Paleonet: When is it a "dig"?

[Lane, Harold R.]

I have climbed many mountains and toted thousands of pounds out on my back hoping to obtain microfossils.  Now that is hard labor and something I have always referred to as field work.

Rich

-----Original Message-----
From: Paleonet [mailto:paleonet-bounces at nhm.ac.uk] On Behalf Of Thaddeus Kind
Sent: Monday, June 16, 2014 4:08 AM
To: PaleoNet
Subject: Re: Paleonet: When is it a "dig"?

The term seems customary, broadly covering when ground is broken and interred remains, artifacts or rocks and minerals are collected or studied. "Dig" flows easily from the etymology of "fossil"(fossil (n.) 1610s, "anything dug up;" 1650s (adj.) "obtained by digging," from French fossile (16c.), from Latin fossilis "dug up," from fossus, past participle of fodere "to dig," from PIE root *bhedh- "to dig, pierce." etymonline.com) and the meaning of "fossorial". 

Quick usage searches shows "a dig" associated with field archaeology, anthropology, paleontology, geology and mineralogy. Because excavation techniques across these disciplines may differ, the word may not be delimitable to any particular set of practices. Whether a zoologist questing for live specimens of subterranean forms would announce that activity as a "dig" is unlikely but a good question.

"Field work" has the certain advantage of being a phrase with more room for intellectual activities not entailing hard manual labor, yet the charming idea of discovery(Eureka!)and a dig are old comrades with public relations advantages.

Edward Hennessey








On Sunday, June 15, 2014 6:53 PM, Norman MacLeod <n.macleod at nhm.ac.uk> wrote:
I don¹t know, but I¹ve been told a Œdig¹ (which is what anthropologists
do) has straight sides and (often) a grid system in the bottom which is used for mapping the positions and orientation of objects found in the Œdig¹. A hole (which is what paleontologists make) has sloping sides and perhaps a couple of smaller holes where samples have been taken in the bottom, on occasion along with a couple beer cans and a wet spot.

Norm MacLeod
_____________________________________________________

Professor Norman MacLeod
Dean of Post-Graduate Education and Training The Natural History Museum. Cromwell Road, London, SW7 5BD
(0)207 942-5204 (Office)
(0)785 017-1787 (Mobile)
http://www.nhm.ac.uk/hosted_sites/paleonet/MacLeod/

Department of Earth Sciences, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, UK

Nanjing Institute of Geology & Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 39 Beijing, Donglu, Nanjing, China _____________________________________________________




On 16/06/2014 01:54, "Roy Plotnick" <plotnick at uic.edu> wrote:

>Paleofolks:
>As an invertebrate paleontologist, I often tell people I don't go on 
>"digs" but conduct "field work."  I know archeologists use the term 
>"dig," and I often see the term associated with dinosaur work, but I 
>was wondering if anyone has ever discussed when collecting fossils at a 
>locality becomes a "dig."  Is it indeed discipline based?  Comments 
>appreciated - Roy _______________________________________________
>Paleonet mailing list
>Paleonet at nhm.ac.uk
>http://mailman.nhm.ac.uk/mailman/listinfo/paleonet



_______________________________________________
Paleonet mailing list
Paleonet at nhm.ac.uk
http://mailman.nhm.ac.uk/mailman/listinfo/paleonet

_______________________________________________
Paleonet mailing list
Paleonet at nhm.ac.uk
http://mailman.nhm.ac.uk/mailman/listinfo/paleonet