It seems that there are some scientists out there that are really passionate about metal, like the dudes in charge of the Mars rover and decided to blast Anthrax to wake it up. They're not the only ones. Dr. Mats E. Eriksson is the Associate Professor of Paleontology in the Department of Geology at Lund University located in Lund, Sweden. Eriksson is also a devout metalhead. He likes naming fossils he discovers after metal gods. For example, a 428 million year old jaw of an extinct, marine polychaete annelid worm was named after the Motorhead bassist Lemmy Kilmister, being referred to as the Kalloprion Kilmisteri. For his latest discovery (pictured), he decided to name it after the King himself, King Diamond. Here is what Dr. Eriksson told BraveWords about the discovery:
Dr. Eriksson explains: "A cirka 420 million year old fossil organism was recently discovered from Silurian rocks of Sweden and Estonia. It is the remains of a marine worm with jaws. The critter was baptized Kingnites diamondi in honour of Danish metal maestro King Diamond. So, in addition to his obvious place in the history of heavy metal music, Diamond now also has left an eternal imprint in science. Father of this fossil is Mats Eriksson, a metal-loving professor of paleontology from Sweden."
I can't think of any greater honor than having a fossil named after you. The King is in! Speaking of King Diamond, he spoke to Full Metal Jackie this weekend, giving an update on all things King. It looks like we'll be hearing new music, and finally getting a proper, full-scale theatrical experience from the King in 2013. Here is that interview:
