Pages 8-15

Bone from a Dry Sea Pages 8-15

Return to History 8 Archaeology Bone From a Dry Sea

Summary

     In this chapter, Vinny, the protagonist, and her dad are traveling to a excavation site in Africa. Vinny's parents have been divorced for a while now, and she chose to come on this trip with her dad because she "Wanted her own dad", a reference to her Step-Father's loyalty to his own sons, Vinny's step brothers. Vinny's mother supported this trip because she "Wanted (Vinny) to be bored.

Physical Place

         The Archeologists are following a line through Africa charted by previous finds and their dates. Theoretically, following this line would lead to the discovery of fossils in the fossil gap, a 6.5 million year hole in the findings of fossils. The pig jaw they found is crucial to finding other items of the same time period, as pig jaws can be easily dated due to their strait forward evolution. The jaw that Dr. Hamiska found was dated at 4.5 to 5 million years ago; right in the middle of the fossil gap.

Place Changes

         The African plate and the Eurasian plate are colliding during the expedition. The type of plate interaction isn't specified in the book, but from the quote "We're right at the point where (the Eurasian) plate moves against (the Aftrican plate)", I believe that the type of plate boundary is a Transform boundary. A transform boundary is when two tectonic plates slide against each other. This neither creates nor destroys the lithosphere, (the location of tectonic plates), but it may lead to the eruption of volcanos. This, however, is a good thing, as archaeologists can date the volcanic ash through scientific methods. Scientific methods, or a clear path that the scientist takes in terms of observing and classifying various objects.

History as an Interpretation:

          Part of the reason this area hasnt been completely dug out is due to a civil war that has been raging for the past 12 years. The new government in effect dosent want foreign archeologists in the country. However, Joe Hamiska was able to get permission through the minister of the interior's cousin. A interior ministry is a ministry that contributes to national security. This leads the archeologists to be able to excavate at this site.

Works Cited

The USGS. "Understanding Plate Motions [This Dynamic Earth, USGS]." Understanding Plate Motions [This Dynamic Earth, USGS]. United States Geological Survey, 24 May 2012. Web. 23 Aug. 2012. <http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/dynamic/understanding.html>.

Author Not Mentioned. "Truth in Science." The Fossil Record. Truth In Science, 19 Mar. 2007. Web. 23 Aug. 2012. <http://www.truthinscience.org.uk/tis2/index.php/component/content/article/48.html>.