Comments on: China’s Dinosaur Folklore http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/dinosaur/2012/01/chinas-dinosaur-folklore/ Where Paleontology Meets Pop Culture Sat, 22 Dec 2012 16:48:38 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.4 By: Cade DeBois (@lifepostepic) http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/dinosaur/2012/01/chinas-dinosaur-folklore/comment-page-1/#comment-5723 Cade DeBois (@lifepostepic) Fri, 06 Jan 2012 17:56:28 +0000 http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/dinosaur/?p=7027#comment-5723 Good article that touches on a significant link. Folklore and traditional stories usually do contain a store of knowledge gleaned from generations of observation (!) of the natural world (!). Just because we don't see through that same prism of language, cultural and worldwide we often miss that wealth of knowledge. We should respect that. To that end, may I suggest dropping patronizing talk like "tales may be to fantastic to believe." No one is asking anyone to believe such folklore--just to respect it as a culture's depository of early knowledge that may require a bit of a learning curve and a fair amount of broadmindedness on the outsider's part. Once one gets those skills under their belt, it's much easier to recognize how modern sciences of observation like natural history and paleontology actually evolved out of such ancient traditions of cataloging the natural world through myth, lore and storytelling traditions, thus making those long neglected sources more accessible to modern scientists. Good article that touches on a significant link. Folklore and traditional stories usually do contain a store of knowledge gleaned from generations of observation (!) of the natural world (!). Just because we don’t see through that same prism of language, cultural and worldwide we often miss that wealth of knowledge. We should respect that. To that end, may I suggest dropping patronizing talk like “tales may be to fantastic to believe.” No one is asking anyone to believe such folklore–just to respect it as a culture’s depository of early knowledge that may require a bit of a learning curve and a fair amount of broadmindedness on the outsider’s part.

Once one gets those skills under their belt, it’s much easier to recognize how modern sciences of observation like natural history and paleontology actually evolved out of such ancient traditions of cataloging the natural world through myth, lore and storytelling traditions, thus making those long neglected sources more accessible to modern scientists.

]]> By: BL Tween http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/dinosaur/2012/01/chinas-dinosaur-folklore/comment-page-1/#comment-5714 BL Tween Thu, 05 Jan 2012 03:58:05 +0000 http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/dinosaur/?p=7027#comment-5714 With new scientific discoveries being made every year, we learn more and more about the dinosaurs. They are truly some of Gods most amazing creatures. It is no wonder that they are mentioned in the Bible. The word dinosaur is not in the Bible, however, the Bible describes two of them, the behemoth and the leviathan. Its in the book of Job, in chapters 40 and 41 Dinosaurs are amazing. With new scientific discoveries being made every year, we learn more and more about the dinosaurs. They are truly some of Gods most amazing creatures. It is no wonder that they are mentioned in the Bible.

The word dinosaur is not in the Bible, however, the Bible describes two of them, the behemoth and the leviathan. Its in the book of Job, in chapters 40 and 41

Dinosaurs are amazing.

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