Dragons Teeth Crichton 2017 (WWT)

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In 1871, Lord Kelvin, the most eminent physicist of his day, posed a serious objection to Darwin’s theory. It had not been answered by Darwin, or anyone else, in subsequent years. Whatever else one might think of evolutionary theory, it obviously implied a substantial period of time—at least several hundred thousand years—to carry out its effects on earth. At the time of Darwin’s publication, the oldest estimates of the age of the earth were around ten thousand years. Darwin himself believed the earth would have to be at least three hundred thousand years old to allow enough time for evolution. The earthly evidence, from the new study of geology, was confusing and contradictory, but it seemed at least conceivable that the earth might be several hundred thousand years old. Lord Kelvin took a different approach to the question. He asked how long the sun had been burning. At this time, the mass of the sun was well established; it was obviously burning with the same processes of combustion as were found on earth; therefore one could estimate the time it would take to consume the mass of the sun in a great fire. Kelvin’s answer was that the sun would burn up entirely within twenty thousand years. The fact that Lord Kelvin was a devoutly religious man and therefore opposed to evolution could not be thought to have biased his thinking. He had investigated the problem from the impersonal vantage point of mathematics and physics. And he had concluded, irrefutably, that there was simply not enough time for evolutionary processes to take place. Corroborating evidence derived from the warmth of the earth. From mine shafts and other drilling, it was known that the earth’s temperature increased one degree for every thousand feet of depth. This implied that the core of the earth was still quite hot. But if the earth had really formed hundreds of thousands of years ago, it would have long since become cool. That was a clear implication of the second law of thermodynamics, and there was no disputing it. There was only one escape from these physical dilemmas, and Cope echoed Darwin in suggesting it. “Perhaps,” he said, “we do not know everything about the energy sources of the sun and the earth.” “You mean there may be a new form of energy, as yet unknown to science?” Morton asked. “The physicists say that it is impossible, that the rules governing the universe are fully understood by them.” “Perhaps the physicists are wrong,” Cope said. “Certainly someone is wrong.” “That is true,” Cope said evenly. If he was open-minded when listening to Morton’s beliefs, he was equally so with Little Wind, the Snake scout. Early in the bone digging, Little Wind became agitated and objected to their excavations. He said they would all be killed. “Who will kill us?” Sternberg inquired. “The Great Spirit, with lightning.” “Why?” Sternberg asked. “Because we disturb the burial ground.” Little Wind explained that these were the bones of giant snakes that had inhabited the earth in ages past, before the Great Spirit had hunted them down and killed them all with bolts of lightning so that man could live on the plains. The Great Spirit would not want the serpent bones disturbed, and would not look kindly on their adventures. Sternberg, who did not like Little Wind anyway, duly reported it to Cope.
“He may be right,” Cope said. “It’s nothing but savage superstition,” Sternberg snorted. “Superstition? Which part do you mean?” “All of it,” Sternberg said. “The very idea.” Cope said, “The Indians think these fossils are the bones of serpents, which is to say reptiles. We think they were reptiles, too. They think these creatures were gigantic. So do we. They think these gigantic reptiles lived in the distant past. So do we. They think the Great Spirit killed them. We say we don’t know why they disappeared—but since we offer no explanation of our own, how can we be sure theirs is superstition?” Sternberg walked away, shaking his head.
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Contents Cover Endpaper Title Page
Page 6 and 7:
Introduction As he appears in an ea
Page 8 and 9:
Young Johnson Joins the Field Trip
Page 10 and 11:
Marsh Professor Marsh kept offices
Page 12 and 13:
The name had an extraordinary effec
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Learning Photography Johnson wanted
Page 16 and 17:
Philadelphia Philadelphia was the b
Page 18 and 19: puffed-up, brave, and determined to
Page 20 and 21: “Really? Most families wish to me
Page 22 and 23: wealthy Quaker merchant, left him m
Page 24 and 25: “I have made inquiries about that
Page 26 and 27: informed of this by Red Cloud himse
Page 28 and 29: Going West The Chicago and North We
Page 30 and 31: The West Beyond Omaha the real West
Page 32 and 33: town, it was, noted Johnson, “a c
Page 34 and 35: The Pride De Paree Theater was a tw
Page 36 and 37: “I’ll be back, though.” “Wh
Page 38 and 39: “Oh yes, Mr. Johnson,” said the
Page 40 and 41: Cope’s Expedition It was immediat
Page 42 and 43: Established thirty years before, Sa
Page 44 and 45: e rejoining her husband; indeed, sh
Page 46 and 47: His personal style—his long curly
Page 48 and 49: Part II The Lost World
Page 50 and 51: He was awake for each changing of t
Page 52 and 53: Incidents on the Plains In the midd
Page 54 and 55: Sternberg went out and shot an ante
Page 56 and 57: Badlands The Judith River, a tribut
Page 58 and 59: “I said, ‘I bid you welcome and
Page 60 and 61: that the nomadic Indian lives a fre
Page 62 and 63: Bone Country With these preliminary
Page 64 and 65: potential discoveries lying in wait
Page 66 and 67: cooks it,” Isaac grumbled). Rathe
Page 70 and 71: Bad Water Cope chose his campsites
Page 72 and 73: They rode on. The sun dropped behin
Page 74 and 75: Dinner with Cope and Marsh The sear
Page 76 and 77: “Very true.” “Though you neve
Page 78 and 79: “Sleep with Your Guns Tonight, Bo
Page 80 and 81: Moving Camp In early August, they w
Page 82 and 83: “Just wait and see,” Cookie sai
Page 84 and 85: “Of these rocks?” Johnson asked
Page 86 and 87: Around the Campfire Any discovery l
Page 88 and 89: Leaving the Badlands The morning of
Page 90 and 91: I am dreadfully ashamed of what occ
Page 92 and 93: Part III Dragon Teeth
Page 94 and 95: they reach us.” “You boys go ri
Page 96 and 97: Badlands Silence, under a waning mo
Page 98 and 99: Little Wind said nothing. “What a
Page 100 and 101: Deadwood Deadwood presented a bleak
Page 102 and 103: he thought. Then he finished fillin
Page 104 and 105: Laramie and Cheyenne?” “That’
Page 106 and 107: “He moved old Jake when the carri
Page 108 and 109: “So I expect you’ll have to get
Page 110 and 111: The Black Hills Art Gallery “How
Page 112 and 113: But it was also the beginning of tr
Page 114 and 115: His whole manner changed. “Then y
Page 116 and 117: For his part, Black Dick claimed to
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“I got to pack,” Johnson said,
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No one in town who knew Dick would
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already been to Montana City and Cr
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“Fossil bones are rock.” “The
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Emily’s News “It’s no good,
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All around him, the hotel was silen
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“I am sure of it,” the judge sa
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“Yes. Ling Chow has tool shed, ve
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A Shootout Black Dick showed up in
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Keep your eyes on him. Never take y
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had hired Kang to help him again, s
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Deadwood for the winter, but said t
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“Only a damn fool would think so,
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Johnson and Miss Emily ducked down.
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Red Canyon They reached the town of
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Fort Laramie Fort Laramie was an ar
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“Well, you’ve just come from De
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“How can you say that? Look at hi
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other pursuits of no substance.”
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“Of course.” “Really?” “D
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“I don’t see why not. She says
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At eight the next morning, feeling
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His father embraced him warmly. “
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Postscript Cope Edward Drinker Cope
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Author’s Note “Biography,” ob
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Afterword Michael’s dedication to
Page 170 and 171:
Taft, Robert. Photography and the A
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Also by Michael Crichton Fiction Th
Page 175 and 176:
Copyright This book is a work of fi
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* Editor’s note: Charles H. Stern
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