Piltdown issues were discovered in 1912 by a worker in a farm & was given to the amateur archaeologist Charles Dawson, who disclosed them to the paleontologist Smith Woodward in the Geological Society of London. For years the debate has erupted about the origin of these remnants, and the press said that it most likely corresponded to the “missing link” between apes and humans. The deception (hoax) was discovered by a dentist A.T. Marston who examined the teeth and did a fluorine absorption test. At this point when the truth was found out, it was a very argumentative because the British were ridiculed, scientific related fields of human evolution began to be more skeptical and people started to doubt the scientist.
One fault that came into play in this case was that the scientists got very excited. The early twentieth century was the golden age of paleontology, and the British were very frustrated because they had not found any human fossils while Europe and Africa had found an abundance. This was a big mistake because making an scientific investigation using feelings, because a scientist but use the most objective options possible.
The contentment of the British ended when the dentist A.T. Marston found that the teeth of the skeleton belonged to an orangutan and the loose tooth to a monkey and a human skull. The confirmation was made because of the fluorine absorption test. The principle of this technique is simple: the bones absorb fluoride depending on how long they have been buried. The greater the amount of fluorine present the older the bone may be. The remains of Piltdown’s fragments(both the jaw and skull) contained trace amounts of fluoride. Therefore, the fragments had been buried in recent times.
It is impossible to diminish 100% the human factor from science because science is accessable for humans who dedicate their lives to understand the mysteries of the universe. Scientists still make mistakes in their investigations, but it should not stop people from studying science. The Piltdown was a dishonest person, however in the end credible scientist were able to figure out the truth. The only way to avoid another "hoax" is to have these scientists be more careful when theories like these are presented.
This "story" was a warning in a way to all of us. Scientists have to further investigate issues so that a hoax like this does not get as far as it did the first time, however their will always be people out there trying to disqualify science. Furthermore their needs to be further investigation followed by evidence into any and all "ideas" by people before they are made public which can cause quite an uproar in the science community as well as in the public.
Dear Donielle,
ReplyDeleteI found your blog post very interesting. As I read the blog posts of the student I realize that different aspects of this case appear differently to each of us. You attributed the discovery of the hoax to the dentist. Other have attributed this to the fluorine test or the doctor at the anthropological meeting. I think there were doubters all along. I think the lesson here is that a group of scientists either working together or separately brought the Piltdown hoax to an end. I also agree this story should serve as a warning to us all. In matters of science , remain always vigilant.
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ReplyDeleteHey Donielle,
ReplyDeleteThis is a very good post. I agree with Pans, I believe you were one of the few who looked at dentist to discover the hoax. Great way of thinking outside the box.
I wanted to correct myself once again that the "issues" those being the bones "found" , were not found on a farm they were found in a rock quarry. I am not sure why I wrote that it was found on a farm, which clearly was not the case and no where in the research does it ever mention a farm. I apologize for this error.
ReplyDeletePans and Raye, thank you both for reading my blog post and commenting on it. :)
ReplyDeleteI understand that the video uses the term "missing link" but did you have the opportunity to review the video in the assignment folder about the use of this term? Is it valid to use this term to explain the importance of Piltdown? There was another, more important piece of information that would have been gained from this find, had it been valid regarding the size of the cranium and which came first, bipedalism vs. large brains. Did you see that information?
ReplyDelete"This was a big mistake because making an scientific investigation using feelings, because a scientist but use the most objective options possible."
That is precisely correct. That issue of "feelings" can explain a lot, both on why the hoax was instigated in the first place and why it was accepted so readily.
Good coverage of the fluorine analysis. What about the process of science itself helped to uncover the hoax? Why were they still analyzing this find 40 years later?
With regard to the human factor, would you even want to do away with the human factor? This was a key question of the assignment. Would you even be able to do science without humans? What positive factors do humans bring to the scientific process?
Good conclusion.