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== Discussion ==
== Discussion ==
To conceive of anything being "out of place" requires a concept of the "proper place" of any technological artifact. For most OOParts now known, that concept depends on [[geology|geological]] [[uniformitarianism]] and the related concept of [[deep time]], because these artifacts were recovered from a geologic stratum allegedly millions of years old. For others, the concept of "technological place" depends on the widely-held concept of the linear development of cultures. Thus, for example, the [[Egypt]]ians are not supposed to have developed any of the flight sciences, while the Saqqara Bird suggests that they, or else some other civilization that once held the land where Egypt now stands, did—centuries before [[Leonardo da Vinci]] would speculate on building a flying machine, let alone before [[Orville and Wilbur Wright]] would demonstrate their own prototype.
To conceive of anything being "out of place" requires a concept of the "proper place" of any technological artifact. For most OOParts now known, that concept depends on [[geology|geological]] [[uniformitarianism]] and the related concept of [[deep time]], because these artifacts were recovered from a geologic stratum allegedly millions of years old. For others, the concept of "technological place" depends on the widely-held concept of the linear development of cultures. Thus, for example, the [[Egypt]]ians are not supposed to have developed any of the flight sciences, while the Saqqara Bird suggests that they, or else some other civilization that once held the land where Egypt now stands, did—centuries before [[Leonardo da Vinci]] would speculate on building a flying machine, let alone before [[Orville Wright|Orville]] and [[Wilbur Wright]] would demonstrate their own prototype.
OOParts that violate the linear-development paradigm should shock no one. The history of the world is replete with examples of cultures conquering other cultures but ''not'' preserving all of the technological knowledge that the conquered had developed or amassed. The fall of the [[Rome|Roman Empire]] is an obvious example.
OOParts that violate the linear-development paradigm should shock no one. The history of the world is replete with examples of cultures conquering other cultures but ''not'' preserving all of the technological knowledge that the conquered had developed or amassed. The fall of the [[Rome|Roman Empire]] is an obvious example.