PASADENA ROTARIANS ENJOY HEARING ABOUT FOSSELS

Pasadena Rotary’s Program Chairman John Mrozek (L),  and Past President Lee Clark (C) greet guest speaker Dr. Neal Immega. Dr. Immega followed his childhood fascination with minerals and fossils all through grade and high school, where he attended a Natural Science Foundation School program on geology.  Continuing his love of things of the earth he pursued a program of oil exploration graduating from A&M and after graduate school went to work for Shell Oil Company.  After his retirement he returned to the discovery and study of fossils and rocks.  He compliments that interest by volunteering at the Houston Museum of Natural Science and the Houston Gem and Mineral Society.

His slide presentation pictured many reconstructed dinosaur skeletons, many found right here in Texas.  One interesting example was a fossil of the Devonian Fish believed to be the bridge between fish and salamanders.  Another slide was the Triassic era Archosaurs, the ancestor of the crocodile.  Other slides were of prehistoric rhinos, elephants, turtles, gars, and an artist conception of early man.

He completed his presentation with the question, “Did you  see the movie Jurassic Park?’, well they got it all wrong”  It seems that after hiring many well qualified advisors, the producers decided to “go Hollywood".  But it was an interesting movie.

 

Article and Photo by Bill Welch