Not only will the Flintstones be happier with their burgers, but all those people who believe Pluto was unjustly dismissed as a planet have reason to hope, too. The Brontosaurus, always one of the most popular dinosaur names, is back to being an actual dinosaur, according to a new study by paleontologists.
Brontosaurus lost its status when it was discovered to be the same as an Apatosaurus, which was named earlier and got dibs. But the Brontosaurus moniker hung around, not least because it sounds better. The new study claims there are enough differences to make Brontosaurus its own species again, even if the creature is a little smaller than the Apatosaurus. (Sorry, Fred, that big one is an Apatosaurus burger after all.) Paleontologists will continue to debate the Brontosaurus claim. As Michael D’Emic writes in Time, the “tangle of taxonomy” can be arbitrary. But as William Faulkner reminds us: The past is never dead. It’s not even past. Come on in Pluto, Brontosaurus, et al–someone will always take your side.