CRYPTIDS: They're real.

We should have defined cryptid in the last round. I hope my opponent doesn't mind doing it now. A cryptid (from the Greek krypto meaning "hide") is a creature or plant whose existence has been suggested but is unrecognized by scientific consensus and often regarded as highly unlikely.Cryptids are not small creatures. They are significant. Eberhart argues that they must be "big, weird, dangerous or significant to humans in some way."[1]Cryptids are also scientifically controversial. They involve types of creatures not thought to exist, or to be long extinct.I hope my opponent is happy with this definition of cryptids.NessieMy opponent has not provided any evidence that the Loch Ness monster exists.At the reputed size, it would have to be a dinosaur. Large dinosaurs died out 65-66 million years ago.[2][3][4]The claim that a dinosaur family have survived in one lake over millions of years is an extraordinary claim. What is special about the lake that dinosaurs would survive in it but nowhere else?Further, if Nessie was a dinosaur, she would have to come up for air, and there would then be several sightings a day. There are no convincing photographs or film of the Loch Ness monster.Since there is no convincing evidence for the Loch Ness monster, there is no reason to believe it exists. Maybe some of the people who have sighted Nessie are liars, as my opponent says. It is likely the rest of them were genuinely deceived. It is easy to misinterpret a log or a wave or even a hill beyond the loch as something else.Eyewitness testimony is unreliable. People are prone to remember things that were not part of the original scene. They often fill in gaps based on what they expect to see.[5][6] A study in the 1990s reported that almost 39% of people have hallucinatory experiences, 27% of which were daytime hallucinations.[7] In 2003, the BBC sponsored a full search of the Loch using 600 separate sonar beams and satellite tracking. The search had enough resolution to pick up a small buoy. No animal of any substantial size was found whatsoever and despite high hopes, the scientists involved in the expedition admitted that this essentially proved the Loch Ness monster was only a myth.[8]As for Mokele Mbembe, I challenge my opponent to present the evidence of these alleged bodies.Obviously the idea of strange and undiscovered creatures is attractive to people, and stems from an active imagination considering the many possibilities, as well as interest in "what is out there". I suggest that a productive use of this impulse would be to aim to study biology or zoology. There are a great number of genuine species yet to be discovered, and many of the animals out there are amazing indeed. However, dinosaurs are unfortunately very unlikely to be extant.I hope my opponent will now provide evidence for her claims.[1] Eberhart, George M. "Mysterious Creatures: Creating A Cryptozoological Encyclopedia." 2005. Journal of Scientific Exploration. Vol. 19, No. 1, pp. 103–113[2] http://www.sciencedaily.com... [3] http://www.nhm.ac.uk... [4] Fortey, R (1999). Life: A Natural History of the First Four Billion Years of Life on Earth. Vintage. pp. 238–260[5] http://agora.stanford.edu...[6] http://scienceblogs.com...[7] http://www.psy-journal.com...[8] http://news.bbc.co.uk...