Yeah, it annoyed me too but you have to figure the average person watching this film, isn't going to realize it.
I checked the errors/goofs section and it lists this factual error so they were probably aware but just didn't care.
People in life that are the happiest don't have the most, they make the most of what they have...
a) What Pikabo said:
— The average viewer might not have understood "nucleotide" unless they spent more than a little dialogue explaining:
• The "chromosome" is the entire DNA strand.
• The "nucleotides" are the individual "rungs on the ladder", the "genes"; and it is the nucleotides that determine if the DNA is from a man, a Martian, or a marmoset.
And yes, scientists on the level of the two Mars Missions would have been aware of that, wouldn't have made that mistake, but might have had a plausible excuse to explain it to the geologist.
b) It's been over 13 years. It might be a little late to go back and fix it.
c) It annoyed me, too. But I have to remember:
No two persons ever watch the same movie.
LATER:
On second thought, it might have been an excellent opportunity to write the proper explanation into the dialogue.
OF COURSE:
It is now 14 years later and would be just as hard to fix
a) the dialogue
b) the holographic display with
-1) the planets rotating and revolving backward and
-2) the alien having only 4 fingers
--- (if we're evolved from their DNA, we should look more alike).
I'm studying Biochemistry right now and just had a test on this stuff, and I didn't notice, and now I am feeling MUCH shame. Two weeks til my final-- I better study!
But yes, I wish they would have been more accurate with this stuff. Luckily, I came across this post.
I'm studying Biochemistry right now and just had a test on this stuffCongratulations!
Before you become too entranced with gorgeous gadgets and mesmerizing video displays, let me remind you that information is not knowledge, knowledge is not wisdom, and wisdom is not foresight. Each grows out of the other, and we need them all.(I told you I'm old.)
— Arthur C Clarke
I remember when Cleopatra went to the Temple of Ra to lead a few cheers.share
So this reply is 11 years later but your last point is incorrect.
While the alien has 4 fingers we evolved in a different condition world than them which is why we don’t have 4 and have 5.
From the movie it shows the aliens seeding life on Earth via one ship but that gives rise to all the species on earth since we all evolved on earth from that dna but we all look very different and have different number of digits.
At dna level we have commonality with the alien but we were not in their env. so evolved differently and don’t look anything like them at all with fingers being a lot more in common actually opposed to their skin and face and body etc