From: mcgrath@cs.uiuc.edu (Robert McGrath)
Subject: Re: Erich Von Daniken
Reply-To: mcgrath@cs.uiuc.edu
Organization: University of Illinois, Dept of Computer Science
Date: Sun, 26 Jul 1992 20:26:18 GMT

In article <62705@cup.portal.com>, thad@cup.portal.com (Thad P Floryan) writes in part:
|> In article <1992Jul23.170148.919@m.cs.uiuc.edu>
|> mcgrath@cs.uiuc.edu (Robert McGrath) writes:
|> 
|> >In article <62658@cup.portal.com>, thad@cup.portal.com (Thad P Floryan) writes
|>  in part:
|> >|>[...]
|> >|> Some actual (and identifiable) dinosaur footprints were present in the rock
|> ,
|> >|> along with what appeared to me (and these were the ones labelled as "unknow
|> n")
|> >|> to be the tracks of a military jeep.  Two parallel tracks with about a 5 fo
|> ot
|> >|> separation (for some 15 feet, in the slab fragment) which resembled today's
|> >|> high-tech all-weather tire-treads.  Tracks which were made millions of year
|> s
|> >|> ago. Incredible; I'll never forget that sight; and when I uttered that thou
|> ght
|> >|> out loud (I was only about 8 years old then), everyone turned around and
|> >|> looked at me strangely, yet no-one made any comments or smiled.  [ See belo
|> w ]
|> >
|> >Incredible is the word.  This would be a lot harder to understand if I
|> >hadn't read the classic science fiction story of that time from which 
|> >this little joke was taken.
|> 
|> If it's a joke, then it's one on me [for I was there].
|> 
|> However, I'm not going to "defend" my remembrance since nearly 40 years have
|> elapsed (this was about 1952-1953; we lived in the area from 1951 to 1956).
|> 
|> And at that (original) time I was in the company of my Dad who desired to
|> tour the entire Museum in one day (he was like that; and the museum occupied
|> an entire city block [it was HUGE]).
|> 
|> Next time I'm in DC, I'll make a point to re-visit that Smithsonian exhibit
|> and attempt to collect more info; this cannot be until at least mid-1993.
|> 
|> One correspondent commented that perhaps the tracks were those of amphibians'
|> flippers.  'Spossible (and more plausible!)  All I stated was that the tracks
|> bore a resemblance to tire tracks, NOT that they were tire tracks!  :-)
|> 
|> As for science-fiction, could not the author have seen the same exhibit which
|> stimulated HIS story?  Have you a reference [title, author, etc.]?
|> 
|> Thad Floryan [ thad@cup.portal.com ]

The idea appeared in the story "Times Arrow" by Arthur C. Clarke in 1952.  
The copy I have is in a the collection "Reach for Tomorrow", with the date
1956.  In the preface there is the following interesting comment:

  "Times Arrow" is an example of how hard it is for the science-fiction
  writer to keep ahead of fact.  The quite--at the time the story was 
  written--imaginary discovery described in the tale now actually exists, 
  and may be seen in the New York Natural History Museum.  I think it most 
  unlikely that the rest of the story will bome true . . . .

Clearly, ACC made this up, and just about the right time for the museum
to obtain one.  ACC's comments open the question of whether there were
two (or even more) copies of this unique artifact, which materialized 
just after he invented it!  Time travel is a non-obvious business, even 
in reality. :-)

Thanks to those who set me on the track of this reference.  My ACC
books are getting pretty dusty and lonely deep in the archives, a fate
that they surely do not deserve.

-- 
  Robert E. McGrath
  Urbana Illinois
  mcgrath@cs.uiuc.edu
Newsgroups: alt.alien.visitors,sci.skeptic