Dinosaurs (Gk. deinos, meaning "terrible," "potent," or "fearfully great") are a diverse group of animals belonging to the clade Dinosauria. The taxon Dinosauria was named in 1842 by paleontologist Sir Richard Owen. They first appeared during the Triassic period and most of them became extinct after the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event (end of Mesozoic Era).
There are several opinions about the life-style, metabolism and temperature regulation of dinosaurs. Among them, there is a huge controversy whether dinosaurs were cold-blooded or warm-blooded. For a long period scientists believed that dinosaurs were cold-blooded. But some new researches cast serious doubts about this and claim that they were actually warm-blooded like birds and mammals.
Arguments in favour of
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So, dinosaurs may be cold-blooded and maintain their body temperature with the help of environmental temperature.
4) Terrestrial endotherms have “respiratory turbinates” in their skull which helps them in retaining moisture during respiration process. But studies show that dinosaurs had no such structure in their skull. So, they were cold-blooded.
Arguments in favour of the concept that dinosaurs were mesothermic:
Some biologists after their studies concluded that dinosaurs were neither cold-blooded nor warm-blooded. Dinosaurs were mesothermic i.e. they can regulate their body temperature but their internal temperature did not remain fixed. As for example, New Mexico biologist and author John Grady supported this concept.
Arguments in favour of Dinosaurs as warm-blooded animals:
1) Some dinosaurs showed mammalian behaviours which is not possible if they were not warm-blooded.
2) Microscopic analysis of some dinosaur bones showed many similarities (such as growth rate) with the bones of mammals and birds which witness endothermic nature of dinosaurs. Paleontologist Michael D’Emic, in a new study (published in Science), supports this
While the author of the article believes that Brachiosaurus were aquatic animals, the professor disagrees with this statement. The professor points out that in spite of the fact that some species of dinosaur would spend a great deal of time in water, there was no possible that Brachiosaurus were aquatic ones. To strengthen her point, the professor provides sufficient evidence respectively to the points made in the article.
The reading passage proposes three theories which support the idea that a dinosaur which is called edmontosaurus survived in the winter by migrating to the south, the more hospitable region than the extremely cold in the North Slope. However, the professor in the listening respectively contradicts each theory in the reading passage by using strong evidence as support.
Animals differ in their abilities to regulate body temperature (thermoregulation). We sometimes use the terms "cold-blooded" or "warm-blooded." Most reptiles feel cold to the touch, while mammals and birds often feel warm.
At first, the reading passage posits that the diet for these dinosaurs proves that they had to migrate to find plants. Conversely, the professor refutes this point by imparting that this ratiocination is invalid on the ground that there was in some period a warm climate in this area. According to the professor, the 24 hours sunshine eventuated in warm weather and extensive daylight would provide a desirable environment
The reading and the lecture are both theories of why dinasours were endotherms or cold blooded aninmals. Whereas as the author of the reading states that there is not enough evidence to assume that dinosaurs were endotherms. The lecture casts doubt on the main points made in the reading by providing three reasons.
First, the argument stated in the article readily assumes that dinasours fossils are located in the polar regions and this is the evidence to determine that dinasours were endhoterm. In contrast, the professor provides information that these polar regions were much warmer than today. In addition, she states that when the climate was so cold in these regions, dinasours were migrating or hibernating. That’s why we can not easily assume that dinasours were endhoterms.
Disregarding the feathers of Longisquama, and therefore disregarding its link to Archaeopteryx, these scientists still fully support the dinosaur-bird link. As mentioned before, the extreme majority of paleontologists still subscribe to this idea. A recent discovery in the western region of China seems to clarify the link between dinosaurs and birds. Living at roughly the same time as Archaeopteryx, Sinovenator changii is very closely related to the bird yet is classified as a dinosaur.5
In the book Crichton talks about the astonishing similarities between the birds and the dinosaurs. Although the book is fiction, the subject concerning the two species was based on real paleontologists’ research. They
Because warm blooded animals don’t have to rely on their environment for body temperature, they are able to hunt at any time of the day or in any season, which is a great advantage over cold-blooded animals. Therefore this “type of intense activity needs a fast metabolism which is much too high for a cold-blooded animal. Secondly, cold-blooded animals have a hard time living in cold climates and dinosaur fossils have been found in the colder environments” (Eschberger). However, scientists believe warm blooded animals would have suffered from the heat in warmer climates, where many fossils have been discovered. Beverly Eschberger discusses how dinosaurs must have been only warm blooded animals due to the factors of, bone structure, and histology, growth rates, predator to prey ratios, speed and agility, rate of evolution, similarities with birds, and insulation. She also explains the disadvantages of being a warm blooded animal: “a much larger expenditure of energy to maintain elevated metabolism and a commensurate increase in food requirements” (Eschberger). Just as the conclusion that dinosaurs were truly warm blooded becomes clearer, factors from the cold blooded side switch everything around. Gigantothermy, rate of food supply, respiratory turbinates and lung structure all cause scientists to believe dinosaurs were in fact cold-blooded. There have been many attempts to find the real resolution of whether or not dinosaurs were warm or cold
One common theory many people have speculated about for years is whether or not dinosaurs were cold-blooded. After all, in the grand scheme of things, it made a lot of sense that they would be, seeing as such a successful, large, and diverse group of creatures seemed to have all of a sudden vanished in the blink of an eye, geologically speaking. Many, myself included, had come to believe that a giant asteroid had impacted the earth, kicking up debris into the atmosphere, blocked out the sun, and ultimately caused the extinction of the dinosaurs through negating their only source of heat. This theory made sense as they were regarded as “cold-blooded”
The decision to conduct a cursory search of the residence, in hindsight, was deemed wrong because of the lack of manpower, the search provided a false sense of security for the homeowner and ultimately was ineffective in locating the fugitives. This dilemma is a difficult one. The lack of manpower coupled with no evidence placing the fugitives in the residence would have made me rethink conducting the cursory search. The searches being conducted in the neighborhood had one mission and that was to find the fugitives not to give each homeowner peace of mind. In this type of scenario one must be analytical rather than being led by emotions. By the grace of God, the fugitives did not violently engage the officers conducting the
Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton demonstrated many dinosaur characteristics and behaviors. The dinosaurs were fictionally characterized to appeal to the readers. By examining the dinosaur’s appearance and behaviors of dinosaurs such as the duckbilled dinosaur, velociraptor, hypsilophodontids, dilophosaurs, Triceratops, apatosaurs, Tyrannosaurus rex, stegosaurs, and maiasaurs distinguished whether the evidence existed in the field of paleontology. The behaviors and characteristics of the dinosaur are divided into three factors as behaviors that were supported, not supported, and no evidence to support or refute the behavior.
This researcher proposes that the dinosaurs did not die of heat, in fact she thinks the opposite, that they froze to death instead. Both articles have the same idea about a meteorite hitting the earth yet there is no concrete evidence as to what caused the meteorite to strike and what it did when it got here.
This essay is about an accident that happened to me last year, and how did it changed my entire life.
There were over 1,000 different species of dinosaurs (“Dinosaurs”) that lived and evolved for almost 185 million years (“Dinosaur Facts”). Dinosaurs were some of the largest and most mysterious creatures to walk the Earth. Dinosaurs have helped scientists to understand the Earth and it 's past by studying different types, how they lived, their characteristics and what caused their mass extinction.