Edward Drinker Cope (July 28, 1840 – April 12, 1897) was an American zoologist, paleontologist, comparative anatomist, herpetologist, and ichthyologist. Born to a Quaker family, he published his first scientific paper at age 19. He made regular trips to the American West, prospecting in the 1870s and 1880s. A feud between Cope and Othniel Charles Marsh led to an intense fossil-finding competition called the Bone Wars. Cope's financial fortunes soured after failed mining ventures in the 1880s, forcing him to sell much of his fossil collection. His contributions helped to define the field of American paleontology and wrote more than 1,400 published papers, although rivals debated the accuracy of his rapidly published works. He discovered, described, and named more than 1,000 vertebrate species, including hundreds of fishes and dozens of dinosaurs. His proposal for the origin of mammalian molars is notable among his theoretical contributions.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Drinker_Cope

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1915:

U.S. Marines landed at Port-au-Prince to begin a nineteen-year occupation of Haiti. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_occupation_of_Haiti

1940:

At the Salzburg Conference, German dictator Adolf Hitler demanded the replacement of much of Slovakia's cabinet. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salzburg_Conference

2005:

Britain's costliest tornado struck Birmingham, injuring 39 people and causing £40 million of damage across the city. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2005_Birmingham_tornado

2010:

In the deadliest air accident in Pakistan's history, Airblue Flight 202 crashed into the Margalla Hills north of Islamabad, killing all 152 aboard. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airblue_Flight_202

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

sort of: 1. (informal) Preceded by a (and sometimes also followed by a): of a person, thing, etc.: similar but not identical to another person, thing, etc. 2. (informal) Sometimes expressing hesitation, reluctance, etc.: to some extent but not entirely; approximately, in a way, not quite, somewhat. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/sort_of

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

I'd like to take you now, on wings of song as it were, and try and help you forget for a while your drab, wretched lives.   --Tom Lehrer https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Tom_Lehrer