Another thing to get used to in the Arctic is being in the food chain. There are polar bears there, and polar bears eat people. So we carry weapons. |
Here is a creature with fins that can do push-ups. |
Here is a creature with fins that can do push-ups. This is clearly an animal that is able to support itself on the ground. |
It could either push itself straight up and down or pull itself forward. It more likely flopped around like a seal rather than walked like a horse. |
It could flex the elbow and extend the wrist so the tip of the fin could lie against the ground. It could do a push-up. |
It is a fish that shows a surprising combination of characteristics of land-living animals. |
It represents the transition from water to land - the part of history that includes ourselves. When we talk about the fish's wrist, we're talking about the origin of parts of our own wrist. |
It shows us the stages by which land-living animals were constructed. |
It took a long time for us to figure out really the extent of what we had. |
Most of the major joints of the fin are functional in this fish. |
Most of the major joints of the fin are functional in this fish. The shoulder, elbow, and even parts of the wrist are already there and working in ways similar to the earliest land-living animals. |
Outside, it's a classic Arctic scene. But inside those rocks is a tropical world. |
That's ideal — having the snout sticking out — because in the cliff behind it is likely the rest of the animal. |
The world is filled with puzzles, all kinds of interesting questions and it's our challenge to figure them out. It's not just like this static file cabinet of things that human beings know. It's ever expanding. |
This animal represents the transition from water to land?the part of history that includes ourselves. |