Good Evening, this is Amber Riley from Channel 7 news, here with your latest updates on everything going on. Today on this very special episode of 20/20, we have a range of diverse topics, including the evolving corporate scandal at Digicom, storm chasers Bill and Jo Harding talk about their experience chasing the storm of the century…but first, we have paleontologist Richard Levine talking about his experience with the extinct animals we've all had to get used to over the past three years.
"Richard. Why don't you Tell us what exactly is your relationship with these creatures? I understand that you were a respected paleontologist before?"
"Thank you, Amber. Yes, I am still working in the field. There's still a lot to be learned from studying these animals and the remains they left behind. Paleontology has always been my passion from a young age. In fact, I have just recently returned from the field. We're just about to formally publish a new find, it's really quite fascinating, I think it will revolutionize our understanding of how we comprehend inter-species relationships in the late Jurassic."
"There are some who might say that it might not be more feasible and less time consuming to simply study these animals in their natural habitat? Especially as more and more animals are being spotted every single day."
"I don't want to discount the work of the researchers who are out there in the field. I know it's a risky venture, and their work really does help the government with improving public safety. I know that Sarah Harding released a paper last year regarding the flocking behavior of Procompsognathus in urban environments, that was a fascinating read…"
"Why do I sense there's a 'but' coming."
"Ms. Riley. When InGen created these dinosaurs, they were only able to recreate their physical form. Their flesh and blood in its entirety. That is all. We have been studying paleontology for almost three hundred years now, and we still do not have the slightest idea of how these creatures behave. Oh, we can guess. There are some specimens that we think we can demonstrate have had pack behavior, or showcased extended maternal affiliations with their offspring.
However, that is all we have been able to create so far, projections. The animals created by Biosyn-and InGen… they are perhaps so different from what we should have experienced should we somehow have travelled back in time to a random point in the Mesozoic period."
"Doctor Levine- I am not so sure I follow- Are you stating for the record, that InGen's dinosaurs do not behave like the extinct ones that you study?"
"Exactly what I am saying. I know if you talk to other professionals in the field, they might say the same thing. I saw that Tonight Show special with Dr. Malcolm. It really was something. I'm not here to parrot what he said. However, I do believe that it's fair to say that believing the animals will behave like 'real dinosaurs' will result in failure for any attempts to contain them."
"So you don't think that they are real dinosaurs-"
"They are real dinosaurs. Real dinosaurs in their DNA and genome sequence. However, they were genetically engineered to be exactly what people expected to see. Hammond thought so too."
"John Hammond…as viewers might remember was the one that was responsible for creating dinosaurs on two Islands off the Coast of Costa Rica on the early 1990s. Isla Nublar and Isla Sorna were both the subject of good faith de-classification efforts by Costa Rica last year. Currently, both are under joint-US/Costa Rican conservatorship. This despite the fact that the last living animals on Sorna are confirmed to have died at an undisclosed date in the early 2000s."
The camera panned to show picture of the two islands, a barren and ashen Nublar against the jungles of Sorna. Levine visibly winced on camera seeing the two contrasted together. He sighed, as Ashley indicated to the camera that it was time for a commercial break, as he stood up, stretching.
He didn't know why he had agreed to this. Maybe it was he needed money. Or the fact that it was harder to get funded for excavation these days. For fucks sake, even Roxton could get funded…. He shook his head, as he looked back at the reporter. Typical, she already was on her phone, as he took a moment to drink a bottle of water.
He could already get a feeling for the rest of this interview, but he figured it couldn't hurt to let it play out. He'd not been thrilled that the events of Sorna and Nublar had become public, but it seemed that the Rex crossing the border had forced the hand of the Costa Ricans. That said, he didn't know how much he believed of what Ashley had just said, given the fact that he was having signals interrupted from the cameras he'd left.
But this was hardly the time to be worrying about that, as he saw the time ticking down on the box, indicating that it was about time to start again. Right. He could make this work for now. Of course, he had no illusions about if this was going to be edited to hell and back, of course it would be, and of course they would likely not see anything wrong with that.
The time beeped, and he sat back down, as Ashley put her phone away, the mics activating once more, as they faced each other. This time, Levine could see that the background screen had thankfully moved on from Nublar and Sorna. It was now changed to a video of what looked like a herd of dinosaurs- Parasaurolophus by the looks of it, as he stared.
"This video was taken last week in southern Arizona, by a drone belonging to Masrani Global. This herd is among the largest that have been seen, and so far these specific animals have not strayed into populated areas." Levine frowned as he looked at the screen. He felt that he may perhaps know what was coming.
"I confess that I had hoped to get your opinion on current containment efforts of the dinosaurs, Dr. Levine." There it was. Levine straightened up, making sure that he was not slouching as he gave the camera a short wave.
"I want to say that I appreciate the efforts that have been made so far in keeping the general population safe. Tracking chips, drone footage as you have here- and electric fences do go a long way towards creating a safe environment." Here, Levine frowned again, as he knew he could not stop himself from saying what he felt.
"However, eventually I predict that unless there is some way to control breeding in these populations, specifically with Procompsognathus, current containment efforts might be considered to be insufficient for now. The public safety briefing that Drs. Grant and Sattler did a few months ago went over well. Helped a lot in that area, but I wonder just how much is needed."
Ashley did not seem perturbed, almost as if she'd anticipated this question, which puzzled Levine briefly. Then the screen shifted to a picture of a well-dressed Indian man, standing in front of a downtown skyline. "Simon Masrani. Visionary of the Mesozoic project, a follow up to John Hammond's legacy in what was formerly one of the most top secret and talked about ventures. The Mesozoic project."
The screen then panned over a grainy video that looked like it was shot from a camcorder, Ashley confirmed as much as she continued. "This footage, shot from the missing hiker, confirmed what many had feared. That the current containment efforts for the dinosaurs were insufficient, that they needed to be treated in a completely different manner. We will warn our viewers. The subject you are about to see is extremely disturbing."
Levine decided that he did not like where this was going, as he watched the video. It showed a camper investigating a noise outside his tent. As the camera panned out to the surrounding woods, the camera was suddenly shaken violently, as a figure blurred the screen. Lying on it's side, the hand lay still as it was dragged off screen. As the camera continued rolling, a reptilian limb could be seen in the foreground for a brief second, a sinister and curved claw visible before the footage ceased.
Levine was familiar with this footage. Almost everyone was by now, but that did not mean he stopped staring, long after the camera returned to him. It was apparent that he was meant to give a reply, he sighed again, adjusting himself in his seat. "I have heard of what Mr. Masrani wants to do- nothing that I can share that's new…but only that which has been made public."
"I can't say I agree with everything that he proposes. But I will concur that right now we face quite possibly one of the most difficult questions in the history of mankind. Dinosaurs and Man. Two species separated by sixty-five million years of evolution. How could we possibly have the slightest idea of what to expect?" Perhaps that was a tad dramatic, but this was network television after all, a bit of sensationalism could go a long way, and by the look on Ashley's face, that was exactly what she was hoping to hear.
"Containing these creatures possess the same problem Hammond faced. Hopefully we've learned from his mistakes and are not going to simply make all new ones. Although I will say I wish Mr. Masrani the best of luck. It's going to be a challenge out there."
Good for viewers, he supposed, as the cameraman was already maneuvering the camera away, focusing in on Ashley's face. "Extremely fascinating. It's been very…enlightening being able to have you on our show. Stay tuned next week for our follow up discussion with Masrani himself, in which he will talk to us about more about his plans for the future. Now- we have to move onto our next segment about DigiCom, and how workplace harassment can affect you-"