It's important to cite sources you used in your research for several reasons: To show your reader you've done proper research by listing sources you used to get your information. To be a responsible scholar by giving credit to other researchers and acknowledging their ideas.
Answer:answer: "there *has been* excitement among paleontologists since a group of friends hiking in elephant butte state park stumbled upon the complete skull of a stegomastadon, a prehistoric mammal believed to have weighed between three and five tons."
She is interpreting human experience compared to others who aren’t (guesses, improvement of societal function, and data don’t come from human individual interpretation.