biology

Mesophryne

Mesophryne is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Mesophryne rather than just read about it. In short: Mesophryne beipiaoensis is an extinct species of frog, from the Cretaceous Yixian Formation of Liaoning (China), and the only species in the genus Mesophryne. It is known from several specimens collected near Heitizigou, 25 kilometres (16 mi) south of Beipiao, from which the specific epithet derives.

Key takeaways

Mesophryne belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Mesophryne to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Mesophryne from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Mesophryne beipiaoensis is an extinct species of frog, from the Cretaceous Yixian Formation of Liaoning (China), and the only species in the genus Mesophryne. It is known from several specimens collected near Heitizigou, 25 kilometres (16 mi) south of Beipiao, from which the specific epithet derives. The specimen has a snout–vent length of 69 millimetres (2.7 in). While some authors have suggested Mesophryne is a synonym of Liaobatrachus, this has been rejected by other authors. Morphological measurements of these features were compared with extant relatives to produce a phylogenetic analysis suggesting that it is a crown group frog, which was more derived than Ascaphus and Leiopelma, but less so than alytids and other more advanced frogs.

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Mesophryne

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Mesophryne claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Mesophryne before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Mesophryne ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Mesophryne

In research: Mesophryne appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Mesophryne in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Mesophryne is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Early Cretaceous frogs, Fossil taxa described in 2001, Prehistoric amphibian genera, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Mesophryne outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Mesophryne in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Mesophryne means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Mesophryne out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Mesophryne in simple terms?

Why does Mesophryne matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Mesophryne?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Mesophryne.