Member-only story
Scientists Are Pissed Because a Man is Selling His T-Rex on eBay
They should be pissed about the lack of funding for scientific research instead.
Back in 2013, a man named Alan Detrich discovered the fossil of a baby Tyrannosaurus rex.
The fossil, which is incredibly rare because of the age of the creature when it died, has been on display at the University of Kansas Natural History Museum since 2017 — but now the man wants to sell it. On eBay. For $2.95 million.
This reminds me of the Simpsons episode when Lisa discovers a fossil of an “angel” and Homer turns it into an opportunity for economic prosperity.
But in this case, paleontologists are particularly pissed off because they didn’t get the chance to study the fossil, and now it’s being sold.
The Society of Vertebrate Paleontology released a statement expressing their disappointment in the man’s decision to sell the fossil, stating that he is capitalizing on the publicity generated by the museum’s exhibition, which likely enhanced the value of the fossil. Furthermore, the SVP claims that Detrich is withholding a scientific…