Based at the North Carolina State University, Schweitzer is currently researching Molecular Paleontology, molecular diagenesis and taphonomy, evolution of physiological and reproductive strategies in dinosaurs and their bird descendants, and astrobiology.
32.
On January 24, 2014, NASA reported that current studies by the remaining habitability, taphonomy ( related to fossils ), and organic carbon on the planet Mars is now a primary NASA objective.
33.
A study of the taphonomy of silicified fossils ( especially brachiopods ) in Devon concluded beekite resulted from the aerobic decomposition of organic matter in an environment with a limited supply of silica during early diagenesis.
34.
For an authoritative perspective on the behavior of modern hyenid species and their significance in palaeozoology see Kuhn, B . F . 2011 . " Hyaenids : Taphonomy and Implications for the Palaeoenvironment ".
35.
Seilacher published papers on fossil " Lagerst�tten ", including one of 1985 that proposed a widely accepted scheme for their classification; indeed, much of his work has been concerned with preservation and taphonomy in general.
36.
Affectionately termed as the expedition mascot " Packy Le Pew ", the pack rat has become an experiment in taphonomy, in that its body has been allowed to lie undisturbed so as to study natural patterns and rates of decay.
37.
About one year into the surface mission, and having assessed that ancient Mars could have been hospitable to microbial life, the MSL mission objectives evolved to developing predictive models for the preservation process of organic compounds and biomolecules; a branch of paleontology called taphonomy.
38.
The neck was strong, and the articulations of the hind leg suggest an upright posture and an ability to run, while the muscle attachments on the upper arm suggest digging; additionally, the taphonomy of articulated specimens suggests that they had been preserved in burrows.
39.
Some experts suggest that " P . problematica " and the related " Paraplesiobatis " are the same species, suggesting that the differences between them are merely due to different circumstances of taphonomy, but this hypothesis can not be tested until more specimens are found.
40.
After von Meyer's original 1862 description, no additional analyses of the feather were performed until 1996, when a detailed assessment of its morphology, function, taxonomy and taphonomy was produced by Griffiths, and the feather was later studied under ultraviolet light in 2004 by Tischlinger and Unwin.
