A long overdue update
10:04 pm
As is typical around HMNH HQ, when things get a little hectic, web updates are first on the chopping block. What is atypical is that this week is looking to be even more harried than usual (mostly due to lots of scrambling at the day job), but I’m going to make an effort to get a couple of posts online anyway.
There are a slew of great paleo-stories floating around out there, and all signs point to more coming over the next month. If you’ve popped in here, chances are you’re already a regular reader of The Boneyard, which has, since my last post, fledged the last bit of its downy coat, spread its newly feathered wings, and left the nest where it was hatched over at Laelaps. It has found fertile hunting grounds at When Pigs Fly Returns and The Ethical Palaeontologist, and keep an eye out for a new edition at Fish Feet this weekend. Check it out for the latest and greatest paleontology on the web whilst I struggle mightily to get the Hairy Museum’s act together.
What am I hoping to accomplish here in the coming weeks? A brief list of plans:
- Wrapping up the final post in the Snyder Quarry installments, and at least one more story for the Triassophiles in the audience.
- More illustrations and sketches as I experiment with a subtle shift in the focus of the HMNH frontpage.
- Probably a few more weeks of highly sporadic posting, as I prepare to upgrade my aging computer and undertake a much needed redesign of the site (it seems well past time to turn the saffron-o-meter down a couple of notches).
- And stay tuned for at least one jaw-dropping recommendation for your autumnal reading pleasure and/or holiday wish list!
And while I’m mulling over a few new ideas for the site, it seems like a good time to solicit comments from any readers who keep checking in. Is there anything that you’d like to see more of (or just plain see) at the Hairy Museum? Any directions that the site should (or should not) take? Anything I could get rid of, or are there parts of the site I should leave up at all costs?
Glad to see you’re back, Matt! I actually love the HMNH as is, so I’d be excited to see any improvements you’ve got in mind. The Triassic is hot stuff as of late too, so I’d love to see more on that as well. I’ve got Sarda up for the next Boneyard (like you noted) and Neil up after that, so if you want to jump in after Neil, it’s all yours.
Thanks Laelaps, its good to be back. I’m up to my eyeballs in Triassic these days, so expect a lot more of it in the coming months. I’m guessing that the Boneyard after Neil’s should be Oct. 27? If that’s right, sign me up!
I’m glad to see you’re back–I was worried for awhile, there! When you’re posting on a semi-regular basis, Matt, the HMNH is probably my favorite paleo-related blog. And I really LIKE the site design right now, although honestly, I’d get rid of the bottom-page border. And maybe a change in the skull at the top of the page. I mean, gorgonopsids are great, sure, but I’ve been looking at the same gorgonopsid for several years now! :-) How about a lystrosaur skull or a monkey-lizard restoration? Granted, monkey-lizards were not hairy, but hey, neither were gorgonopsids (in all likelihood, anyway)!
But it’s good to have you back, brother.
Thanks for the kind words, Zach…yeah, the bottom border could probably go (or at least move further into the background). The skull is Titanophoneus, which (in the phylogenies I’ve come across) is probably even less likely to be hairy than a gorgonopsian! Then again, if the reports of glandular skin impressions for Estemmenosuchus are accurate, maybe some display whiskers on dinocephalians aren’t too far-fetched. Wish there was more definitive soft-tissue evidence from our Permian relatives.
Regardless, I think the skull could use an update, too.
Hey Matt,
The hair border is a little distracting. If you’re looking for a different color scheme, I’ve always been a fan of triadic color relationships, but making them web-safe might be tricky. As a geology/art double major, I always appreciate someone who can combine field notes and sketches.