mythical sea creatures and turtle survivors

Mythical sea creatures can reveal scientific truth Sightings of mythical sea monsters can provide important statistical data, according to a leading expert in the field from the University of St Andrews.

(Media-Newswire.com) - Sightings of mythical sea monsters can provide important statistical data, according to a leading expert in the field from the University of St Andrews.
Dr Charles Paxton, research fellow in the Centre for Research into Ecological and Environmental Modelling believes studying the anecdotes about creatures, such as the Loch Ness Monster or the Kraken, can reveal information about human perception.He believes cryptozoology, the study of creatures rumoured to exist, can explain why people believe in what they believe, and how such data can fit in with science.The statistical expert was speaking at an event on cryptozoology at the Zoological Society of London on July 12 called “Cryptology: Science of Pseudoscience?”His study of old sightings revealed that, as previously believed, they were not mistaken sightings of objects or creatures in the far distance, but much closer.
Dr Paxton said: “If you look at the distribution of reported distances of sea monster accounts, they're much closer than you would expect by chance alone.”He said the data implies that the theory that people were mistaking things in the far distance for a sea monster was “doubtful”.

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Shell on earth: How turtles survived the meteor impact that wiped out the dinosaurs

By Ted Thornhill

The dinosaurs may once have ruled the earth with their huge claws and teeth, but while they were mostly wiped out by a meteorite strike 65million years ago, the humble Boremys river turtle managed to survive it.The evidence comes in the form of fossilised remains of the creatures found by American palaeontologists in rock formations in North Dakota and Montana that date to a period just after the meteorite strike.Their secret of survival, according to scientists, wasn’t their hard shells – but the fact that they weren’t greedy. Their slow metabolisms meant they were able to survive on meagre rations on Earth’s post-meteor-strike wastelands. They were also protected by their aquatic homes.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2014093/How-turtles-survived-meteor-impact-wiped-dinosaurs.html#ixzz1S44zW51t