Philosophy

The name Tyrannosaurus Rex is from the Greek and Latin, meaning tyrant lizard king. A Tyrannosaurus Rex was an enormous animal. Sue, the largest T-Rex found to date measures 4 meters (13 ft.) high at her hips, 12.8 meters (42 ft.) long from head to tail and weighed 6.4 metric tons. She has 30.5 cm (12 in.) teeth set in a skull that is 1.5 meters (5 ft.) long. She was truly a giant predatory animal. She was found near Faith, South Dakota and named after the woman who found her, Ms. Sue Hendrickson.

As many have taken sides in the Tyrannosaurus Rex predator/scavenger debate, I thought that I would throw my opinion into the argument also. Was T-Rex a predator or a scavenger? Before I do so, I want to point out that I am not a paleontologist. I am only an amateur scientist.

Yes, I have studied the origin and proliferation of the dinosaurs but such studies were not in-depth. That is, I studied their origin and proliferation only as far as such helped me understand the theory I presented in the first five chapters of Book I in the on-line manuscript Alpha Omega. Thus, one should not take what I say on this particular page as dogmatic. One should take what I say here for what it is: My opinion. This opinion could be right or it could be wrong.

(However, I am sure further investigation will prove that my theory that man is the most intelligent species in the universe is correct.)

I have listened to the debates and then analyzed the evidence. For example I compared the arms of the raptors with T-Rex. I compared the jaw and teeth of T-Rex and that of other predators. I read of the many scars found on the fossils of T-Rex Sue. Then I looked at the large olfactory region of the Tyrannosaurs and their large eye sockets.

After examining this and other evidence, I have come to the conclusion that Tyrannosaurus Rex was primarily – but not exclusively – a scavenger, something like the hyena of Africa. My guess is that the huge size of the T-Rex allowed it to steal the victims of other smaller carnivores.

For example, it could have waited in the shadows for a small pack of Deinonychus to bring down their prey. Then it would have chased them off and ate the victim. But I am also sure that the T-Rex was not adverse to chasing down its own prey if the situation presented itself to do so – just as the African hyena is known to do on occasion.

When I look back at the panorama of the history of life I can see God’s hand in the creation of man. But as I have said elsewhere, I am not trying to bring revelation, fanaticism or fundamentalism into the realm of science. Nor am I attempting to give credence to the scientific and theological heresy of intelligent design creation or scientific creation.

What I am saying is that God knew exactly what He was doing when He began His creation process billions of years ago. It is my belief that God allowed the laws of natural science to accomplish His goal: The evolution of an upright walking, large brained, opposable thumb animal capable of art, music, complicated speech and logical, abstract thought.

The question arises: Did God have a hand in the evolution of man? Is evolution just a haphazard event or did God control it? One cannot deny that mankind is able to use the laws of genetics in order to breed certain traits in his dogs, cats, horses, cattle and other animals and plants. There is nothing stopping God from using those same laws in order to watch over an animal with certain traits.

George Simpson in his book The Meaning of Evolution can see animals evolving toward and along certain patterns. If he can see this, then there should be nothing wrong with taking his observations to the next level.

I am not saying that God forced evolution to follow His pre-chosen paths (that would be unscientific). I’m saying that God allowed Mother Nature to evolve whatever animal she chose to. But when Mother Nature evolved an animal with a trait that put that animal on the road to the hominids God watched over that species. The same way a loving father would look after his child when that child is learning how to ride a bicycle.

The child does all the work. The father is there just to make sure the child does not fall and hurt him or her self. Mother Nature did the evolving. God was just there to watch over the survival of the species.

A chess game provides a good analogy. A chess master knows that he wants to develop his pawn to a certain square. He does not know exactly when he will be able to move his pawn to the square – he must parry his opponent’s moves – he just knows that in order to win the game he must place his pawn on the desired square.

A similar precept prevailed in evolution. God knew that He wanted the evolution of an upright walking, large brained, opposable thumb animal capable of art, music, complicated speech and logical, abstract thought. Once He created the universe and then life, His faith was that it was only a matter of time before such an animal evolved.

Every time an animal evolved that put it on the road that would eventually lead to such an animal, God watched over that species. When the animal finally did evolve, our Lord blessed it and gave it a soul, a soul that is an image a likeness of Himself.

Maybe I’m wrong, but this is what I see. I see the hand of God in the history of the evolution of the universe, the earth, life and man, and in the history of mankind. I can see God’s hand slowly bringing man to where he is today.

Some may argue that if God has been in control of evolution for the past 4.5 billion years, why did He allow the dinosaurs to obtain a superior position over the mammals during the Mesozoic Era?

Fossil evidence manifests that both the mammals and the dinosaurs evolved in the Triassic. It also shows that mammals evolved from the mammal-like reptiles before the thecodonts gave rise to the dinosaurs. Thus, the mammals had the first opportunity to dominate the land but lost out to the dinosaurs.

If God is in control and He wanted the mammals (mankind) to dominate the land, why did He allow the dinosaurs to dominate the mammals for 140 million years?

First of all, God is not “in control” of evolution. It is my belief that God allowed Mother Nature to “do as she will,” so to speak, with the various life forms on Earth. That is, following the laws of natural science, the various life forms evolved to fill ecological niches as those niches opened up.

Beyond this, I cannot answer the question. Every time I ask myself this question I only get a chess problem for an answer.

A chess master is not going to worry about an enemy piece that is threatening his queen if his own attack is superior to the attack of his opponent. The amateur opponent will have to stop his attack and defend against the master’s attack. The master will proceed with his own attack – ignoring the weak, impotent attack of his opponent – and will capture the piece that is threatening his queen when he has the time.

Also, the master knows that his attack must follow a certain order; he must develop his pieces in a certain sequence. For example, the master knows that his attack must begin with his knight, followed by his pawn and then his rook can give the telling blow.

He knows that if his attack follows a different order, say beginning with his pawn, then his knight and finally his rook, he will lose the game as his queen will be left exposed and defenseless. He will not have the right pieces in the right places at the right time.

Something similar must have prevailed when the early mammals and dinosaurs were evolving. The mammals must have some trait that the dinosaurs lacked and this trait was developed while the dinosaurs were dominating the Mesozoic Era. Then when the asteroid struck and the dinosaurs fell from dominance, this allowed the mammals to evolve toward a hominid.

I sincerely hope that this insight of mine discussed above (if in fact that’s what it is and not just my opinion) does not lead to the bringing of mysticism, revelation, fanaticism, fundamentalism, scientific creationism or intelligent design creation into the realm of science and an abandonment of the scientific method.

The scientific method of investigation is the only thing that we have to discover truth. To abandon the scientific method would be ludicrous. God wants us to use it. God wants us to find truth because God is Truth.

Raptors and Other Dinosaurs