Thread by @SUEtheTrex

“You play Red Dead Redemption 2 yet, SUE?”

Me: “Nah. Those open world murder simulators always end up boring me.”

“You know there’s a sassy paleontologist who teaches you how to hunt for fossils in it, right?”

Me: (A “WOOSH” noise rushes past, leaving only a me shaped cloud)

STATUS UPDATE: Currently robbing trains to find my digging expeditions.

I have no idea why more universities and institutions don’t adopt this cool, victimless financial strategy.

(My lawyer fires off another “concerned” email off so quickly, it bends time and space)

Hoping to run into Edward Drinker Cope so I can throw him off a cliff...

IMPORTANT STATUS UPDATE: I have met the sassy dinosaur lady. She is a mix of Susan Hendrickson and Mary Anning, and I’m prepared to die for her.

What’s even more cool is the character’s name (Deborah McGuiness) is also the name of a real life compsci professor at @rpi: @dlmcguinness.

But seriously, to everyone over at @RockstarGames: I realize this is a crazy huge project and you couldn’t paint everything with the accuracy brush... but no one ever discovers dinosaur bones like this.

For instance: This is me, after just a *little* bit of prep work.

Susan here spotted me because she was trained on what to look for emerging from rock outcroppings, and in the correct geologic context.

Meanwhile, Deborah here (all by herself) seems to have unearthed a totally intact hip bone of some not insignificant theropod.

Bones like this are usually found ground up over millions of years of sediment and erosion.

The specimens you see in a museum or announced in the press is years, even decades, of fastidious effort on the work of prep lab folks such as the ones we have here @FieldMuseum

When you see fossils prepped in the field and transported, they’re usually wrapped in plaster jackets to preserve the find (we’re actually very fragile).

But yeah, I guess for simplicity sakes: They did have to make things stupid simple.

But imagine if they trained folks to look for certain telltale signs of vertebrae in cuts from river beds? Or identify fossilized tracks while you’re out wandering around?

Remember when a kid in Norway survived a moose attack because he used World of Warcraft’s “Play Dead” Hunter skill? wired.com/2007/12/boy-su…

Anyway, a missed opportunity for an amazing scicomm outreach. “Oh yeah, I discovered this new species of ceratopsian because I loved Red Dead Redemption 2 and I really wanted that cool dinosaur knife in game, so I accidentally learned how to ID fossils.”

"Hey SUE, why haven't you played the dungeon game lately?"

Easy. I have been much too busy playing the cowboy game instead.

AND MASTERING IT.

Not to brag, but: I am the greatest cowboy that ever lived.

THE. GREATEST.

"But SUE, can you teach *me* to become a great outlaw/cowpoke?"

Look... I'd love to. But this kind of talent just comes naturally, you see.

Anyway, I met the sassy dinosaur lady and I'm beyond ready to quit Dutch's gang and ride with her.

Can't wait to show off my elite outlaw skills in the online multiplayer.

Horsemanship? 🐎

Unparalleled.

And not only am I an expert equestrian... I'm *QUITE* the nature photographer.