About FossilPlot 1.1
I initially developed this software
while a Ph.D. student and teaching assistant for Prof. Tony Ekdale at
the University of Utah. Thanks to Tony's commitment to innovative teaching,
he allowed me to beta-test an earlier version of FossilPlot in his Paleobiology
course. This trial run was crucial in developing user-friendly aspects
of the program and I am indebted to my former students who provided constructive
and pragmatic suggestions on how to improve version 1.0.
In the fall of 2006, version 1.1 was produced and demonstrated at the
Annual Meeting of the Geological Society of America (Tapanila,
2006), and it is featured in the March 2007 issue of Journal
of Geoscience Education (Tapanila,
2007).
FossilPlot is now integrated in paleontology
courses at both the University of Utah and Idaho State University
and I hope it can be of use to other teachers. If making reference to
this program, please cite the current URL or Tapanila (2006) and
acknowledge Sepkoski (2002) as the foundational publication for this program.
Sepkoski's Compendium
FossilPlot uses the compendium of
marine animal genera compiled by Sepkoski and his associates at the University
of Chicago. Any citation of FossilPlot should acknowledge Sepkoski (2002)
as the core dataset on which the program is built. It was Sepkoski's wish
to make his life's work publically available: FossilPlot facilitates this
goal by providing the entire dataset within a framework amenable to classroom
teaching.
Sepkoski, J.J., Jr., 2002. A compendium
of fossil marine animal genera. Bulletins of
American Paleontology, v. 363, p. 1560.
Other Useful References
Gradstein, F.M., and Ogg, J.G.,
2004. Geologic Time Scale 2004 - why, how, and
where next? Lethaia, v. 37, p. 175181. [absolute dates]
Okulitch, A.V., 1999. Geological Time Chart. GSC Open File 3040, supplement
to Geolog, v. 29. [absolute dates]
Sepkoski, J.J., Jr., 1981. A factor analytic description of the Phanerozoic
marine fossil record. Paleobiology,
v. 7, p. 3653. [classic paper using family database]
Sepkoski, J.J., Jr., 1982. A compendium of fossil marine families. Milwaukee
Public Museum Contribution to Biology and
Geology, No. 51. [family dataset]
Sepkoski, J.J., Jr., 1992. A compendium of fossil marine families, 2nd
Ed. Milwaukee Public Museum Contribution
to Biology and Geology, No. 83. [family
dataset, revisited]
Tapanila, L., 2006. Using FossilPlot graphing
software to complement lecture, lab and
field teaching of paleontology: GSA Abstracts with Programs, v.
38(7), p. 499.
Tapanila, L., 2007. FossilPlot, an Excel-based
computer application for teaching stratigraphic
paleontology using the Sepkoski Compendium of fossil marine genera:
Journal of Geoscience Education, 55(2):133-137.
Fig3
for dendrinid paper
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