Fossils have the power to educate and inspire outside the specialist world of palaeontologists. Dinosaurs as a topic have captured the imagination of children worldwide, and are a theme used prolifically to inspire learning by early childhood educators. Fossils have the potential to unlock the minds of many ordinary people as they ignite curiosity, marvel, wonder and interest. Where do the discoveries, facts and findings of palaeontologists go after they've been published and let out into the public arena? How are they utilised? Does a child who loves dinosaurs have to become a paleontologist? Or can such an interest be a stepping-stone to other things? The following observations are a result of an interest in fossils, a career in education in Queensland and the Northern Territory, and work with both state museums.
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R E Stemmler (2006) studied this question.