BA,
Okay, I think you agree with me that dinosaurs are a different kind to birds.
There is no proof that the sparrow descended from the archaeopteryx
You're right. It's not known if it was the ancestor to ALL modern birds. In fact, the velociraptor has been considered an ancestor of birds too.
In September, scientists announced that they've found evidence of quill knobs on velociraptor fossils--places where feathers were attached to the animal's bone, just as they are on many birds. Says scientist Alan Turner, "This is something we'd long suspected, but no one had been able to prove. Finding quill knobs on velociraptor, though, means that it definitely had feathers."
Above taken from http://knowledgenews.net/moxie/todaysknowledge/velociraptor-killer-turkey.shtml Plenty more sources available from more scientific sites.
From wiki:
Despite its small size, broad wings, and ability to fly, Archaeopteryx has more in common with small theropoddinosaurs than it does with modern birds. In particular, it shares the following features with the deinonychosaurs (dromaeosaurs and troodontids): jaws with sharp teeth, three fingers with claws, a long bony tail, hyperextensible second toes ("killing claw"), feathers (which also suggest homeothermy), and various skeletal features.
The features above make Archaeopteryx the first clear candidate for a transitional fossil between dinosaurs and birds
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Archaeopteryx
feathers, although less documented than its other features, were similar in structure and design to modern-day bird feathers.
However, despite the presence of numerous avian features,
Archaeopteryx had many
theropod dinosaur characteristics. Unlike modern birds,
Archaeopteryx had small teeth as well as a long bony tail, features which
Archaeopteryx shared with other dinosaurs of the time.
Because it displays a number of features common to both birds and dinosaurs, Archaeopteryx has often been considered a link between them—possibly the first bird in its change from a land dweller to a bird
it preserves a number of avian features, such as a wishbone, flight feathers, wings and a partially reversed first toe, and a number of dinosaur and theropod features. For instance, it has a long ascending process of the ankle bone, interdental plates, an obturator process of the ischium , and long chevrons in the tail. In particular, Ostrom found that Archaeopteryx was remarkably similar to the theropod family Dromaeosauridae
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(Can't turn off this blue now, grr!)
Now if the
Archaeopteryx was still around today it wouldn't be considered a transitional fossil. But using dating methods, we know it was around between the time of its dinosaur ancestors and birds as we know them today. The way fossils are lined up is based on when they come from. Lining them up in this way we can see the changes in certain features over time.
Burn,
Sounds to me like you are putting faith in your own senses Sero. are you sure they are not deceiving you?
I wouldn't be proving someone appreciated me, I'd be believing it based on good reasoning. Leaving proof for God aside, there's not even one good reason to believe in him. I'd also be open to change. If it was found my senses were wrong (beyond the limited capacity we know them to have) then there would be good reason to rethink the matter. Faith just isn't as open to new data.
