The Great Dinosaur Extinction Controversy

The Great Dinosaur Extinction Controversy PDF Author: Charles Officer
Publisher: Addison Wesley Publishing Company
ISBN:
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 232

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Book Description
In 1980 Nobel Laureate Luis Alvarez announced his theory of the dinosaurs final demise: a gigantic meteorite crashed into the earth and raised a cloud of dust that caused darkness for years, suppressing photosynthesis, which impeded plant growth, and eventually starved the dinosaurs. This idea exploded into common awareness with almost unprecedented speed, and was instantly embraced by the media and the public. Almost without question, it quickly became the hottest scientific "fact". Unfortunately for Alvarez, many in the scientific community did to support this theory, and in fact later research showed the impossibility of such an idea. The Great Dinosaur Extinction Controversy chronicles the fantastic story of how this hypothesis became so widespread, the way it became "common knowledge" - from the pages of Science to The New York Times to Parade Magazine, the controversy it caused, and the ample scientific research that proves the theory wrong. Officer and Page also present an attractive and carefully investigated alternative explanation for the mass extinctions that occurred at the end of the Cretaceous period. Through this account they show the ways that sound science should be performed and the findings transmitted.

The Great Dinosaur Extinction Controversy

The Great Dinosaur Extinction Controversy PDF Author: Charles Officer
Publisher: Addison Wesley Publishing Company
ISBN:
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 232

Get Book Here

Book Description
In 1980 Nobel Laureate Luis Alvarez announced his theory of the dinosaurs final demise: a gigantic meteorite crashed into the earth and raised a cloud of dust that caused darkness for years, suppressing photosynthesis, which impeded plant growth, and eventually starved the dinosaurs. This idea exploded into common awareness with almost unprecedented speed, and was instantly embraced by the media and the public. Almost without question, it quickly became the hottest scientific "fact". Unfortunately for Alvarez, many in the scientific community did to support this theory, and in fact later research showed the impossibility of such an idea. The Great Dinosaur Extinction Controversy chronicles the fantastic story of how this hypothesis became so widespread, the way it became "common knowledge" - from the pages of Science to The New York Times to Parade Magazine, the controversy it caused, and the ample scientific research that proves the theory wrong. Officer and Page also present an attractive and carefully investigated alternative explanation for the mass extinctions that occurred at the end of the Cretaceous period. Through this account they show the ways that sound science should be performed and the findings transmitted.

The Dinosaur Artist

The Dinosaur Artist PDF Author: Paige Williams
Publisher: Hachette Books
ISBN: 0316382507
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 476

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Book Description
In this 2018 New York Times Notable Book,Paige Williams "does for fossils what Susan Orlean did for orchids" (Book Riot) in her account of one Florida man's attempt to sell a dinosaur skeleton from Mongolia--a story "steeped in natural history, human nature, commerce, crime, science, and politics" (Rebecca Skloot). In 2012, a New York auction catalogue boasted an unusual offering: "a superb Tyrannosaurus skeleton." In fact, Lot 49135 consisted of a nearly complete T. bataar, a close cousin to the most famous animal that ever lived. The fossils now on display in a Manhattan event space had been unearthed in Mongolia, more than 6,000 miles away. At eight-feet high and 24 feet long, the specimen was spectacular, and when the gavel sounded the winning bid was over $1 million. Eric Prokopi, a thirty-eight-year-old Floridian, was the man who had brought this extraordinary skeleton to market. A onetime swimmer who spent his teenage years diving for shark teeth, Prokopi's singular obsession with fossils fueled a thriving business hunting, preparing, and selling specimens, to clients ranging from natural history museums to avid private collectors like actor Leonardo DiCaprio. But there was a problem. This time, facing financial strain, had Prokopi gone too far? As the T. bataar went to auction, a network of paleontologists alerted the government of Mongolia to the eye-catching lot. As an international custody battle ensued, Prokopi watched as his own world unraveled. In the tradition of The Orchid Thief, The Dinosaur Artist is a stunning work of narrative journalism about humans' relationship with natural history and a seemingly intractable conflict between science and commerce. A story that stretches from Florida's Land O' Lakes to the Gobi Desert, The Dinosaur Artist illuminates the history of fossil collecting--a murky, sometimes risky business, populated by eccentrics and obsessives, where the lines between poacher and hunter, collector and smuggler, enthusiast and opportunist, can easily blur. In her first book, Paige Williams has given readers an irresistible story that spans continents, cultures, and millennia as she examines the question of who, ultimately, owns the past.

The Great Dinosaur Controversy

The Great Dinosaur Controversy PDF Author: Keith Parsons
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 1576079236
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 305

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Book Description
A historical review of the most important scientific controversies that have shaped our knowledge of dinosaurs since the discovery of important fossils in the 1820s. In The Great Dinosaur Controversy: A Guide to the Debates, the major scientific disputes that have contributed to the understanding of dinosaurs come to light. Each chapter presents a major controversy then ponders the lessons learned and their impact on the scientific field. Colorful characters such as "anti-evolutionist" Robert Owen, "Darwin's bulldog," T.H. Huxley, and "dinosaur heretic" Robert Bakker, enliven the debates, which range from the origin of dinosaurs and their posture to their evolution or retrogression and whether they were warm- or cold-blooded. Two of the most recent debates concern how dinosaurs became extinct and whether or not birds are their descendents.

Too Big to Walk: The New Science of Dinosaurs

Too Big to Walk: The New Science of Dinosaurs PDF Author: Brian J. Ford
Publisher: HarperCollins UK
ISBN: 0008218919
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 628

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Book Description
Ever since Jurassic Park we thought we knew how dinosaurs lived their lives. In this remarkable new book, Brian J. Ford reveals that dinosaurs were, in fact, profoundly different from what we believe, and their environment was unlike anything we have previously thought.

Weird Dinosaurs

Weird Dinosaurs PDF Author: John Pickrell
Publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 0231543395
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 359

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Book Description
“A tour de force…highlights the odd reptiles that roamed all corners of the earth millions of years ago.”—Sydney Morning Herald From the outback of Australia to the Gobi Desert of Mongolia and the savanna of Madagascar, the award-winning science writer and dinosaur enthusiast John Pickrell embarks on a world tour of new finds, meeting the fossil hunters who work at the frontier of discovery. He reveals the dwarf dinosaurs unearthed by an eccentric Transylvanian baron; an aquatic, crocodile-snouted carnivore bigger than T. rex that once lurked in North African waterways; a Chinese dinosaur with wings like a bat; and a Patagonian sauropod so enormous it weighed more than two commercial jet airliners. Other surprising discoveries hail from Alaska, Siberia, Canada, Burma, and South Africa. Why did dinosaurs grow so huge? How did they spread across the world? Did they all have feathers? What do sauropods have in common with 1950s vacuum cleaners? The stuff of adventure movies and scientific revolutions, Weird Dinosaurs examines the latest breakthroughs and new technologies that are radically transforming our understanding of the distant past. “This history of the discovery of some of the most outlandish creatures that ever lived, and the excitement of paleontological research, will be sure to both entertain and instruct.”—Spencer Lucas, author of Dinosaurs: The Textbook, Sixth Edition “Fascinating.... Readers learn of beautiful opalised dinosaur bones from Australia and a crested dinosaur found approximately 13,000 feet up Antarctica's Mt. Kirkpatrick, demonstrating that dinosaurs were widely distributed across the globe.”—Publishers Weekly

Dinosaur Facts and Figures

Dinosaur Facts and Figures PDF Author: Rubén Molina-Pérez
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691180318
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 288

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Book Description
An illustrated record book of theropod facts and figures--from the biggest to the fastest to the smartest. This compendium features more than 3,000 records, covers some 750 theropod species, and includes a wealth of illustrations ranging from diagrams and technical drawings to full-color reconstructions of specimens.

The Great Dinosaur Mystery and the Bible

The Great Dinosaur Mystery and the Bible PDF Author: Paul S. Taylor
Publisher: David C Cook
ISBN: 9780781430715
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 64

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Book Description
This classic book explains how dinosaurs fit into the biblical story of creation. Newly revised to reflect recent scientific findings.

Danny and the Dinosaur 50th Anniversary Edition

Danny and the Dinosaur 50th Anniversary Edition PDF Author: Syd Hoff
Publisher: Harper Collins
ISBN: 9780064440028
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 68

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Book Description
Danny loves dinosaurs. When he sees one at the museun and says, "It would be nice to play with a dinosaur," a voice answers, "And I think it would be nice to play with you." So begins Dannys and the dinosaur's wonderful adventure together! But a dinosaur is no ordinary playmate. Even the most everyday activities become extraordinary, like finding a big-enough place to hide a dinosaur in a game of hide-and-seek, and keeping him from knocking over houses with his long tail. But Danny can teach a old dinosaur new tricks. It's the most fun this dinosaur has had in a hundred million years! Originally published as An I Can Read Book over 40 years ago, this classic story is perfect for reading together. Danny's out on the town with a real live dinosaur. And whether they're eating ice cream or playing hide-and-seek, these two are having one hundred million years of fun--all in one day. Outstanding Children's Books of 1958 (NYT)

The Big Golden Book of Dinosaurs

The Big Golden Book of Dinosaurs PDF Author: Robert T. Bakker
Publisher: Golden Books
ISBN: 0375859586
Category : Dinosaurs
Languages : en
Pages : 65

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Book Description
Renowned paleontologist Robert T. Bakker and award-winning paleoartist Luis V. Rey combine forces in this oversized picture book about the evolution of dinosaurs. From the conquest of land by dino ancestor Acanthostega during the Devonian Period, through the mass die-off of dinosaurs at the end of the Cretaceous Period, Bakker and Rey take readers on a safari through time while paying subtle homage to the 1960 Giant Golden Book Dinosaurs and Other Prehistoric Reptiles that inspired them both as young dinophiles. With stops along the way to look at monster bugs, ferocious fin-backs, fluffy dinosaurs, sea monsters and the 12-year-old girl who discovered them, dinosaur orchestras, tickling tyrannosaurs, and much, much more, this is a journey readers will never forget. It's a perfect gift for young dinosaur lovers as well as adult fans of Dr. Bakker and Luis Rey!"

Dinosaur Odyssey

Dinosaur Odyssey PDF Author: Scott D. Sampson
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520269896
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 360

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Book Description
"The best general-audience dinosaur book since the Dinosaur Renaissance began in the 1970s."—Philip J. Currie, coeditor of Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs, from the foreword “Dinosaur Odyssey is not only a personable and highly accessible tour of the up-to-date discoveries about the gigantic and famous. It also builds on dinosaur paleontology to far-ranging topics like extinction, climate change, and the possibility of life on Mars. The gift to the reader is both fascination and enlightenment.”—Michael Novacek, author of Terra and Dinosaurs of the Flaming Cliffs "An odyssey indeed! One of the world's leading dinosaur paleontologists, Sampson draws on a wide variety of sciences, from astronomy and cosmology to microbiology and ecology, in order to portray dinosaurs as living animals. The reader is in for a treat and will emerge with fresh and valuable insights."—Peter Dodson, author of The Horned Dinosaurs