# This whole brontosaurus/apatosaurus nonsense **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 17, 2016, 9:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-whole-brontosaurus-apatosaurus-nonsense/768812 "2016-10-17T09:43:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-whole-brontosaurus-apatosaurus-nonsense/768812/61 "2016-10-23T17:28:42Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > Well, it should be. Scientific naming should use popular consensus as a basis for determining nomenclature. > > For example, if the public uses the word “monkey” to encompass chimpanzees, then the scientific community should not adopt a definition of “monkey” that is inconsistent with this. If the public uses the word “bear” to encompass koalas, then the scientific community should not use the word “bear” to exclude koalas. Well, no. See in order to include both grizzlys and koalas in the same clade, that would pretty much mean every mammal on earth would be a “bear”. Whitetail Deer would become whitetail bears. However, actually the scientific community doesnt use the term "bear’ really, they use binomial nomenclature, which is in latin. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-whole-brontosaurus-apatosaurus-nonsense/768812/62 "2016-10-23T19:16:28Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Well, no. See in order to include both grizzlys and koalas in the same clade, that would pretty much mean every mammal on earth would be a “bear”. Whitetail Deer would become whitetail bears. There’s no reason that the ordinary English word “bear” must indicate a clade. It just indicates any creature that is popularly known as a bear. > [@](#): > > However, actually the scientific community doesnt use the term "bear’ really, they use binomial nomenclature, which is in latin. Then why do we see people making statements like “a chump is not a monkey” and “a koala is not a bear”? If the word “bear” is not actual scientific nomenclature then scientists ought to stop trying to correct its usage. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-whole-brontosaurus-apatosaurus-nonsense/768812/63 "2016-10-23T19:22:12Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > Then why do we see people making statements like “a chump is not a monkey” and “a koala is not a bear”? A chump may not be a monkey, but most monkeys are chumps. 😃 Just look what they are willing to do for bananas. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-whole-brontosaurus-apatosaurus-nonsense/768812/64 "2016-10-23T20:40:08Z")
By current thinking, Chimpanzees are monkeys, if “monkey” is to have any scientific/cladistic meaning. Chimps are apes, old world monkeys are more closely related to apes than they are to new world monkeys, so either new world monkeys aren’t monkeys, or apes are a particular kind of monkey. ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2016, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-whole-brontosaurus-apatosaurus-nonsense/768812/65 "2016-10-23T23:24:25Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > Virii are also related for the same reason. What’s a virius? ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2016, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-whole-brontosaurus-apatosaurus-nonsense/768812/66 "2016-10-24T00:41:27Z")
> [@SCAdian](#): > > What’s a virius? A member of the taxon of organisms with incorrect Latinate plurals. Very exclusive group. ---
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2016, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-whole-brontosaurus-apatosaurus-nonsense/768812/67 "2016-10-24T19:36:33Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > In ordinary speech, “cow” can be used to refer to males or females of any age.\*\* For whatever reason English doesn’t have a singular for “cattle”\*\* so “cow” now does double duty. Singular for cattle is “beef critter”, viz. numerous episodes of The Beverly Hillbillies. ---
**Author:** ![WotNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e19b73/32.png) [@WotNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WotNot)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2016, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-whole-brontosaurus-apatosaurus-nonsense/768812/68 "2016-10-24T22:59:19Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > Then why do we see people making statements like “a chump is not a monkey” and “a koala is not a bear”? If the word “bear” is not actual scientific nomenclature then scientists ought to stop trying to correct its usage. But are the people who make these statements genuine _scientists_, or are they, in fact, common-or-garden variety smart-arses (_pedantica domesticus_)? I find you can often spot the former by their distinctive cry of “Actually…” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-whole-brontosaurus-apatosaurus-nonsense/768812.md?page=3)