In chapter 2, diagrams were very helpful when reviewing information. It was much easier to comprehend everything Shubin was explaining. It was easier to see and understand the difference in Tiktaalik--especially the picture on page 40 that shows the shoulder, elbow, and proto-wrist. It's different seeing it in a picture than just reading about it.
I think Owen's 'one bone-two bone-lotsa blobs-digits" review in the beginning of the chapter helped show Tiktaalik's structural importance, because you can see that the bones look similar to his structure, but aren't exactly the same.
It's kind of fascinating thinking back on this chapter because it really does take a lot of coordination and movement with so many different muscles and bones just to be able to rotate your wrist or bend your elbow or do a push-up.
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I agree, without the pictures and diagrams that Shubin provides understanding the text alone is relatively difficult because it is not very interesting. The pictures are the necessary relief to deify the boredom that the text provides. The pictures also help us finish painting the picture in our heads that is started by the text alone. The most interesting picture was the one on page 31, the one that shows similar bone structures from different animals. They all have the simple formula that Shubin talks about-one bone. two bones, lotsa blobs, and five toes (well the last part changes from animal to animal).
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with maria that the diagrams helped explain the tiktaalik a little further. It revealed images through my head on how the fish actually looked like. I was amazed on how it looked on page forty also. I also agree with maria that the Owen's 'one bone-two bone-lotsa blobs-digits helped show the tiktaalik's structure because it reviewed its own individuality. This chapter was mostly about the structure of the tiktaalik.
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