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Thesis
Animating ancient ontogeny: using integrated interpretive visualization to make fossils and the science surrounding them more accessible
Master of Science (M.S.), Drexel University
May 2014
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17918/etd-4487
Abstract
This thesis seeks to design an Integrated Interpretive Visualization (I2V) with the broader goal of making fossil collections and the important biology surrounding them more visible and accessible to the public. The public are twice separated from the significance of paleontological specimens. First, there is the geological time that separates one from the original context of a fossil, that being a living organism. Second, there is an accessibility gap between the public and the collections that store fossils. Direct access to original source fossils is often limited. I2V can be leveraged to unite the public with fossil collections, the connections between related fossils, and the important theories associated with them. One of these growing topics in paleontology is the evidence of ontogeny or development in the fossil record. I carried out a digital paleontological restoration of a collection of fossils from the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia. The collection is of the Devonian placoderm Bothriolepis. The collection is significant because it represents compelling evidence of an ontogenic growth series. Using photogrammetry to bring the original fossils into digital space, an ontogenic character rig to interpolate between different life stages, and a web-based layer of annotative content this workflow enables me to present a coherent view of how development might have appeared. This project presents an example for museums and other institutions to mobilize their fossil collections to potentially reach a larger audience with a greater impact.
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Details
- Title
- Animating ancient ontogeny
- Creators
- Daniel Joel Newman - DU
- Contributors
- Stefan Rank (Advisor) - Drexel University (1970-)David A. Mauriello (Advisor) - Drexel University (1970-)Edward B. Daeschler (Advisor) - Drexel University (1970-)
- Awarding Institution
- Drexel University
- Degree Awarded
- Master of Science (M.S.)
- Publisher
- Drexel University; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Resource Type
- Thesis
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Digital Media; Drexel University; Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts and Design
- Other Identifier
- 4487; 991014632059204721