Jurassic Park Book www.bloomsbury.com/au/jurassic-park-book-9781501384844/
Cinergie Journal: 'Franchising Jurassic Park' cinergie.unibo.it/issue/view/1234
Matt Melia's profile: www.kingston.ac.uk/staff/profile/dr-matthew-melia-648/
Peter Kramer's profile www.dmu.ac.uk/about-dmu/academic-staff/technology/peter-kramer/peter-kramer.aspx
Ancient bugs with Alyssa Fjeld
Alyssa Fjeld discusses her research on early arthropods, especially tomotiids, a group that appeared over 520 million years ago.
Alyssa's research focuses on the growth patterns of early arthropods. She explores the concept of the inhibitory cascade model and its implications for understanding the life cycle and evolution of these animals.
Alyssa also shares her experiences in science education and outreach, emphasising the importance of making science accessible and engaging for diverse audiences.
Found a Fossil with Sally Hurst
Do you know what to do if you find a fossil or First Nations artifact? Sally Hurst made it her business to find out as part of her Masters study at Macquarie University. We talk about the Found a Fossil project, Sally's journey to palaeontology, and her outreach work with school children.
More info:
- Found a Fossil website https://www.foundafossil.com/
- Hurst, S. (2023). Found a Fossil: Assessing Australian perceptions of heritage discoveries and conservation [Thesis, Macquarie University]. https://doi.org/10.25949/22662535.v1
- Hurst, S., Kosnik, M., Evans, L., & Brock, G. A. (2023). Found a fossil: Improving awareness, engagement, and communication strategies for heritage discoveries. Journal of Science Communication, 22(5). https://jcom.sissa.it/article/pubid/JCOM_2205_2023_A03/
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Thanks to Charles Sturt Uni student intern Jack Thompson for his assistance with this episode.
A trip to Dinosaur Valley
Each summer in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales, a prehistoric landscape comes alive with the sound and sights of dinosaurs. This is Scenic World's Dinosaur Valley.
For more information on Scenic World and Dinosaur Valley visit https://scenicworld.com.au/
Garret Knows Dinosaurs
From a dino-themed wedding to running the world’s biggest dinosaur podcast, it’s Garret from I Know Dino! Garret joins Fossils and Fiction to chat about the lessons he and Sabrina have learned while covering new dinosaur discoveries every week for the past decade.
Check out I Know Dino on their website or your favourite podcasting app: https://iknowdino.com/
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Stuff mentioned:
Clements, T., Atterby, J., Cleary, T., Richard P. Dearden, & Rossi, V. (2022). The perception of palaeontology in commercial off-the-shelf video games and an assessment of their potential as educational tools. Geoscience Communication, 5, 289–306. https://doi.org/10.5194/gc-5-289-2022
Common Descent Podcast: https://commondescentpodcast.com/
Noble, B. (2016). Articulating Dinosaurs: A Political Anthropology. University of Toronto Press. https://utorontopress.com/9781442621329/articulating-dinosaurs/
Plotnick, R. E., Anderson, B. M., Carlson, S. J., Jukar, A. M., Kimming, J., & Petsios, E. (n.d.). Paleontology Is Far More Than New Fossil Discoveries. Scientific American. Retrieved September 15, 2023, from https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/paleontology-is-far-more-than-new-fossil-discoveries1/
Terrible Lizards Podcast with Dave Hone and Iszi Lawrence https://terriblelizards.libsyn.com/
Dinosaurs will always be awesome
Jimmy Waldron once told Conan O’Brien he looked like a therizinosaurus. He also founded a non-profit called Dinosaurs Will Always Be Awesome that takes dinosaur experiences out to those who might not otherwise access them. After you’ve listened to the episode, check out more info on DWABA: https://dwaba.org/ Check out Jimmy's research on teaching evolution to school students:
Nadelson, L., Culp, R., Bunn, S., Burkhart, R., Shetlar, R., Nixon, K., & Waldron, J. (2009). Teaching Evolution Concepts to Early Elementary School Students. Evolution: Education and Outreach, 2(3), 458–473. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12052-009-0148-x
Age of Mammals with Dr Chris Manias
Dinotherium, diprotodon, mastodon and more! Dr Chris Manias discusses his book The Age of Mammals: Nature, Development and Paleontology in the Long Nineteenth Century. Chris is Senior Lecturer in the History of Science & Technology at Kings College London.
Books mentioned:
- Manias, C. (2023). The Age of Mammals: Nature, Development and Paleontology in the Long Nineteenth Century. University of Pittsburgh Press. https://upittpress.org/books/9780822947806/
- Ashby, J. (2022). Platypus Matters: The Extraordinary Lives of Australian Mammals. HarperCollins. https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9780008431440/platypus-matters/
- Douglas, K. (2010). Pictures of Time Beneath: Science, Heritage and the Uses of the Deep Past. CSIRO Publishing. https://www.publish.csiro.au/book/6342/
- Panciroli, E. (2021). Beasts Before Us: The Untold Story of Mammal Origins and Evolution. Bloomsbury. https://www.bloomsbury.com/au/beasts-before-us-9781472983978/
'Dig Up Stupid' - Adele Pentland Talks Pals in Palaeo
Palaeontologist Adele Pentland makes her second appearance on Fossils and Fiction to talk about... The Simpsons? Oh, and also her podcast Pals in Palaeo and her tips for science communication. ___ Find out more about Adele's work and Pals and Palaeo here:
- Adele's website https://www.adelepentland.com/
- Pals in Palaeo Instagram https://www.instagram.com/palsinpalaeo/
- Pals in Palaeo links https://linktr.ee/palsinpalaeo
Travis talks Jurassic
I've been writing, thinking, and talking about Jurassic Park *a lot* lately. It's time to wrap all that work up into something listenable for Fossils and Fiction.
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Articles/interviews mentioned:
- Shaye Ganam, 770 CHQR/630 CHED Edmonton and Toronto, Thirty years after Jurassic Park hit movie screens, its impact on science and culture remains as strong as ever, https://open.spotify.com/episode/1DXM7ooNyFpIQmBAIBktuK?si=v6dMHMZXQquZG7VZrQpTIQ
- Nahal el-Hadi, The Conversation Weekly, Thirty years after Jurassic Park hit movie screens, its impact on science and culture remains as strong as ever — podcast, https://theconversation.com/thirty-years-after-jurassic-park-hit-movie-screens-its-impact-on-science-and-culture-remains-as-strong-as-ever-podcast-210110
- Suzanne Hill, ABC Nightlife, https://www.abc.net.au/radio/programs/nightlife/jurassicpark-dinosaurs-movies/102492598
- Travis Holland and Lisa Watt, The Conversation, Toss Aside Those High Heels: How Jurassic World's Claire Dearing lights a path for women in action films, https://theconversation.com/toss-aside-those-high-heels-how-jurassic-worlds-claire-dearing-lights-a-path-for-women-in-action-films-182334
- Travis Holland, The Conversation, How Jurassic Park changed film-making and our view of dinosaurs, https://theconversation.com/how-jurassic-park-changed-film-making-and-our-view-of-dinosaurs-203147
- Travis Holland, Fossils and Fiction, Making Sarah Harding, https://www.fossilsfiction.co/2022/05/02/making-sarah-harding/
- Holland, T., & Watt, L. (2023). Sexism in survival situations: Reconsidering gender in Jurassic Park. In S. Gerrard, & R. Middlemost (Eds.), Gender and action films 1980-2000: Beauty in motion (1st ed., pp. 123-136). (Emerald Studies in Popular Culture and Gender). Emerald Group Publishing Limited. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-80117-506-720221009
Teaching Dinosaurs!
If there's one thing that will spark an interest in palaeontology, it might just be finding 450 million-year-old fossil as a child. That's exactly what happened to Dr Nic Campione. Nic is originally from Canada but is now a Senior Lecturer in Earth Sciences (Palaeontology) at the University of New England in Australia. Nic tells the story of his childhood fossil find and talks about his approach to teaching troublesome palaeontology students like your host, Dr Travis Holland.
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Dr Nic Campione's UNE profile: https://www.une.edu.au/staff-profiles/ers/dr-nicolas-campione
Dr Nic Campione's research publications https://scholar.google.ca/citations?user=DIilDo0AAAAJ&hl=en
UNE's Undergraduate Certificate in Palaeontology https://www.une.edu.au/study/courses/undergraduate-certificate-in-palaeontology
Littlefoot's Family Ties
Packed with emotion and pulling the nostalgia heartstrings, how does The Land Before Time (1988) hold up today? Clemson University English Lecturer Peter Cullen Bryan takes us through the links between Don Bluth's classic film and other palaeomedia.
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Follow Dr Peter Cullen Bryan on Twitter @pfxbryan
Don Bluth. Somewhere Out There: My Animated Life. SmartPop, 2022.
1988 Pizza Hut puppets: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ce17QquyL8s
Forgotten Disney: Essays on the Lesser-Known Productions. https://mcfarlandbooks.com/product/forgotten-disney/
'Seven years of very chill nerds' - Lucas Zellers talks Book of Extinction
Dinosaur safari with Tom Jurassic
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Prehistoric Domain www.prehistoricdomain.com/
Check out Tom Jurassic's 'Tales from a Jurassic World' www.youtube.com/@talesfromajurassicworld
Fossils and Fiction Trailer
Check out what you'll hear on Fossils and Fiction.
Smashing dinosaurs in Central Park with Vicky Coules
Science entertainer Michael Mills
Multi-talented entertainer and science communicator Michael Mills is the feature guest on the first episode of Fossils and Fiction for 2023. Michael is the creative director of Heaps Good Productions and 'Vice-Chancellor' of Dinosaur University. Michael has a podcast, PalaeoJam, and a show playing at the Adelaide Fringe Festival about foundational palaeontologist Mary Anning. We cover all of these in our conversation.
This episode also features a song called 'These Curious Things'. Words and music by Michael Mills, featuring Gemma Dandie on lead vocals with Professor Flint and Michael singing harmonies.
Buy tickets to A Curious Thing: The Story of Mary Anning: https://adelaidefringe.com.au/fringetix/a-curious-thing-the-story-of-mary-anning-af2023
More on 'Curious Things': https://linktr.ee/TheseCuriousThings
More on Professor Flint: https://linktr.ee/professorflint
Research Journal: Paleogaming and Myanmar Amber
Could you get two more different topics in palaeontology than gaming and the ethics of amber from conflict zones? Join Jake Atterby from the University of Birmingham to discuss the former and Dr Emma Dunne from Friedrich-Alexander University for the latter.
Papers:
- Clements, T., Atterby, J., Cleary, T., Dearden, R. P., and Rossi, V.: The perception of palaeontology in commercial off-the-shelf video games and an assessment of their potential as educational tools, Geosci. Commun., 5, 289–306, https://doi.org/10.5194/gc-5-289-2022, 2022.
- Dunne, E.M., Raja, N.B., Stewens, P.P. et al. Ethics, law, and politics in palaeontological research: The case of Myanmar amber. Commun Biol 5, 1023 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-022-03847-2
Research Journal: A Hidden Vulture and Sauropod Teeth
Access the articles here:
Poropat SF, Frauenfelder TG, Mannion PD, Rigby SL, Pentland AH, Sloan T, Elliott DA. 2022. Sauropod dinosaur teeth fromthe lower Upper Cretaceous Winton Formation ofQueensland, Australia and the global record ofearly titanosauriforms. R. Soc. Open Sci.9:220381. doi.org/10.1098/rsos.220381
Mather EK, Lee MSY, Worthy TH. 2022. A new look at an old Australian raptor places “Taphaetus” lacertosus de Vis 1905 in the Old World vultures (Accipitridae: Aegypiinae). Zootaxa. doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5168.1.1
The Research Journal: Pterosaurs and Kangaroos
This episode of Fossils and Fiction features two Australian PhD candidates talking about papers they've recently published. Isaac Kerr from Flinders University discusses his paper reporting the discovery of a new ancient kangaroo in Papua New Guinea while Adele Pentland from Swinburne discusses her recent work on the pterosaur Ferrodraco lentoni.
Follow Isaac on Twitter @IsaacARKerr and Adele @AdelePentland.
Papers mentioned:
- Kerr, I. A. R. and Prideaux, G. J. (2022) ‘A new genus of kangaroo (Marsupialia, Macropodidae) from the late Pleistocene of Papua New Guinea’, Transactions of the Royal Society of South Australia. Taylor & Francis, 00, pp. 1–24. doi: 10.1080/03721426.2022.2086518.
- Kerr, I. A. R. (2022) 'This giant kangaroo once roamed New Guinea - descended from an Australian ancestor that migrated millions of years ago'. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/this-giant-kangaroo-once-roamed-new-guinea-descended-from-an-australian-ancestor-that-migrated-millions-of-years-ago-185778
- Pentland, A. H. et al. (2019) ‘Ferrodraco lentoni gen. et sp. nov., a new ornithocheirid pterosaur from the Winton Formation (Cenomanian–lower Turonian) of Queensland, Australia’, Scientific Reports. Springer US, 9(1), pp. 1–13. doi: 10.1038/s41598-019-49789-4.
- Pentland, A. H. et al. (2022) ‘The osteology of Ferrodraco lentoni, an anhanguerid pterosaur from the mid-Cretaceous of Australia’, Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 41(5). doi: 10.1080/02724634.2021.2038182.
Em Blamey talks Sea Monsters
Mosasaurs, ichythyosaurs, and plesiosaurs galore! Em Blamey is the Creative Producer at the Australian National Maritime Museum. The Museum currently has an exhibition entitled 'Sea Monsters'. Em describes the specimens included and the stories told about these magnificent oceanic creatures.
'Sea Monsters' is open on the following schedule:
- Australian National Maritime Museum, Sydney, 25 June 2022 to 14 August 2022;
- Newcastle Regional Museum, September 2022 to February 2023;
- Western Australian Maritime Museum, April to July 2023;
- Museum of North Queensland, Townsville, September 2023 to February 2024.
More information and tickets https://www.sea.museum/whats-on/exhibitions/sea-monsters
Tom Jurassic talks Jurassic World Dominion
Tom Jurassic spills his thoughts on Dominion and being a fan creator in the Jurassic community. We dive deep into the biggest topics from the film, including [REDACTED] and [REDACTED]. This episode contains detailed spoilers from Dominion.
Follow Tom on Twitter @Tom_Jurassic, and check out the Jurassic Park Podcast, Collect Jurassic, and Jurassic Collectables.
The Legacy of Jurassic Park with Dr Ross Garner
This episode features a chat about Sue the T. rex, Jurassic Park, Dr Who, dinosaur fandom, media tourism and more with Dr Ross Garner, Lecturer in Media and Cultural Studies at Cardiff University.
Follow Dr Garner on Twitter @DrRPG_TV.
Referenced material:
Tullett, Modelbuilder for The Brickman
For more information and to book tickets to Jurassic World by Brickman, visit exhibition.thebrickman.com/
Prehistoric Planet Review
This brief episode of Fossils and Fiction is a review of the Apple TV+ series 'Prehistoric Planet', narrated by David Attenborough and produced by Jon Favreau.
For more information about Prehistoric Planet, visit the Apple TV+ show page.
Adam Yates discusses Australian Megafauna
Dr Adam Yates is the Senior Curator of Earth Sciences at the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory. He joins Fossils and Fiction for a discussion about the history of megafauna, dinosaurs, and other creatures of the Australian continent. We focus on the Alcoota Fossil Beds, crocodiles, geologic change, and Antarctica.
A transcript and more detailed show notes will be available at FossilsFiction.co.
Penny Packham, Australian Fossil and Mineral Museum
Penny Packham is the Museum Coordinator for the Australian Fossil and Mineral Museum in Bathurst, NSW. Penny talks to Fossils and Fiction about the Museum's extraordinary collection and their new kids' exhibition, the Dino-Store. This episode features the voices of children interacting with animatronic dinosaurs, discussions about tourism during COVID, and a magnificent Tyrannosaurus specimen.
A transcript of this episode is available now.
You can submit comments for inclusion in future episodes via our Anchor profile.
Trish Sloan, Australian Age of Dinosaurs
Trish Sloan is the Collection Manager at the Australian Age of Dinosaurs Natural History Museum in Winton, Queensland. Trish joins Fossils and Fiction to talk about engaging with her community, developing the Museum’s collection, and offering visitor-focused experiences.
To learn more about the Australian Age of Dinosaurs, visit their website, Facebook, or Instagram. The Australian Age of Dinosaurs is a non-profit, independent institution. To support their work, consider becoming a member.
A transcript of this podcast is available here.
Boria Sax, Author of Dinomania
Boria Sax is an author and Adjunct Professor at Mercy College whose work focuses on the relationship between humans and the natural world. He joins Fossils and Fiction for a discussion about his book Dinomania: Why we love, fear, and are utterly enchanted by dinosaurs.
Resources referenced in this episode:
- Dinomania: Why we love, fear, and are utterly enchanted by dinosaurs (2018), by Boria Sax;
- Avian Illuminations: A cultural history of birds (2021), by Boria Sax;
- Jurassic Park (1993) by Michael Crichton;
- Jurassic Park (1993) by Steven Spielberg;
- Weird Studies, a podcast by Phil Ford and JR Martel;
- Audio files of dinosaur and other Jurassic sounds by The Natural History Museum, London.
What is Fossils and Fiction?
This brief introductory episode of Fossils and Fiction explains the idea behind the podcast.