Many of us in the ENHS enjoy nothing better than a contemplative walk absorbing nature. And we like to come together once a month to learn about the latest research on a myriad of natural history topics as well as to view excellent photography illuminating a speaker’s presentation. Well, this month, Dr. Kent Stevens will take us back to a time we only fantasized about in our youth, and his images will awaken the less contemplative side in even the most inert among us. I have spent the last two hours simply fascinated with the material on his website*, DynoMorph TM. Some of that time was spent downloading the free software, QuickTime TM so I could view simulations of dinosaur locomotion created by 3-D computer graphics developed in Kent’s lab. Kent Stevens answered the usual ENHS questions, and I know you’ll enjoy reading what he has to say about a career that must be incredibly satisfying, bringing childhood imaginings to life, but I also want you to read an article on page 3 which I lifted almost intact from the web. It’s by a “real” interviewer who knew just how to get to the sum and the substance of Kent Stevens and his research.

As you can imagine, he was fascinated by science and technology since he was a very young boy--“aircraft, spacecraft, computer graphics, and so forth,” says Kent. “My mother encouraged me to go to the university and to become a scientist. My father was one of the first animators at Walt Disney Studios, and he likely instilled in me my appreciation for art. I have always liked to mix art and science, such as in my studies of visual illusions and 3D perception. Now I seek to capture how the huge dinosaurs moved, which brings me back to animation and the aesthetics of movement.”

Any special early teacher influences?

“No. Nothing very positive. My middle school math teacher told me to never attempt any field that requires or involves mathematics.”

But that was grade school--getting into engineering evolved naturally: “I think it was my early love of gadgets and design. But I soon tired of the predictability of engineering, and I also realized I didn’t want to climb the GS pay grade ladder working for the National Institutes of Health as a systems programmer, which taught me I wanted to be a scientist, not just work in the service sector in support of science. So I began my PhD at Caltech where I was fortunate to get to know the physicist Richard Feynman. Though an expert in quantum mechanics, he was fascinated by a great many things, including how we see. He had a remarkable way of asking questions and seeking elegant answers. I transferred to MIT to finish my degree under the mathematician and neuroscientist David Marr, who then was seeking to understand the computational principles underlying neural processing of vision. I am comfortable with an eclectic approach towards science, in drawing on diverse sources in trying to understand some natural phenomenon.”

Kent received his BS in engineering, Magna Cum Laude, and his MS in computer science, both from UCLA. He earned his PhD at MIT in electrical engineering and computer science. After his early training in engineering, the human visual system captured his interests from the late 1970’s to the mid 1990’s. Sometime around 1994 he turned towards paleontology and commenced with “. . . on the job training” as I learn about paleontology, biomechanics, and movement.”

What brought you to Oregon?

“A 1973 BMW. I joined the faculty of the UO (in 1982).”

Kent has a few hobbies only somewhat outside his career interests; they actually complete the picture of mixing art and science with a little practical engineering stirred in to strengthen the mortar. He has enjoyed “restoring old houses, art deco, astronomical telescopes, fossil hunting, drawing, photography, scuba, etc.”

And his hobbies enhance his current projects: “I am working with the National Geographic and paleontologists at the University of Manchester on reconstructing the pose and movements of a dinosaur for an upcoming special. I am also working on an interactive display for the Carnegie Museum of Natural History that will discuss dinosaur locomotion.”

What will we hear about Friday night?

“How several of us are trying to learn how dinosaurs moved, inferring as much as we can from the bones themselves, while trying to minimize the influence of our biases and expectations on the outcome.”

Kent Steven’s website is filled with evidence of his science, his art, his engineering and his love of his work. You’ll enjoy the images and become fascinated with the motion. You can find a listing of his numerous scholarly publications as well as the work he has done for television, museums and corporations--validation for being comfortable with that “eclectic approach.”

Rex, sit. For the June 2005 Symposium "100 Years of Tyrannosaurus rex" hosted by the Black Hills Institute in Hill City, SD, I presented a paper "Rex, sit" (to appear in a volume to be published in conjunction with the symposium). The challenge was to try to understand how Tyrannosaurus rex might have transitioned between a bipedal, standing posture and a resting pose. It has long been expected that the great theropod would have settled its weight upon its pubic boot. Just how might it have sat down and gotten up again?

This question was explored using an articulated DinoMorph model built in collaboration with Art Andersen of Virtual Surfaces, Inc. and the Black Hills Institute of Geologic Research.