Missed Connections, Paleoanthropoligical Edition:
The Hoopla Over Lucy

Lucy, the hottest old lady in the whole entire world, is getting written up everywhere: Forbes, Time, The Washington Post and of course The Chron.

The 3.2 million year old hominid from Ethiopia is about to go on display at the Houston Museum of Natural Science on Friday with much fanfare and attention. The fossil is so very old and rare that paleoanthropologists are concerned about the damage that international travel, display and a potential six-year museum tour will incur.

The HMNS has taken every precaution to ensure the fossil's safety; it traveled in two specially designed suitcases and her caretaker from the National Museum of Ethiopia has confirmed that no damage occurred during the transport.

Several museums, including the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., and the American Museum of Natural History in New York have refused to exhibit the fossil for ethical reasons. Transporting the irreplaceable artifact for a museum exhibit also disregards a 1998 UNESCO resolution that says such fossils should not be moved outside of the country of origin except for compelling scientific reasons. Scientists from 20 countries signed the resolution.

However, Houstonist wonders whether the public might actually learn something about early human history from Lucy's exhibition. The question is whether the museums can preserve the fossil 100% during its tour and if not, what will be lost in terms of scholarly (and eventually mainstream) understanding of hominid life 3.2 million years ago.

Photo Credit: Frank White: Houston Museum of Natural Science