Hermsen Lab

Magnolia leaf (image by E.J. Hermsen) I have posted a new page to the Digital Encyclopedia of Ancient Life: Angiosperm Leaf Architecture. The link is here:  https://www.digitalatlasofancientlife.org/learn/embryophytes/angiosperms/angioleaves/

  I have released a new page on Branching to the Digital Encyclopedia of Ancient Life. You can view it here:  https://www.digitalatlasofancientlife.org/learn/embryophytes/tracheophytes/branching/ Image explanation:  Branching in fossil plants.  Left: Stem of a scale tree ( Lepidodendron ) showing a dichotomy. Center:  Asterophyllites  (an extinct horsetail-like plant) with lateral branching. Right. Branch of dawn redwood ( Metasequoia occidentalis ) with branchlets; branching is lateral and axillary in conifers.  (Images by Fiona O'Brien, Robert Swerling, and Linda S. Klise, Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History, via GBIF).

Leaves of different vascular plants (left to right: shining firmoss, a tree fern, and a cycad) I have posted a new page on Leaf Structure & Evolution to the Digital Encyclopedia of Ancient Life. You can view it here:  https://www.digitalatlasofancientlife.org/learn/embryophytes/tracheophytes/leaves/

Modern and fossil fruits of golden raintree ( Koelreuteria ). Credits: Modern fruits (E.J. Hermsen); fossil fruit (National Park Service) I have posted a new page on Digital Encyclopedia of Ancient Life (DEAL): Fruit & seed dispersal. You can find it here:  https://www.digitalatlasofancientlife.org/learn/embryophytes/angiosperms/dispersal/

Florissantia calyx & Langeria leaf, Eocene, U.S.A. (Photos by Kevmin, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA; images modified.) I have posted a new angiosperm page on Digital Encyclopedia of Ancient Life: Overview of Angiosperm Phylogeny. Learn about the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification system (APG IV), the eight major groups of angiosperms, and the differences between monocots and eudicots. The page includes many figures, including fossils from the major angiosperm groups! https://www.digitalatlasofancientlife.org/learn/embryophytes/angiosperms/angiosperm-phylogeny/

Image of a chambered nautilus by J.R. Hendricks from DEAL A presentation on the Digital Encyclopedia of Ancient Life (DEAL) was given at the Geological Society of America Annual Meeting in Indianapolis, Indiana, by Dr. Jonathan R. Hendricks. The DEAL continues to expand, with a new chapter on cephalopods recently released! Work on the land plant chapter has commenced, although none of the plant pages are available yet. Stay tuned for updates. Abstract:  Hendricks, J.R.,  E.J. Hermsen , and E. Hauf. 2018. The Digital Encyclopedia of Ancient Life (DEAL): An open access paleontology textbook. Geological Society of America Annual Meeting, Indianapolis, Indiana (talk). doi:10.1130/abs/2018AM-318607.  LINK Related links: DEAL main page DEAL Cephalopoda chapter by J.R. Hendricks Virtual teaching collection on Sketchfab  (models by E. Hauf)

Cedar Falls, Hocking Hills State Park, Ohio The 35th Midcontinent Paleobotanical Colloquium took place in Athens, Ohio, from June 1-3, 2018. Scientific presentations took place in Porter Hall on the Athens campus on June 2nd. Dr. Kathleen Pigg of Arizona State University opened the scientific session with a keynote presentation on "Forty years of fun with paleobotany." This presentation was followed by 14 contributed talks. The Hermsen lab was represented by three speakers: Zack Quirk, who gave a presentation entitled "Neogene Corylopsis seeds from eastern Tennessee;" Caroline Siegert, who gave a presentation entitled "Structure and affinities of a novel type of endocarp from the Gray Fossil Site, Tennessee;" and Liz Hermsen, who gave a presentation entitled "The Digital Encyclopedia of Ancient Life (DEAL): An open-access, online paleontology textbook."