The Guild of Natural Science Illustrators Exhibition

The Prehistoric Museum, USU Eastern Presents,

The Guild of Natural Science Illustrators Exhibition

January 10, 2013 through February 15, 2013

The exhibit consists of 20-framed reproductions. There is a portfolio of about 42 unframed reproductions. This is a very interesting scientific illustration exhibition.

All pieces in the travelling show are selected from the annual scientific illustration art show held in conjunction with the international meeting of the Guild of Natural Science Illustrators.  You will literally be seeing quality reproductions of the best professional illustrations from each of these shows.  This is a must see exhibition of you want to see the “best of the best”.

(general admission rates apply)

For more information about the show contact

Lloyd Logan, (435) 613-5760 or lloyd.logan@usu.edu

The Prehistoric Museum, USU Eastern

155 East Main Street

Price, Utah 84501

Newly Remodeled Prehistoric Museum Gift Shop

The Prehistoric Museum gift shop has taken on a new look much different of that from its humble beginnings.

The once quaint gift shop of yesterday has been upgraded to a clean attractive display of a nice variety of products that are sure to please museum goers and gift givers alike.

A nice selection of books, movies, maps and charts can be found in the small alcove adjacent to the lobby.

Purchases made at the museum gift shop are a great way to support the museum. Please help support the museum with your patronage.

Museum Gift Shops are Great Fun!

Oft times folks forget to visit museum gift shops when they are in the market to purchase items for themselves or for gift giving. The Prehistoric Museum gift shop has a wonderful assortment of books, educational items, board games, rocks necklaces, stuffed animals t-shirts, hats and toys. Purchases made at museums are a great way to support the museum.

Our gift shop carries, DINO-Opoly is a game based on those fascinating creatures of times gone by, the Dinosaurs. It has all the fun of a traditional property trading game with some prehistoric twists. The game board features everyone's favorite dinosaurs from giant-sized herbivores to teeny tiny carnivores. Players trade their fossils in for a dino bone to be the big winner in dino-opoly. Each dino deed features fun facts about that particular dinosaur.

We also carry Dino Bump that is for Kids, teens, grownups. Six very big, 5" dinosaurs are in a fast-paced battle to the Dino Cave, so get ready to move and prepare to be bumped. Playing this game on the extra large game board with great graphics makes it even more fun.

Last but not least, we want to tell you about T-rexcavator, a spin-off from the "Operation" game you probably knew as a kid. The skeleton of an extinct T-Rex has been discovered. Now it's up to you to carefully remove each bone from the dig site as you learn fascinating facts about dinosaurs. But watch out. Don't touch the sides of the pit or the T-Rex will roar and you'll lose a turn. Collect the most bones and win. Includes trivia cards and bone excavating cards. Ages 5 and up.The Skeleton of an extinct T.rex has been discovered. With dinosaur trivia on each bone excavation card. Ages 5+ 15 x 10 x 1.5 inches

You can find items at museum gift shops that are unique, educational, interesting and fun, so please remember to patronize the museum gift shop for all your gift giving needs. We appreciate your business.

Allosaurus Reconstruction

Stop by the museum and see the reconstruction work taking place in the Observation Labs on the Allosaurus. (general admission rates apply) You can speak with a preparator one on one and watch as the tedious task of taking apart and reconstructing a dinosaur takes place.

Casey Dooms, Lab Assistant, chipping away at the base of the Allosaurus to free it so it can be taken apart and reconstructed.

John Bird, Paleontology Technician, sizing up his opponent. Taking apart the Allosaurus piece by piece allows for easier removal. All pieces must be removed in order for the reconstruction to take place.

John Bird and Dr. Tim Riley, Curator of Archaeology for the museum team up on the take down of Al.

Dr. Riley with his prize. It appears that archaeologists dabble in paleontology from time to time.

Casey and John work together to remove the Allosaurus legs. This will enable them to remove it from the platform it is mounted on where it can be worked on in the Observation Labs.

Dr. Ken Carpenter, museum director and paleontologist, far left, oversees the project as John Bird, front, Casey Dooms, and Ralph Escamilla, museum volunteer, far right, work on removing pieces of the Allosaurus.

All of the preparations that took place in the above photos allowed for the Allosaurus mount to be slid down from the platform awaiting reconstruction.

Stop by the museum and watch as the progress takes place. This is an interesting procedure. The newly mounted Allosaurus, in an action pose, will make a great addition to the dinosaurs in the old dinosaur pit!

USU Eastern paleontologist Ken Carpenter is featured speaker for "Science Unwrapped" At USU

Friday, Oct. 5th, at 7 p.m. in the Emert Auditorium, Room 230, of the Eccles Science Learning Center on USU’s Logan campus.

Dr. Carpenter’s presentation is followed by hands-on learning activities.

The event, hosted by USU’s College of Science, is free and open to inquiring minds of all ages.

For Immediate Release

September 27, 2012

‘SCIENCE UN-RAPTOR’: DINOSAURS TOPIC FOR OCT. 5 SCIENCE UNWRAPPED AT USU
USU Eastern paleontologist Ken Carpenter is featured speaker

LOGAN – What explains our fascination with dinosaurs? Is it their size? Or is it our endless curiosity with how these “terrible lizards” – a rough translation of the word “dinosaurs” coined by Sir Richard Owen in 1842 – ultimately met their demise?
At Utah State University’s Science Unwrapped Friday, Oct. 5, featured speaker Ken Carpenter takes us on an exciting journey to unravel some of the mysteries of these ancient creatures. Known as Utah State’s “Indiana Jones of Bones,” Carpenter is curator of paleontology and director of USU Eastern Prehistoric Museum in Price, Utah. He presents “The Latest and Greatest: The Science Behind Dinosaurs” at 7 p.m. in the Emert Auditorium, Room 130, of the Eccles Science Learning Center.
Hosted by USU’s College of Science, the event is free and open to all ages.
Hands-on learning activities and refreshments – T-Rex Tracks and Dinosaur Drool – follow Carpenter’s talk. Guests are invited to bring their “mystery” rocks and fossils for identification by USU geologists, along with their favorite dinosaur cartoons and drawings to post on the event’s “Dino-Wall.”
“We’ve looked forward to presenting an event about dinosaurs for a couple of years and we can’t wait to ‘tear into’ this topic,” says Shane Larson, Science Unwrapped committee chair and assistant professor in USU’s Department of Physics. “It will be an evening of exciting, prehistoric fun for everyone.”
The Oct. 5 event is the second presentation in Science Unwrapped’s fall 2012 “Nature’s Ancient Stories” series.
For more information, call 435-797-3517, visitwww.usu.edu/science/unwrapped or view the ‘Science Unwrapped at USU’ page on Facebook.
####

The Camptosaurus Is Taking On New Life

The Camptosaurus at The Prehistoric Museum, USU Eastern is taking a new stand. This pose is filled with action and adventure. The new mount portrays a life-like stance that is interesting an makes the visitor pause for thought.

All of the dinosaurs in the "dinosaur pit" are taking on a new persona. The Stegosaurus and the Camptosaurus mounts have already been stripped to expose what is real bone, and what is prefabricated material. Work on the Allosaurus will begin as soon as the Camptosaurus is finished, out of the Observation Labs and back on display. The Camarasaurus and Stegosaurus will then take their turn in the Observation Lab being repositioned into an upright, full body mounts that promise to be as exciting as the previous reconstructions.

Breathing new life into the museum has been a main goal of Dr. Kenneth Carpenter, the museum's director and paleontologist. Positioning the skeletal mounts in updated, exciting action poses has given a new dimension of visual stimulation to the museum experience. This is evident in the newly mounted Utahraptor that greets visitors in the museum lobby. Posed in the "killing stance" the Utahraptor shows just what a wicked little dino he really was!

Taking dinosaurs apart and putting them back together is not an easy task, it is tedious and incredibly time-consuming, but when you look at the final result, it is ever so worth the time and effort.

Whether you visited last year, or last week, there is bound to be something new and exciting for you to see. Stop by and check out all of the wonderful things in the works. We will be glad to see you, and we feel certain you will be delighted with the changes.

 John Bird (left) and Casey Dooms (right) working on putting the final parts of the Camptosaurus together.

 Rear view of the Camptosaurus in the Observation Lab.

 Rear foot of the Camptosaurus.

 Camptosaurus neck.

 Ossified tendons were added to this mount.

 Technicalities in putting together the Camptosaurus.

 Much like a jigsaw puzzle, the dinosaur is numbered and arranged accordingly.

 Camptosaurus without the head, front view.

Interesting view of the Camptosaurus rib cage from beneath.

 John Bird painting the Camptosaurus.

John Bird putting the finishing touches on the painting of the Camptosaurus.

Museum membership is one component that assists in creating new exhibits. For information on museum membership, contact Christine Trease (435) 613-5757 or christine.trease@usu.edu for details.

There's No Time Like The Past!

Visit The Prehistoric Museum at USU Eastern and experience life 200 million years in the making! You will see how true the statement is that there IS No Time Like The Past.
Open 9 am to 5 pm Monday through Saturday, closed Sunday
155 East Main Street - Price, Utah 84501
800-817-9949
museum.ceu.edu

Museum Patronage, The Key Component!

As many years as I have worked at The Prehistoric Museum, it still thrills me to look at the guest book and see the range of global visitors we have.

Last week we had visitors from Germany (among so many other places). The group from Germany left varying comments from, "first time visit and already hooked" to "our 8th visit and look forward to it more each time".

I love to see the vast array of visitors in a fairly close proximity to us. Places like California, Montana, Iowa, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas and our very own town, but when I see France, Alaska, Australia, Japan, Switzerland, New Zealand, and England written in the book, it puts into perspective for me how wonderful it is to have global visitors coming to see us as well. These folks didn't just happen across us on a whim or an outing. They planned us as a part of their vacation and I love it!

I wanted to say a public thanks to all of our visitors, whether they are from our home town, or across the world. You are a huge part of what makes us great and without your patronage we could not thrive.

We hope you continue to come to see us and we hope that you know we strive to keep the museum up to date and fresh, making each of your visits a new experience.

You are one of the best things about The Prehistoric Museum

The Prehistoric Museum Welcomes New Archaeologist

Newly hired Archaeologist Dr. Timothy Riley has arrived at The Prehistoric Museum, USU Eastern, and is ready to literally dig in.

The long awaited arrival of an archaeologist for the museum has come to an end. It is with great enthusiasm that the museum welcomes Dr. Riley as the newest member of The Prehistoric Museum team.

Dr. Riley comes to us from Texas A&M University where he was an adjunct professor in the Department of Anthropology.  Upon his arrival, he has hit the ground running with an array of projects that have been waiting for just the right person to tackle them.

This fits in perfectly with the pace that Dr. Carpenter, Museum Director and Paleontologist, has kept the museum running at since he came to the museum nearly two years ago. Keeping the museum fresh and new has been a primary goal of Dr. Carpenter and he has been incredibly successful in his endeavors.

When asked how he feels about the archaeology position being filled, Dr. Carpenter said, “Dr. Riley brings a well-established reputation in archaeology and we are lucky to have him. I look forward to seeing some cutting-edge archaeology done at the Prehistoric Museum.” It seems to be a unanimous conclusion that this recent event will be a grand adventure for all.

The museum looks forward to seeing the exciting new things waiting just over the horizon for archaeology and the museum.

The Prehistoric Museum, USU Eastern Knows What's Shakin'

The Prehistoric Museum has unveiled a new display that shows the location of earthquakes around the world.  The exhibit shows in near real time, where earthquakes have occurred. The Museum gets updated information hourly from IRIS, the Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology, and displays it on a global map. The map shows the location and strength, or magnitude of earthquakes for the past 2 weeks.

Recently there has been much emphasis on earthquakes in our region. This year, Utah Gov. Gary R. Herbert declared April 3rd - 9th to be Earthquake Preparedness Week. Much was learned from the earthquake drills and reenactments and much can be learned from this incredibly informative exhibit.

This exhibit is located in the upper level of the Hall of Paleontology. Stop by the museum and check out this impressive new addition to The Prehistoric Museum. 155 East Main Street - Price, Utah – Open 9 am - 5 pm Monday through Saturday, closed Sunday Adults $5.00, children 2-12 $2.00 children under 2 free or $15.00 for a family.

The Prehistoric Museum, USU Eastern is proud to participate in Blue Star Museums

Blue Star Museums is a great resource for military families that offers free admission to more than 1,600 museums across America in the form of free admission to all active duty military personnel, including active Reserve and National Guard, and their families from Memorial Day through Labor Day 2012. The complete list of participating museums is available at www.arts.gov/bluestarmuseums. 

Click on image to enlarge poster

The Prehistoric Museum - Lots of "Originals"

Home of the Utahraptor, The Prehistoric Museum also has the only original Animantarx and Peloroplites discovered so far. Visit the museum and discover life 500 million years in the making! 155 East Main Street - Price, Utah 800-817-9949 museum.ceu.edu

The Wayward Figurine Finds Its Way Home

In March of 1950 Clarence Pilling discovered a set of clay figurines crafted by a Fremont artist or artists about 1000 years ago.  Known as the Pilling Figurines, one of these went missing decades ago, only to—apparently—re-emerge last year.  Dr. Bonnie Pitblado and a team of world-renowned scientists used techniques ranging from fingerprint analysis to geochemical characterizations to test whether the lost warrior had truly been found. It is such a relief to have this figurine back where it belongs!

 Dr. Pitblado, of Utah State University, serves as an associate professor of anthropology, director of the Anthropology Program and director of the USU Museum of Anthropology.  She teaches courses in archaeology and museum studies and serves as the advisor for USU's "Museum Studies" certification program. Dr. Pitblado specializes in the earliest human occupations of the Rocky Mountains, and she has an active research program aimed at trying to better understand how people used the mountains and adjacent landscapes, 10,000-7,500 years ago.  She has expertise in lithic technology and a research focus on geochemical characterization of a variety of materials (including Fremont figurines).

Currently, Dr. Pitblado has grants from the National Science Foundation and the Bureau of Land Management to conduct field research in the Gunnison Basin of southwest Colorado, and she is entering her fifth year of a parallel field research program based in northern Utah and southeast Idaho. In 2003, Dr. Pitblado published a book with University Press of Colorado, Paleoindian Occupation of the Southern Rocky Mountains. In October 2007, the same press released a volume co-edited by Dr. Pitblado, Frontiers in Colorado Paleoindian Archaeology. She has also published many articles and writes regularly for popular audiences.