Xenopermian Hovasaur

You'll get more on the Xenopermian soon, but I wanted to throw this up to prove it's not dead. This is a derived hovasaur that doesn't have a name yet. I'll admit that the dorsal sails are inspired by Concavenator, but I think they work just fine here. This guy was actually pretty tough to get right--when you evolve a hovasaur, it starts looking like a mosasaur, so the challenge was to come up with something that was still feasible but different than, say, Platecarpus. I think I've done that here, although it still requires tweaking. I'm working on a skeletal now, and it's coming along pretty well.

Other Xenopermian critters on my backlog: More barbouronopsids, mainly, but also more work on the dicynodonts and a few other surprises.

Coming Soon: a "WTF" review of Greg Paul's new book

I bought this book on sight at Barnes & Nobel the other day. It is honestly hard to read, and I have problems with a lot of the illustrations, too. Once I tap everything I take issue with, I'll provide a point-by-point breakdown of why this new book might not be worth your money.

People "Don't Get" Pachyrhinosaurus

Not long ago, I was visiting the Alaska Museum of Natural History for reasons that are forgotten to me now. I try not to go over there, in fact. It's an active aversion--every time I get the urge to see "how they're doing," I just remember that my name, Scott's name, and Raven's name are still not anywhere near the big Tyrannosaurus rex skull cast that we restored over a year's time and put our backs into and got NO support and there's NO acknowledgement of our contribution to that particular project. In fact, I doubt our names are anywhere IN the museum, even though all three of us (but mostly Scott and I) have been heavily invested in exhibit prep, tours, etc. in the past.

Makes me mad.

Anyway, the museum's "director," Katch Batchelor, told me that they were getting a Diabloceratops skull cast (this was before that genus was published). She was very excited. I asked why she's wasting the museum's money on a taxon from Utah that lived millions and millions of years before Alaska's Pachyrhinosaurus. In fact, why isn't she getting a Pachyrhinosaurus skull cast? The terrible Fairbanks museum has one. If they can get one, it can't be all that difficult to get ahold of.

Her answer was "People don't 'get' Pachyrhinosaurus." I took this to mean that SHE did not "get" Pachyrhinosaurus. Here's my question: What's to GET?"


There's very little to misunderstand here. Pachyrhinosaurus is a derived member of the Centrosaurinae, which itself is one of the two branches of the Ceratopsidae. The other branch is called the Chasmosaurinae, and it features such well-known taxa as Triceratops, Chasmosaurus (go figure), and Kosmoceratops. The Centrosaurinae is just as diverse, and from there you get good old Centrosaurus, Rubeosaurus, and Diabloceratops. At the upper end of the Centrosaurinae is a monophyletic group of ceratopsids with big nasofrontal bosses instead of horns. They're called pachyrhinosaurines. The group includes two genera comprising three species (Achelousaurus horneri, Pachyrhinosaurus canadensis, and Pachyrhinosaurus lakustai), and several specimens that may represent more distinct species. The group extends from Montana up the west coast of the United States going all the way up to...you guessed it...Alaska's North Slope.

The holotype pachyrhinosaur skull from the Prince Creek Formation on the Colville River is not in great shape, but clearly represents a pachyrhinosaurine.

Right now, the Alaska Museum of Natural History looks more like an odds-and-ends collection of stuff, completely lacking any sort of context or reason for being. When you have a monitor lizard skeleton with an Ornithocheirus skull and a Basilosaurus skull just sitting on the same shelf, but without any sort of text...and in fact, you have a beluga whale skeleton just around the corner, WHAT DOES IT MEAN? And why aren't there any Alaskan dinosaurs? I could go on and on about my misgivings with the AKMNH, but it's useless. They don't even want to use the world "evolution" in fear of scaring people away.

Jesus.

Damn You, Kotobukiya!

It would appear this company has exclusive rights to my wallet in 2011. First Catwoman, then Ms. Marvel, and now a beautiful Wonder Woman figure? My gosh. Go look at more pictures at (as usual) Tomopop.

Gonna Need This, Too

Look, I'm not even that familiar with Ms. Marvel as a character, but this sculpt is too gorgeous and dynamic to ignore. Kotobukiya is really going above and beyond with this "pretty girl" line. I've already committed to buying Phoenix later this year (or maybe she'll be a birthday present) and Catwoman in March, but now I'll have to save more pennies for Mr. Marvel, here. No idea what her release schedule is, which is probably a good thing.

You can see more pictures over at Tomopop.

Wonder Woman...TV Show?

Entertainment Weekly claims that David E. Kelly (a bunch of shows I'd rather forget) is writing a treatment for a Wonder Woman TV show. There's been a WW movie on hold for about a decade while different studios rewrite her origin and try to figure out how to portray an invisible plane on-screen and whether Megan Fox would make a good Diana Pince (she would not). So TV networks have apparently expressed interest. This could be a Very Good Thing or a Very Bad Thing. Here are some thoughts I have that would make the show work:

1) No invisible plane. No flying. Invisible planes are stupid, and flying is a great idea, but live-action TV has yet to portray such an action in any sort of convincing way (Smallville just ignores that particular power). If it were a movie, I'm sure the budget would be there, but a network TV show? Probably not. Find some other way for our girl to get around.

2) Lynda Carter must be present in a meaningful way. Obviously, she can't be Diana Prince anymore (which is a Damn Shame), but she could easily play Hippolyta, WW's mother. The show must acknowledge Lynda's singular, important presence as the character in a way that allows the audience to move away from her, and accept the New Kid. Casting Lynda as Hippolyta is the only respectful way to do that.

3) Don't use the old costume. Not even the JLU costume. It's kitchy, impractical, and certainly not modern. However, the new post #600 costume--the one designed by Jim Lee--is modern, practical, and good lookin'. This is something a superheroine would wear, as opposed to something she'd wear to a Halloween party.

4) Be careful with the origin story. The old origin story is stupid. I'm just gonna go ahead and admit that. A modern WW could have some kind of military origin story--a superpowered child brought up in a military complex (codenamed Themyscira?) and trained to be an American force for good. Many fans will accept a reworked origin so long as series staples show up in one form or another. Respect must be paid to the origin, corny as it is.

5) Wonder Woman is a brunette with blue eyes. She is tall, authoritative, curvy, and chesty. The biggest mistake you can be make in casting Wonder Woman would be to get some flat-chested youthful blonde who just happens to be a big name right now in TV. The show will fail if it strays too far from Diana's look and the familiarity of the character. Unfortunately, network TV has been grappling with curvy leads for a looooong time. Sofia Vergara on Modern Family is the exception that proves the rule. But even if you have to go with some no-name actress who we've never heard of, Diana Prince has to look like Diana Prince. Lynda Carter is her mother, remember?

6) Use the interesting villains, please. Cull from the more recent comics if you have to. If you stick with the military thing, her enemies can be other successful, but rogue, agents with codenames and powers that reflect their specific powers. You can have Cheetah and Hades that way.

7) No Lasso of Truth. It's stupid.

Anyone else? What should/should not be a part of this TV show? Casting ideas? Plotpoints? Go nuts!

Gain +15 to Knowledge

My dear friend Ann Pache donated her stack of old JVP's to me today because she's cleaning house and doesn't really use them anymore. This will allow me to throw out a TON of printed PDF's that I've accumulated over the years, thus freeing up space in my filing cabinet, but I also like having these kinds of things in book form. So...exciting!

In Which I Apologize for the Lack of Blogging

Update! I have no IV! My tests went up high enough that I'm still not perfect, but certainly better. I'm to finish up the supply of my new meds and then go in again for a final recheck, but I think I'm in the clear. Whoo!

Sooooo....I haven't been blogging a lot lately. The post I threw together yesterday was more of an attempt to keep things going than anything else (also, ceratopsids are awesome). I've got several posts up here in the ol' noggin, but they're not being put on virtual paper for one giant reason:

A recent doctor's visit informed me that my lung function tests (the barometer of a CF patient's health) were down 20%.

Twenty percent. Jesus Christ.

I'd also lost weight. Taken together, these symptoms indicate a bigger problem: a genuine lung infection, my first in eight years. Now, I should mention that last year, when I came back from London, my lung functions were also down quite a bit. My doctor suspected that I picked something up either on the plane or in Britain, but put me on Ciprofloxin and I got better. Six months later, I was back down, though not as much, and I was put back on Ciprofloxin. Last April, I was totally back to normal levels. My weight was up, my tests were great.

Five months later...I get a 20% drop and 3 kilos of lost weight? Ouch.

So my doctor put me on Ciprofloxin again and a new inhaled medication, which isn't so much medication as vaporized seawater (7% saline solution). He gave me a week to get better. A week later, my weight was up a kilo and my lung function tests were up 5%. That's not incredible, but it is progress. He gave me another week, so I'm going in again on Friday evening to see if I'm back to normal, or at least very close to it. If I'm not...well, it's time for a tune-up.

How do you give a CF patient a tune-up? You stick an IV in his or her arm and pump two kinds of medications in there twice a day (Tobramyacine & Ceptazadine) for between two and three weeks. It's more a hassle than anything else, but I wouldn't be surprised if I had to get one. I mean, eight years is a long time between IV's. What's this have to do with blogging? Well, I usually blog in the evenings, after work and chore and errands. Unfortunately, I'm on three different nebulizer-based medications this month: Pulmozyme, Saline, and Tobi. Altogether, it takes a full hour to do these meds, and I do Saline and Tobi twice a day. After my nightly doses, I have to clean and boil the nebulizers for the next day. So my evenings are basically shot for the month of October.

And when I'm not inhaling saltwater, I'm at the office or catching up on shows or games. Or, sometimes, drawing. I do get quite a bit of sketching done during my evening doses. None of it post-worthy, but you get the idea.

So there it is. Wish me luck for Friday, guys. Much as I wouldn't be surprised if it's IV time, it's not exactly fun to get one.

Meet the Ceratopsian Class of 2010

As I've said before, 2010 has really been the Year of the Ceratopsian. Here are the new guys, in no particular order. Give 'em a round of applause--they've basically doubled the group's diversity, and they're JUST SO COOL.

Psittacosaurus gobiensis ("Yet another Psittacosaurus)
Claim to Fame: Supposedly shows evidence for how the jaw worked in the genus
Favorite Movie: Multiplicity
Image Credit: The Internet


Archaeoceratops yungjingziensis ("Bits and pieces of a horned face")
Claim to Fame: Hey, it's another species of Archaeoceratops!
Favorite Movie: Disney's Dinosaur!
Image Credit: I have no idea via the Internet


Ajkaceratops ("Part of a horned face")
Claim to Fame: Europe's first ceratopsian.
Favorite Movie: National Lampoon's European Vacation
Image credit: The paper


Sinoceratops ("Fung-Fu horned face")
Claim to Fame: China's first ceratopsid...much less centrosaurine ceratopsid!
Favorite Movie: Big Trouble in Little China
Image Credit: Olorotitan on DeviantArt



Tatankaceratops ("Like a corgi version of Triceratops")
Claim to Fame: Adorable miniature version of Triceratops
Favorite Movie: Twins
Image Credit: The paper


Diabloceratops ("Fiddle-playing horned face")
Claim to Fame: Very basal centrosaurine, narrow frill, odd nasal decorations
Favorite Movie: End of Days
Image Credit: Olorotitan on DeviantArt



Ojoceratops ("Triceratops 8 - THE OJO")
Claim to Fame: Like Triceratops with a rounded (instead of squared-off) squamosal
Favorite Movie: Bowfinger
Image Credit: The Internet


Medusaceratops ("Snake-haired horned face")
Caim to Fame: Basically a chasmosaurine version of Albertaceratops
Favorite Movie: Clash of the Titans
Image Credit: D. Sloan via the paper



Rubeosaurus ("Country bumpkin lizard")
Claim to Fame: Formerly known as Styracosaurus ovatus, has a ridiculously large nasal horn
Favorite Movie: Anything with Adrian Brody
Image Credit: Lukas Panzarin



Coahuilaceratops ("Spring Break horned face")
Claim to Fame: Mexico's first ceratopian; most difficult name to pronounce in all the Ceratopsidae; ridiculously long brow horns
Favorite Movie: Traffic
Image Credit: Lukas Panzarin



Kosmoceratops ("Show-off horned face")
Claim to Fame: Most complicated combination of spikes and hors of any known ceratopsid; brow horns point laterally and arc down along their length
Favorite Movie: Hellraiser
Image Credit: Lukas Panzarin



Utahceratops ("Creatively bankrupt horned face")
Claim to Fame: Small brow horns point laterally, nasal horn sits in front of nasal opening
Favorite Movie: Raising Arizona
Image Credit: Lukas Panzarin



Mojoceratops ("Groovy horned face")
Claim to Fame: Formerly Chasmosaurus kaiseni, named in a pub
Favorite Movie: Austin Powers 2: The Spy Who Shagged Me
Image Credit: Nick Longrich via the Internet



Vagaceratops ("Took a year off before college horned face")
Claim to Fame: Formerly Chasmosaurus irvinensis, lacks brow horns entirely, epiparietals fold down over parietal fenestrae
Favorite Movie: Road Trip
Image Credit: The Internet

Shantae on DSiWare

For those of you who own a DSi or DSi XL, I recommend going to the DSiWare store and purchasing Shantae: Risky's Revenge, developed by WayForward. I'm a huge fan of the original Game Boy Color game (that none of you have ever heard of), and this sequel has been in various states of development ever since. It's 1200 Nintendo Points, which may seem expensive, but after an hour with the final product, I can assure you it's well worth it. Just an all-around excellent game, with wonderful spritework and beautiful animation. For those new to the Shantae scene, I can describe the gameplay as something akin to "Metroidvania," but with more item collection and specific quests.

Since you'll have to spend $20 to get the game (that's how Nintendo's retarded points system works), I can safely recommend a few other DSiWare titles to spend the other 800 points on. Dark Void Zero is a wonderful throwback platformer that strives and succeeds to immitate a lost NES game; Pinball Pulse: the Ancients Beckon is a great single-table pinball game from the people who made Metroid Prime Pinball; Spotto is a fun and adorable angle-based puzzle game; and Mighty Flips is WayForward's other DSiWare game, a puzzle game based on spacial reasoning that has connectivity with Shantae.