T. rex Protein

April 14, 2007 by Dr. Mc.

 It is not often that a particular dinosaur fossil makes the news, but this one has twice. Yesterday (April 13) two papers were published in the journal Science concerning a 2005 announcement. Mary Higby Schweitzer, a noted molecular paleontologist, announced two years ago that she had found soft tissue, in this case meaning blood vessels and connective tissues, within the fossil bones of a Montana Tyrannosaurus rex. Since the T..rex is dated as having lived approximately 67 million years ago, this is difficult to accept. Most things in my refrigerator, designed specifically to keep soft things soft, fail to stay so in a matter of weeks. Mummified organisms in Egypt have made it, sort of, for 5,000 years. But 65,000,000 years, under accidental conditions? Basically the the whole idea was questioned by peers (”It just looks like soft tissue.”), so Dr. Schweitzer solicited the help of experts in mass spectrometry for stronger evidence. This time, in 2007, she is able to come forward with compelling (undeniable) evidence that the tissue in the bones contain significant portions of the protein collagen, present in all connective tissues. This is worth double news because of the enigma: 65,000,000 soft tissue. In all publications I have found (except biblically-based ones), the soft tissue part is questioned, but never the 65K part. If it is really soft tissue, then it must be possible for soft tissue to last 65 million years. If there were not such a strong cultural bias, questioning the date of the fossil would be the natural solution. I am not calling these scientists ignorant and closed-minded for not asking a question.. They are highly educated. And I hope they would not call me ignorant and closed-minded for asking a question. but they might. My interest here is cultural. We will entertain many wild ideas to keep from questioning our original assumptions, regardless of how ungrounded in fact they are.

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