Pluto's downgrade was simply because we found potentially thousands of more Pluto's.
The argument I've seen skips the step that the new definition was created to include those other Pluto like objects.
They jump right to how the planet definition was updated to not have overlap or ambiguity with Pluto and therefore was about creating a way to exclude Pluto rather than creating a definition that doesn't lead to declaring there are now 50 planets.
It's because the definition includes things that aren't really about the object itself and more about where it is. And also how inconsistent it is, as Mercury isn't in hydrostatic equilibrium and yet is explicitly included as a planet by the IAU. Nevermind the fact that the new definition was speed voted and approved by less than 400 astronomers in a convention where 2500+ people attended, let alone not even being discussed with the larger scientific community.
But hey, if you'd rather dismiss my points because of an url, you do you. Not like this changes our everyday live anyway.
The problem is that the current definition makes no sense and is, frankly, bad.
400 people, for a huge scientific community like astronomy, is bad. Heck even if they were literally all the astronomers in the world, the fact that it was proposed and voted on basically the same day should be noteworthy at the very least.
And no one here is angry. I was just pointing out that name calling for no reason doesn't really add to the discussion, even a low stakes one like this.
Agreed. It always irked me that the ancestors of birds look more like lizards than birds, when the ancestors of crocodiles looked pretty much the same.
But velociraptors were actually about the size of medium-large dogs. When Jurrasic Park was making the models, the consultants stated the length from head to tail, and the modellers thought they were referring to height
Utahraptor is the size of the ones in the movie and was discovered the same year the movie came out. I like to think that's what they are, but Crichton and/or Spielberg just thought "velociraptor" was a cooler name.
Building the animatronics, filming, and editing still take time. According to Wikipedia, filming took place entirely in 1992 and post-production ended in May 1993.
I turned our geese into attack dogs when was 3 because they liked me but no one else. This resulted in at least one instance of my uncle (moms younger brother) being chased around by five pissed off geese. I have respected feathered creatures ever since.
I bet some of their patterns would be so beautiful and mesmerizing that you just stand there admiring it until you get chomped up.
I am also having a great time picturing dinosaurs having wacky feather patterns, dances, and habits for mating. I collected you ferns and frilled my feathers please respond.
Yeah, when science got around to it I felt very lied to - what delights we missed out on so many years of bad birb pop culture.
I mean ofc they were feathered to some extent, we just had to guess a lot of data over the decades.
Also, if cat-like predators can be cool (which they are), then so would be feathered dino movies.
Just install big cat software on a cassowary hardware modded for hunt.
A few years ago I created a small pen & paper roleplaying game for my kids to play as dinosaurs. They very much wanted their dinosaurs to be feathered. The kids are alright.
Plus they were much smaller than depicted in movies. They are estimated to have weighed about 15 kg and were about 2m long, but over half of that was tail. A Border Collie has about the same body length and a much thicker build.
Good question. Slender is a better term. Their skeletal structure is horizontally compact, more so than a Border Collie. Scientists can estimate musculature based on the size and shape of attachment points, but it's all speculative.
I have a pet parrot. If that little 10oz, 8” motherfucker was my size we would all be fucked.
Even at his size he can do damage, and when he’s mad he’s vicious.
I’ve seen chickens fight each other or go after a bug. Those fuckers are dinosaurs.
Industrial grade borb
CAN THEY LOAF?
I want to see it all fluffed up for winter.
I imagine it would have less feathers from the neck up, more like vultures have. But T-chonk is a dream
Holy fluffin chirpball !!
Relevant
Feathered dinos are cool as shit.
Why is the youtube link from the alt-text dead?
They look way more badass with feathers.
It’s time to grow up and accept the truth
For real though - people will insist that Pluto is a planet but not even know about Eris.
Ceres is super cool though I will always have a spot for Pluto.
Makemake is rad though, so fast it warped.
Pluto actually got a promotion to the King of the dwarf planets, rather than the least of the rocky planets.
I've also just now decided that all those spiny backed donosors? They were just dummy thicc and they needed extra spine bone to support all that cheek
Hey!! Don’t bash Team Pluto!!!
Except when you actually read about the change in Pluto's status and how unscientific it actually is.
The argument I've seen skips the step that the new definition was created to include those other Pluto like objects.
They jump right to how the planet definition was updated to not have overlap or ambiguity with Pluto and therefore was about creating a way to exclude Pluto rather than creating a definition that doesn't lead to declaring there are now 50 planets.
I'm not saying I agree with it, only trying to describe the logical leaps that get people there.
Oh gods who forgot to take pluto in to get them neutered
It's because the definition includes things that aren't really about the object itself and more about where it is. And also how inconsistent it is, as Mercury isn't in hydrostatic equilibrium and yet is explicitly included as a planet by the IAU. Nevermind the fact that the new definition was speed voted and approved by less than 400 astronomers in a convention where 2500+ people attended, let alone not even being discussed with the larger scientific community.
But hey, if you'd rather dismiss my points because of an url, you do you. Not like this changes our everyday live anyway.
The problem is that the current definition makes no sense and is, frankly, bad.
400 people, for a huge scientific community like astronomy, is bad. Heck even if they were literally all the astronomers in the world, the fact that it was proposed and voted on basically the same day should be noteworthy at the very least.
And no one here is angry. I was just pointing out that name calling for no reason doesn't really add to the discussion, even a low stakes one like this.
Who stands to gain from Pluto not being a planet?
Jews.
Obviously.
/s?
Really? I need to clarify that I dont actually believe the Jews have a controlling interest in Neptune? Do some research man!
Have... Have you not seen the internet the past few years? You can't assume sarcasm by this point
It's about keeping the solar system small and simple. There would be tens of planets, in the old definition.
Agreed. It always irked me that the ancestors of birds look more like lizards than birds, when the ancestors of crocodiles looked pretty much the same.
Me neither, before I saw the first feathered life-size replicas in dino parks.
And I have to say, they were somehow way more scary than their naked counterparts in my opinion.
So now I am Team Feather!
Everyone that disagrees should have a little face to face time with an enraged Cassowary and then visualise a Cassowary the size of a large truck.
But velociraptors were actually about the size of medium-large dogs. When Jurrasic Park was making the models, the consultants stated the length from head to tail, and the modellers thought they were referring to height
Utahraptor is the size of the ones in the movie and was discovered the same year the movie came out. I like to think that's what they are, but Crichton and/or Spielberg just thought "velociraptor" was a cooler name.
The book came out in 1990.
Building the animatronics, filming, and editing still take time. According to Wikipedia, filming took place entirely in 1992 and post-production ended in May 1993.
Ok, imagine a pack of very fast small cassowaries with very sharp teeth.
They'd still be large for cassowaries, just not the size of a truck.
But yes, that'd be terrifying.
Also relevant: https://youtu.be/U49R3Gqx8lw
Edit: oh, holy shit I didn't know cassowaries were that big
An angry Canada goose protecting its nest is enough
Yeah, geese are terrifying and already come with "teeth".
Never happened with geese to me, but our local swans in attack mode got me running backwards more than once.
Hissing spread-winged furies out to kill you, or at least knock and bite the living soul out of you...
I turned our geese into attack dogs when was 3 because they liked me but no one else. This resulted in at least one instance of my uncle (moms younger brother) being chased around by five pissed off geese. I have respected feathered creatures ever since.
I bet some of their patterns would be so beautiful and mesmerizing that you just stand there admiring it until you get chomped up.
I am also having a great time picturing dinosaurs having wacky feather patterns, dances, and habits for mating. I collected you ferns and frilled my feathers please respond.
You'd like Prehistoric Planet (1 & 2), if you haven't seen it. It's really, really good.
Sounds like you're boring to me, feathered dinos are cool AF
Yeah, when science got around to it I felt very lied to - what delights we missed out on so many years of bad birb pop culture.
I mean ofc they were feathered to some extent, we just had to guess a lot of data over the decades.
Also, if cat-like predators can be cool (which they are), then so would be feathered dino movies.
Just install big cat software on a cassowary hardware modded for hunt.
https://xkcd.com/1104/
Right?
https://youtu.be/WbCQxBTcyRk
Indeed
A few years ago I created a small pen & paper roleplaying game for my kids to play as dinosaurs. They very much wanted their dinosaurs to be feathered. The kids are alright.
My daughter's young T-Rex:
That T-rex looks cool.
Did you make the minis yourself?
I just printed out paper tokens and laminated them.
Behold, a man
Whoa heh a naked chick. Cool.
Thats no chick. Thats a cock!
Johnson! That looks just like a
Pecker! Wait, that's not a wood pecker it looks like someone's
Wang! Pay attention to the lesson. Why are you looking at that
Nahh, the feather makes them pop instead of being just giant lizards.
It also makes having pet velociraptors more fun
Feathered dinos are cooler
Dinos were basically Kevin's from Up.
Not me, I am very, VERY happy.
User name checks out
What if the feathers were badass mohawks or liberty spikes you ever think of that
Me too but I think it's more because I was 5 than anything to actually do with dinosaurs having feathers or not.
Mongo is appalled!
I came here to make sure there was a DCC reference
God dammit Donut!
I knew cassowaries were dinosaurs.
They also had cheeks!
Plus they were much smaller than depicted in movies. They are estimated to have weighed about 15 kg and were about 2m long, but over half of that was tail. A Border Collie has about the same body length and a much thicker build.
They were long, skinny murder turkeys.
How do we know if they're skinny when we only got bones
Good question. Slender is a better term. Their skeletal structure is horizontally compact, more so than a Border Collie. Scientists can estimate musculature based on the size and shape of attachment points, but it's all speculative.
The bones we got were out back a prehistoric BBQ hut with a picture menu for dinos who couldn't read
all they had to do is specify the were Utharaptors and that's it
I have a pet parrot. If that little 10oz, 8” motherfucker was my size we would all be fucked. Even at his size he can do damage, and when he’s mad he’s vicious. I’ve seen chickens fight each other or go after a bug. Those fuckers are dinosaurs.
Chonk Chicken
Now I'm even more disappointed that I wasn't around to see them!
Personally for me having the comfort of modern life beats getting to live with dinosaurs, but no judgement.
You wouldn't miss what you never knew. The comfort of modern life creates more problems for every one that it solves.
Fair enough
I've never really liked the lizardy type of dinosaur, so I am actually happy that they are feathered