User:JulieReizner

Not sure what to write here, I guess just some stuff about me: Watch out, though, there are opinions expressed on this page! But you can write whatever you want on your page too (I think). Contact info: jneltner@montana.edu

Wikipedia
I actually just started contributing to Wikipedia (as of 3/23), and have only done the Einiosaurus article so far, which previously was a stub. In doing so, I noticed that Two Medicine Formation also didn't have an article, so I created one for it. It would be nice if more geologic formations of interest to the general public (i.e. fossil-bearing) could be Wikipedia articles, and I may work on this.

What I'm Doing
Currently a graduate student at Montana State University in Bozeman studying dinosaur paleontology under Jack Horner, specifically bone histology of Einiosaurus. Received my B.S. in Geology from Western Kentucky University in 2003.

In What I'm Interested
Everything about the natural sciences, specifically dinosaurs, all extant animals both vertebrate and invertebrate, and marine ecosystems and conservation. Very interested in the deep sea and would like to pursue marine biology after I receive my M.S. in Earth Sciences from MSU.

Science Education
Determined to educate the general public on the methods and processes of science in order to show people that faith- or belief-driven "alternatives" such as Intelligent Design are not, in fact, science. Scientific thought has no implications for faith or spirituality, and my goal is to show that there are devoutly religious scientists who understand that only physical evidence is used to formulate scientific hypotheses, while keeping their personal beliefs, if any, separate.

It is important for people to understand that a scientific theory is not a word that scientists throw around - it is a hypothesis for which there is no contrary physical evidence. Plate tectonics, radioactive decay, evolution, and the cell theory are major theories of geology and biology, and they explain everything we know about these fields. In fact, these fields would scarcely exist without these underlying theories. Too often, people learn the hierarchy of "hypothesis then theory then law" sometime during high school, when actually a law is a general statement, or prediction, about natural phenomena, and this hierarchy does not actually exist. (For example, the law of gravity simply states that something will fall to the ground if you drop it. There is nothing analogous to this that one can say about evolution). A scientific theory, which always has ample physical evidence supporting it, should not offend anyone who wants to learn more about the world in which they live.

Evolution has been villianized by being called "Darwinism," which reflects people's misconception that everything we know about evolution was written in the Origin of Species well over 100 years ago. Today, however, the study of evolution is a synthesis of Darwin's hypotheses, genetics, and mathematical population studies - the latter two of which are fields that did not exist during Darwin's time (see Modern Evolutionary Synthesis)*. Everything Darwin wrote has been analyzed and much of it, if not all, has been tested since (yes, evolution can be tested, both in the field and in the lab!) Scientists do not simply "believe" something merely because it was written; everything comes under intense scrutiny. There also is no "controversy" among scientists that evolution occurs, though details must be ironed out as in all theories. What would be the point of studying science if we knew everything already?

Often, people have been mislead into thinking, by proponents of Intelligent Design, that they must make the choice between "believing" either the Bible or the Origin of Species, though a scientist knows that the two do not negate one another. This "choice" doesn't make sense, especially since the Origin doesn't reflect everything we know about evolution, as mentioned above, but even if it did - I would think it offensive to devout Christians and other Bible-readers that the Bible has been referred to as merely a textbook of physics, astronomy, geology, biology, etc., rather than the spiritual guide it actually is.


 * I don't know why Modern Evolutionary Synthesis comes up red. It really is an article, but it looks as if you have to type it in.

Hobbies
Hiking, camping, skiing (hard not to when you live in Montana), swimming, reading, playing clarinet and Irish whistle, painting and drawing, and brewing beer. I usually enjoy doing all the above with my husband of nearly 8 months :c )

Sites to Visit
Where I work - come visit sometime! Museum of the Rockies, Bozeman, MT

If you have any questions on evolution, this is very helpful: Understanding Evolution website from UC Berkeley

If you want to make sure the seafood you are eating was not harvested using non-environmentally friendly methods: Pocket Safe Fish Guide

Why I'm concerned about this: Protect the Oceans (sounds preachy I know, but approximates the current issues in ocean conservation. Deep Trouble, a special feature in the BBC's DVD collection of Blue Planet is what inspired my concern, not this goofy website)

Would you like to brew beer? (easiest/funnest thing in the world!) How To Brew for Beginners