Friday, November 12, 2010

Paleo Project Challenge Check-In

It's been nearly two months since Dave Hone and I initiated the 2010 Paleo Project Challenge. Turn-out has been fantastic, from all echelons of the paleo world - artists, researchers, preparators, casual fans, combinations of these. . .exactly who we wanted!

What is the Paleo Project Challenge, you may ask? All of us have some project that we started, nearly finished, and then forgot about. It's probably sitting on your hard drive, or a shelf somewhere, or in a sketch pad. The only thing that's stopping us from finishing it is the threat of public humiliation.

So, PPCers - you have committed to finish your project by January 1, 2011. You've signed on the dotted line (or submitted a comment). You're held accountable. If you don't finish it, you shall suffer crushing embarrassment on The Interwebz. In a show of solidarity, I have myself put forth two contributions! These, along with everyone else's, are listed below.

With that, it's time for a status check. In the comments below, tell us a little about what you've been up to! If you have a blog, we certainly encourage you to blog the process - just make sure to tell us about it, so we can link back to you! [Dave Hone has posted his impressive update already!]

Participants in the Paleo Project Challenge
Andy the Micropaleontologist - submit foram macroevolution paper; write draft of clade shape paper
Anonymous - find job; paper for Paleobiology; prep alligator fossil
Brian Beatty - paper on meningeal ossification in cetaceans
Robert Boessenecker
- finish first draft of master's thesis
Martin Brazeau -
finish redescription Ptomacanthus anglicus and include updated matrix
Andrea Cau
- describe new theropod remains from north Africa
John Conway
- finish Heterodontosaurus painting
DeinonychusDinosaur
- restoration of Dryptosaurus
Andy Farke
- finish paper for ODP; finish paper on ceratopsian anatomy
Nick Gardner
- paper piggybacked with one of Casey's
Casey Holliday
- either a new croc species description or paper related to frontoparietal fossae
Dave Hone
- the necks paper
Jason
- finish descriptions for Katian graptolite systematic paper.
David Maas
- Illustrating Mallison's Kentrosaurus
Heinrich Mallison -
finish Plateosaurus CAE paper; sauropod rearing paper; sauropodomorph rapid locomotion paper
Jay - finish sauropod description
Jordan Mallon - Anchiceratops manuscript
Anthony Maltese - sharks scavenging on mosasaur paper; Niobrara ammonite paper
Paleochick - Cloverly paleobotany paper
Patty Ralrick - paper on subfossil mass mortality site
Julie Reizner - submit Einiosaurus histology paper
Manabu Sakamoto - finish Pachyrhinosaurus drawing; finish and submit theropod bite force paper
John Scanlon - write up Oligocene lizards from Riversleigh; process and sort samples from Miocene microsite
Leo Sham - illustrate Raptorex; write cosmetic surgery review paper
Mark Spencer - finish paper critiquing model-based approaches to phylogeny reconstruction
Brian Switek - finish book proposal; polish and submit paper on Alabamornis; paper on Thoracosaurus specimen
David Tana - sign up for GRE; submit 9 pieces to Art Evolved time capsules; overhaul blog
Darren Tanke - finish biography of Oscar Erdman; finish paper on first helicopter lift of a dinosaur specimen; finish extended abstract on Hope Johnson
Mike Taylor - finally finish the Archbishop sauropod description
Matt van Rooijen - finish up Tarbosaurus bite pattern illustrations
Bruce Woolatt - 1/10 scale Quetzalcoatlus northropi flesh restoration

Haven't signed up yet? It's not too late!

9 comments:

Darren Tanke said...

OK sign me up: finish biography on Dr. Oscar A. Erdman (1915-2010)refinder of Scabby Butte Pachyrhinosaurus bonebed); finish extended abstract on Hope Johnson (1916-2010) an extraordinary Albertan amateur paleontologist for 2011 Alberta Paleontological Society meetings; and try to finish off paper on first helicopter lift of a dinosaur specimen in the field (Alberta, 1967).

Jordan said...

Work on the Anchiceratops ms is going well. Got most of the figures done now, and I'm just waiting for input from my co-authors. Still on track to have it submitted by xmas.

Anonymous said...

I feel a bit weird as the only pseudonym on the list!
So feel free to post me by name, Matt van Rooijen.

Andy said...

For my part, I got back to posting on the ODP blog. Not much progress on the ceratopsian anatomy paper - but soon.

Martin Brazeau said...

What the hell. This list is seriously deficient in Vertebrata Palaeozoica. My pledge is to finally make my re-description of Ptomacanthus anglicus ready for publication and include with it an expanded and updated analysis of my 2009 data matrix.

Mike Taylor said...

Uuuhhh. The way things have fallen out, there is no way I am going to get the Archbishop submission submitted by the end of the year. Rats. I strike out for the second consecutive year (with the same paper). At least I already know what to put forward for PPC 2011.

(In my defence, I have got a lot of other stuff done this year, including a different new sauropod that will be in press before the end of the year.)

Brian Switek said...

My progress so far has been... underwhelming. I have done some work on the book proposal (about halfway finished) but have yet to get my act together on the "Alabamornis" paper and the Thoracosaurus one. Neither of them are going to take very long, but all the hubbub over Written in Stone has kept me pretty busy. Plus I got an idea for a review paper - Andy knows the details - which I aim to wrap up on the last day of the year, so I have more than enough work to do!

Anonymous said...

Finished the current painting standing in the way of the Tarbosaur 'bite pattern' painting.
Collected reference etc.

Eric Morschhauser said...

You should probably sign me up (here I am coming in during the 11th hour). I'll try and get a hyoid paper draft out before the 31st.