Facts About the Ambulocetus Prehistoric Whale

Ambulocetus dates from the early Eocene epoch, about 50 million years ago, when the ancestors of modern whales were literally just dipping their toes into the water: this long, slender, otter-like mammal was built for an amphibious lifestyle, with webbed, padded feet and a narrow, crocodile-like snout. Name: Ambulocetus (Greek for walking whale); pronounced AM-byoo-low-SEE-tussHabitat: Shores of the Indian subcontinentHistorical Epoch: Early Eocene (50 million years ago)Size and Weight: About 10 feet long and 500 poundsDiet:Â  Fish and crustaceansDistinguishing Characteristics: Webbed feet; narrow snout; internal rather than external ears Oddly, an analysis of Ambulocetus fossilized teeth shows that this walking whale thrived in both fresh and saltwater lakes, oceans and rivers, a characteristic shared only with a single modern-day crocodile hailing from Australia (and no identified whales or pinnipeds). Given its slim, unprepossessing appearance--no more than 10 feet long and 500 pounds dripping wet-- how do paleontologists know that Ambulocetus was ancestral to whales? For one thing, the tiny bones in this mammals inner ears were similar to those of modern cetaceans, as was its ability to swallow underwater (an important adaptation given its fish-eating diet) and its whale-like teeth. That, plus the similarity of Ambulocetus to other identified whale ancestors like Pakicetus and Protocetus, pretty much seals the cetacean deal, though creationists and anti-evolutionists will always continue to doubt the missing link status of this walking whale, and its kinship to more recent beasts like the truly enormous Leviathan. One of the odd things about Ambulocetus, and its above-mentioned relatives is that the fossils of these ancestral whales have been discovered in modern-day Pakistan and India, countries otherwise not well known for their abundance of prehistoric megafauna. On the one hand, its possible that whales can trace their ultimate ancestry to the Indian subcontinent; on the other, its also possible that the conditions here were particularly ripe for fossilization and preservation, and early cetaceans had more of a worldwide distribution during the Eocene epoch.

Analysis Of Candide s Search For His Love - 1389 Words

Travelling plays a significant role within this novel as the whole story is encapsulated by the protagonist, Candide’s, search for his love, Cunà ©gonde. Due to the episodic nature of the novella, Voltaire is able to put Candide in many different situations, which, in turn, allow him to successfully satirise the main ideology proposed at the start. Furthermore, as Candide travels across the world, we begin to see a mental maturation in the character. At the beginning of the novella Candide is clearly susceptible to the teachings of his mentor, Pangloss, however, due to the hardships he faces through his travels, he begins to start thinking for himself and develop his own philosophy. The main purpose of the travelling throughout the novella†¦show more content†¦Although these events do little to benefit Candide or the people around him, both he and Pangloss continue to justify them, however, these justifications become more and more farcical, especially when Pangloss tries to claim that syphilis is a ‘necessary ingredient’ within the best of all possible worlds for the luxuries of chocolate and cochineal. The exaggerated tone Voltaire uses in this justification adds and ironic sting and emphasises that, even though some people are oblivious to it, these tragedies clearly serve no greater good within the real world. Furthermore, after Candide and Cunà ©gonde escape from Bordeaux to Buenos Aires, despite the fact that they are both in love, the old woman convinces Cunà ©gonde to marry the governor because she has ‘seventy two years of nobility but not one penny’. Once again Voltaire is using irony to highlight that even the thin g that we perceive to be most pure, love, is corruptible, which couldn’t possibly be the case in a perfect world. Candide’s travels are necessary within the novella for Voltaire to be able to satirise the theory of optimism because they show that life in the real world is nothing like the life in Westphalia and cause both Pangloss and Candide to come up with justifications for the horrors they endured which clearly hold no weight behind them. As Candide

Australia is physically and culturally unique Free Essays

Australia’s multicultural attitude respects all cultures and races. Australia’s government is amazing because it was federated and democratic. Its climate varies throughout Australia because of its size. We will write a custom essay sample on Australia is physically and culturally unique or any similar topic only for you Order Now Australia is a truly fascinating continent/country/island. Its uniqueness is due to its flora with its many different plants. Its fauna and its many creatures only found in Australia. Australia’s lifestyle is also sought after because it can’t be found anywhere else. Also it landscape is almost unpredictable and also classifies Australia as a continent, country, and island. Its final asset is its development and technology, since Australia is a major contributor to medical studies and are leaders in sports technology. Now that you know briefly why Australia is unique, the rest of this report will elaborate further on them. Australia has a unique climate. It sits in many climate zones because of its large size. These zones include tropical, sub-tropical, temperate, and sub-temperate. Most of Australia has four seasons, summer, autumn, winter, and spring, in other places it is two seasons and they are the wet and dry seasons. From blistering hot temperatures in Darwin to below zero temperatures in Hobart, Australia’s climate is one of many things that make Australia unique. Next in line is Australia’s landscape. Australia has many different terrains from forests to deserts and this is also because of its large size. The edge of Australia is mostly green except for the western coast; the rest of Australia is mainly dry and arid. Australia’s shape, size, and location also make it a continent, country, and also an island. The flora in Australia is truly amazing. Australia has a wide range of flora, like bottle brushes, waratahs, and eucalyptus trees. All the plants mentioned are unique to Australia, with many more that haven’t been mentioned. These plants are also important to Australia’s fauna for habitat and food. These plants also make Australia a colourful and beautiful place. As mentioned in the above paragraph, Australian fauna is important to Australia. The creatures unique to Australia are the kangaroos, wallabies, wombats, emus, koalas, kookaburras, etc. If u look on the Australian emblem u should see two animals unique to Australia, the emu and the kangaroo. Australian lifestyle is well sought after. It is sought after because of the easy going, laid back nature of all Australians. Everyone seems to be happy and enjoying life while in America everyone is stressed and working very hard. The Australian lifestyle also involves the great outdoors. The dominant male is at the BBQ cooking shrimp and steak holding a VB while a game of cricket is going on in the background. These points make the Australian lifestyle favourable. The reason the Australian lifestyle is as it is now is because of its government. Australia originally had 6 colonies until it was federated in 1900. Since then Australia has improved and has learnt from past mistakes. The Australian government makes sure that all cultures and races are accepted as equals, which makes it a multicultural government. This brings us to the next point, multiculturalism. Australia is unique because it is one of the few countries where all cultures and races are respected for who they are and treated as equals. This makes Australia an ideal country to travel to for non-white people because it guarantees that they would be treated fairly while in this country. Australia is pretty significant when it comes to development and technology. Australia are major contributors to medical research especially in the cancer research section. Australians are also leaders in sports technology, mainly to do with rugby, cricket, and AFL. This makes Australia ideal for people interested in sports and cancer research. The following reasons above make me strongly believe that Australia is a unique country. To live in this amazing country is a privilege and should be respected because of it is a one of a kind country, and is confirmed in the above paragraphs. How to cite Australia is physically and culturally unique, Papers

My biggest gripe Essay Example For Students

My biggest gripe Essay The Dumb FarmWe have all encountered someone dumb in our lives, and most likely, it has been more than one person. Everyday I meet someone who is completely oblivious to what is happening, or someone who speaks out loud before they think about what they are going to say. Yes, at times we all have our dumb moments, but some people live life being dumb. For example, students that raise their hands every five minutes and make obnoxious comments or ask questions that have just been answered. The people who, during every passing period, abruptly stop in the middle of a crowded hallway and talk with six of their friends right in front of the door. People who go up to the most crowded, most popular movie theatre in town and try to pay with a credit card when they know the theatre has accepted only cash for the last four years, then try to tell the ticket seller they paid with a credit card last time. Lunch ladies who are incapable of calculating five dollars minus one dollar, or, who quite frankly cannot count at all. People who get on your every last nerve all the time, and are to dumb to notice. These are all examples of people who are dumb, and the sad part: we have to live with people like this every day. The good news is that I have come up with a solution. First, a test is taken once every year to determine exactly how dumb you are. The test will measure common sense, social skills, and overall knowledge. A failing grade in any one of these categories will result in the second part of the solution: departure. A desolate spot in the world will be reserved for test failures, for now we will refer to this place as the dumb farm. Anyway, this is where they will live forever so they can breed with people equally dumb as themselves. This way, a smart person will not have the opportunity to breed with someone dumb and the chances of having dumb children in our world will lessen. The dumb farm will be exactly like our civilization, except that the dumb people will run it. They will have the jobs, they will make the rules, and maybe some smart people could help them get started. Schools wouldnt work because no one would be qualified to teach, but realistically, there was probably no hope for these children anyway. I bet you are wondering who will determine what dumb means, and how we will keep the dumb farm from becoming overpopulated. Well, smart people will determine dumb. We would first have to find a way to establish a few smart people, that way they can administer the first test. We are guessing that the people in the dumb farm will have offspring (these children can take the test if they wish, to see if they are smart) and eventually, after a few generations of dumb people, they might become too dumbto breed. Sooner or later they will, and then they will all be gone. So, in conclusion, we want the dumb people to die off. At first, this may seem harsh, but the results will be worth it. Smart people will be able to live life every day without feeling astonished from witnessing stupidity. This process would be the beginning to a more advanced society. We wouldnt have to spend our time feeling sorry for the less fortunate. Honestly, stress in the smart people would m inimize, and this too would better our educated world. We wont have to yell profanities while we drive, or get mad because, while in the grocery line, the person behind us has hit us with their cart at least five times in two minutes. This could be the beginning of world peace, and it can all start with the departure of a few dumb people.