Peter Dodson (born August 20, 1946) is an American

paleontologist Paleontology (), also spelled palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of life that existed prior to, and sometimes including, the start of the Holocene epoch (roughly 11,700 years before present). It includes the study of fossi ...

who has published many papers and written and collaborated on books about

dinosaur Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the evolution of dinosaurs is t ...

s. An authority on

Ceratopsia Ceratopsia or Ceratopia ( or ; Greek: "horned faces") is a group of herbivorous, beaked dinosaurs that thrived in what are now North America, Europe, and Asia, during the Cretaceous Period, although ancestral forms lived earlier, in the Jurass ...

ns, he has also authored several papers and textbooks on

hadrosaur Hadrosaurids (), or duck-billed dinosaurs, are members of the ornithischian family Hadrosauridae. This group is known as the duck-billed dinosaurs for the flat duck-bill appearance of the bones in their snouts. The ornithopod family, which includ ...

s and

sauropod Sauropoda (), whose members are known as sauropods (; from '' sauro-'' + '' -pod'', ' lizard-footed'), is a clade of saurischian ('lizard-hipped') dinosaurs. Sauropods had very long necks, long tails, small heads (relative to the rest of their ...

s, and is a co-editor of '' The Dinosauria'', widely considered the definitive scholarly reference on dinosaurs. Dodson described ''

Avaceratops ''Avaceratops'' is a genus of small herbivorous ceratopsian dinosaurs which lived during the late Campanian during the Late Cretaceous Period in what are now the Northwest United States. Most fossils come from the Judith River Formation. Discov ...

'' in 1986; '' Suuwassea'' in 2004, and many others, while his students have named '' Paralititan'' and ''

Auroraceratops ''Auroraceratops'', meaning "dawn horned face", is a genus of bipedal basal neoceratopsian dinosaur, from the Early Cretaceous ( Aptian age) of north central China. The etymology of the generic name refers to its status as an early ceratopsian ...

''. He has conducted field research in Canada, the United States, India, Madagascar, Egypt, Argentina, and China. A professor of vertebrate paleontology and of veterinary anatomy at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest- ...

, Dodson has also taught courses in geology, history, history and sociology of science, and religious studies. Dodson is also a research associate at the

Academy of Natural Sciences The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University, formerly the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, is the oldest natural science research institution and museum in the Americas. It was founded in 1812, by many of the leading natura ...

. In 2001, two former students named an ancient frog species, '' Nezpercius dodsoni'', after him (as well as after the Native American

Nez Perce people The Nez Percé (; autonym in Nez Perce language: , meaning "we, the people") are an Indigenous people of the Plateau who are presumed to have lived on the Columbia River Plateau in the Pacific Northwest region for at least 11,500 years.Ames ...

).Bradt, Steve (2001)
"Former Students Name Ancient Frog Fossil In Honor Of Peter Dodson"
University of Pennsylvania. Last accessed 2008-07-25. Dodson has also been skeptical to the theory of a dinosaurian

origin of birds The scientific question of within which larger group of animals birds evolved has traditionally been called the "origin of birds". The present scientific consensus is that birds are a group of maniraptoran theropod dinosaurs that originated ...

,Dodson P (2001), "Mesozoic feathers and fluff", ''

American Paleontologist The Paleontological Research Institution, or PRI, is a paleontological organization in Ithaca, New York, with a mission including both research and education. PRI is affiliated with Cornell University, houses one of the largest fossil collecti ...

'' 9(1): p. 7. but more recently has come down on the side of this theory.

Religious views

Describing himself as a "deeply committed Christian," Dodson is a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

who subscribes to

theistic evolution Theistic evolution (also known as theistic evolutionism or God-guided evolution) is a theological view that God creates through laws of nature. Its religious teachings are fully compatible with the findings of modern science, including biologica ...

and has argued that there is no real conflict between religion and science, writing that: "I have found little if anything to support or necessitate the warlike antagonism between science and religion pictured by Dawkins and like-minded scientists, who are animated by motives other than pure, disinterested science." Dodson has written numerous essays on the topic of religious belief and science, and has served on the Board of Directors for the nonprofit New York City-based Metanexus Institute.

Publications

Books

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dodson, Peter 1946 births American paleontologists Living people Theistic evolutionists