science

Oligotypus

Oligotypus is a science 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 Oligotypus rather than just read about it. In short: Oligotypus is an extinct genus of griffinfly in the family Paralogidae. This genus is known from 4 species from the Carboniferous to Permian.

Key takeaways

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

Reference excerpt

Oligotypus is an extinct genus of griffinfly in the family Paralogidae. This genus is known from 4 species from the Carboniferous to Permian.

Species Type species of the genus, Oligotypus tillyardi was described from lower Permian site in Kansas and Midco insect bed in Oklahoma. It was small griffinfly with wing length of 4 centimetres (1.6 in) as preserved. Second species, O. makowskii was described from middle Pennsylvanian Francis Creek Shale in Illinois. It had wing which is 6.5 centimetres (2.6 in) long as preserved and estimated to have complete length of 9 centimetres (3.5 in). Third species, O. huangheensis was described from Pennsylvanian, Namurian stage, Yanghugou Formation (previously called as Tupo Formation) near the village of Xiaheyan in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China. It was originally described under its own genus Sinomeganeura, but it was synonymized to Oligotypus in 2013. The preserved segment is 48.6 millimetres (1.91 in) giving an estimated full length for the wing of approximately 70 millimetres (2.8 in). Fourth species, O. tuscaloosae was described from Early Pennsylvanian Pottsville Formation of Alabama. It is the largest species of Oligotypus with preserved wing length of 7.7 centimetres (3.0 in) and estimated complete wing length of 13–16 centimetres (5.1–6.3 in).

Description According to O. huangheensis, it shows no indications of any color pattering that may have been present in life. In adult of the species would have had a full wingspan of around 150 millimetres (5.9 in). The overall size is considered small compared to other members of the subfamily such as Meganeura and Meganeuropsis, both with wings exceeding 250 millimetres (9.8 in) in length, and wingspans over 700 millimetres (28 in).

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Oligotypus

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Oligotypus claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, 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 Oligotypus 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 Oligotypus 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 Oligotypus

In research: Oligotypus appears in science 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 Oligotypus 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: Oligotypus is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Bashkirian life, Carboniferous animals of Asia, Carboniferous animals of North America, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Oligotypus 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 Oligotypus in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Oligotypus 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 Oligotypus out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Oligotypus in simple terms?

Oligotypus is an extinct genus of griffinfly in the family Paralogidae. This genus is known from 4 species from the Carboniferous to Permian.

Why does Oligotypus matter?

Because it connects several science 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 Oligotypus?

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 Oligotypus.