At Science Blogs, PZ Myers writes the following on the discovery:
People have been using remarkable hyperbole when discussing Darwinius. She's going to affect paleontology "like an asteroid falling down to earth"; she's the "Mona Lisa" of fossils; she answers all of Darwin's questions about transitional fossils; she's "something that the world has never seen before"; "a revolutionary scientific find that will change everything". Well, OK. I was impressed enough that I immediately made Ida my desktop wallpaper, so I'm not trying to diminish the importance of the find. But let's not forget that there are lots of transitional forms found all the time. She's unique as a representative of a new species, but she isn't at all unique as a representative of the complex history of life on earth.
Just to be clear, what's important about this particular find isn't the whole "missing link" business; it isn't how detailed and complete her preservation has been. What's important is, quite simply, her age. This pushes back the existence of monkeys and millions of years. Little Ida may have had a short life, but her near-perfect preservation has allowed her to live on, telling all sorts of stories, and raising all sorts of possibilities, as we ponder her early existence.
Any creationist who posts a comment will be laughed at, but not deleted.
