Shelley Emling has written a book about a somewhat obscure figure in the history of science -- Mary Anning.
That obscurity is a condition Emling wants to remedy because she considers Anning important. It was Anning who in the early 19th century discovered along the coast of England, fossils of incredible creatures -- creatures no human had ever seen -- the first examples ever discovered of what have come to be known as dinosaurs.
Dinosaurs of course are astonishing creatures even today - imagine their impact as they first emerged into the hands of a woman who was scrounging for decorative seashells to sell to make some extra cash for her poor family in the 1820s! (Yes, she sold seashells by the seashore.)
Here is a link to a National Geographic article from 2001 about England's "Jurassic Coast," the stretch of southwestern coastline that Anning's work first brought to the attention of the scientific world.
And here is a link to information about Emling's book.
Knowledge is warranted belief -- it is the body of belief that we build up because, while living in this world, we've developed good reasons for believing it. What we know, then, is what works -- and it is, necessarily, what has worked for us, each of us individually, as a first approximation. For my other blog, on the struggles for control in the corporate suites, see www.proxypartisans.blogspot.com.
Knowledge is warranted belief -- it is the body of belief that we build up because, while living in this world, we've developed good reasons for believing it. What we know, then, is what works -- and it is, necessarily, what has worked for us, each of us individually, as a first approximation. For my other blog, on the struggles for control in the corporate suites, see www.proxypartisans.blogspot.com.
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