European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 29, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Science amp the world Little fossils helping solve huge mystery newly discovered fossils of Small reptiles from the time when dinosaurs were King Are helping scientists solve a puzzling mystery. The fossils were found in a wooded area near Richmond va., and Are of 225-million-year-old creatures called Ryno fonts. The find unprecedented in the Northern hemisphere includes the jaws of 11 of the animals the closest ancestors to mammals. The discovery shows the prevalence of such animals before a mysterious mass extinction All but wiped them out. During the triassic period the Richmond area was crisscrossed with Ponds and Waterways. It was moist subtropical and swarming with insects. Synod ones shrew sized Mamma like reptiles scampered through swamps trying to avoid ancestral crocodiles and strange beast armoured with pointed spines and spikes. Five of the 11 jaws found at the dig Are so tiny a they might have come from hatchling a that those who found them wonder if a thorough search might turn up More. A there May be dozens More around a says Hans Dieter sues a smithsonian institution palc biologist who is directing the excavation with Paul e. Olsen of Columbia University a Lamont Doherty geological Observatory. A single tooth found by Olsen while doing a Survey for an Oil and Gas company a few years ago Drew the scientists to the site. A the showed it to me and we both examined it closely a recalls sues. A we were dumb founded when we realized that it seemed identical to the Teeth of some triassic mammal like reptiles found in South  the subsequent discovery of so Many Synod ones in Virginia solved a Puzzle than has baffled palaeontologists for years. During the triassic period 240 million to 205 million years ago All of the planets land masses formed a single continent called Pangaea. Sizable collections of Synod ones have turned up in South America China and South Africa. But scientists  figure out Why Only a jaw and a few fragments of these reptiles had been found in the Northern hemisphere. A we thought it had something to do with geography a says Olsen. A now by finding so Many mammal like reptiles and other creatures common to assemblages in the Southern hemisphere we can assume that the same creatures roamed throughout Pangaea.�?�. The animals found in Virginia were probably the size of shrews and May have had fur. Sues thinks the Structure of their Bones and Teeth looks More mammalian than that of their simultaneously evolving reptilian cousins. Among the weird cousins found at the site is a strange reptile 4 or 5 feet Long that was armoured with big Bony Back plates and Large rigid spines. Also new to science Are four Lizard like animals that have never been seen before. If proven to be True lizards they would be the oldest found anywhere in the world. The creatures represent a planet in transition that would change dramatically in the next few million years. The mammal like reptiles and the emerging True mammals would become bit players relegated to the wings As the dinosaurs took Center stage. During a period of mass extinction about 200 million years ago As Many As 75 percent of the Marine invertebrates and some land dwellers vanished. But two recently evolved groups the dinosaurs and mammals pulled through. A mass extinctions change the rules of evolution a says David Jablonski of the University of Chicago a leading extinction theorist. A when one strikes its not necessarily the most fit that survives often its the most  drastic changes in the environment can suddenly put healthy species at a disadvantage. Others that have barely been hanging on can squeak through and inherit the Earth. So it was with the mammals. Dinosaurs and mammals originated within 10 million years of each other 220 million years ago. But while the dinosaurs ruled the planet for 140 million years mammals stayed Small and insignificant. That is until another great extinction snuffed out the dinosaurs about 65 million years ago and mammals took Over. A within 10 million years a says Jablonski a there were mammals of All shapes and lifestyles whales and bats carnivores and grazers. A mammals just could t do anything interesting until the dins Oarus were out of the  National geographic. At a glance Austria size 32,374 Square Miles slightly smaller than Maine population 7,555,000 1989 est main language German currency Schilling 1 l.8�$l travel restrictions passport International Drivers License and International Green automobile insurance card overview Austria is primarily mountainous with the Alps and Foothills covering the Western and Southern provinces. The Eastern provinces including the capital Vienna Are in the Basin of the Danube River which cuts through the North. Vienna is considered one of the worlds cultural centers and combines with Austria a ski slopes and scenery to bring in millions of tourist dollars. Its a fact much of Austria a famous classical music grew out of Folk music and military songs. Mozart Haydn Schubert and Strauss were All austrians and the great German composer Beethoven composed much of his music in  questions9 q a Are people getting taller a yes and no. A it depends on what people you re talking about a said Tim Sullivan at the Center for human growth and development in Ann Arbor mich., which studies the health factors involved in height. In a Given population physical anthropologists and Public health experts believe the trend could go either Way. Q a physical anthropologists Point to a trend toward increasing height Over time which they Call the a secular  the trend is borne out by measurements made since the time of Napoleon who was the first to try to give his armies Standard uniforms. But the question is immensely complicated by factors ranging from varying diet to the mixing of populations. The secular trend has been noticed with immigrants to North America but the reasons Are not certain Sullivan said and there Are probably Many factors involved including nutrition and possibly psychology. A do insects have Muscles a yes and they Are extremely Strong. An insect can lift 20 or More times its body weight while most people can lift their own weight or a Little More. A insects have their a Bones on the outside but the attachment Points for Muscles Are on the inside a says Louis Sorkin an entomologist at the american museum of natural history in new York. A the Muscles Are linked to Little inward extensions of cuticle the layers of  the strength comes from the Cross hatching of muscle fibres he said. The musculature can be very Complex Sorkin said. The wings for example May be worked by five groups of Muscles that pull on different parts of the body like Points on a Pentagon. This enables an insect to move its wings not just up and Down but also in twisting patterns to Angle them properly against the air. The new York times Page 10 sunday april 29,1990