Media Contact:
Tracey Peake, News Services, 919/515-6142

Dec. 13, 2005

NC State Researcher’s Dino Discovery Ranked No. 6 of 2005 by
Discover Magazine

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Dr. Mary Schweitzer

A North Carolina State University paleontologist’s groundbreaking
work on dinosaur bones has been ranked the sixth most important science story of 2005 by Discover magazine.

Dr. Mary Schweitzer, assistant professor of paleontology with a joint appointment at the N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences, caused quite a stir earlier this year with her dual discoveries involving a 68-million-year-old Tyrannosaurus Rex: a layer of specialized bone inside the dinosaur’s femur that identified the fossil as a female, and the discovery of soft tissue – including structures resembling blood vessels and blood cells – in the bone itself.

Each year, the January issue of Discover magazine features a series of short items describing and ranking the previous year's top 100 science stories. This is the first time that the work of an NC State faculty member has been ranked by the magazine.

“Given the amazing science that has come out this year in all the varied disciplines, and especially in paleontology, I am incredibly honored to have made the list,” Schweitzer said.
“Discover always sets very high standards for this honor, and I am excited that the work Jennifer
Wittmeyer (Schweitzer’s technician) and I did is even considered for this.”

“It’s exciting for one of our faculty members to be singled out for this distinction,” said Dean Daniel L. Solomon of the College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences. “It further affirms the significance of Dr. Schweitzer’s findings, and exemplifies the college’s emphasis on high-impact research at the interface of the biological and physical sciences.”

The January issue of Discover magazine reaches newsstands today. Schweitzer’s research will also be featured on the PBS television show “Nova Science Now,” which will air Jan. 10.

- peake -