Dinosaur
hideDinosaurs (Greek: δεινόσαυρος, deinosauros) were the dominant vertebrate animals of terrestrial ecosystems for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period (about 230 million years ago) until the end of the Cretaceous period (65 million years ago), when most of them became extinct in the Cretaceous–Tertiary extinction event. The 10000 living species of birds may be classified as dinosaurs.
The term "dinosaur" was coined in 1842 by Sir Richard Owen and derives from Greek δεινός (deinos) "terrible, powerful, wondrous" + σαῦρος (sauros) "lizard". It is sometimes used informally to describe other prehistoric reptiles, such as the pelycosaur Dimetrodon, the winged pterosaurs, and the aquatic ichthyosaurs, plesiosaurs and mosasaurs, although none of these animals were dinosaurs. Through the first half of the 20th century, most of the scientific community believed dinosaurs to have been slow, unintelligent cold-blooded animals. Most research conducted since the 1970s, however, has supported the view that dinosaurs were active animals with elevated metabolisms and numerous adaptations for social interaction. The resulting transformation in the scientific understanding of dinosaurs has gradually filtered into popular consciousness.
The 1861 discovery of the primitive bird Archaeopteryx first suggested a close relationship between dinosaurs and birds. Aside from the presence of fossilized feather impressions, Archaeopteryx was very similar to the contemporary small predatory dinosaur Compsognathus. Research has since identified theropod dinosaurs as the most likely direct ancestors of birds; most paleontologists today regard birds as the only surviving dinosaurs, and some suggest that dinosaurs and birds should be grouped into one biological class. Aside from birds, crocodilians are the only other close relatives of dinosaurs to have survived until the present day. Like dinosaurs and birds, crocodilians are members of Archosauria, a group of reptiles that first appeared in the very late Permian and came to predominate in the mid-Triassic.
Since the first dinosaur fossils were recognized in the early nineteenth century, mounted dinosaur skeletons have become major attractions at museums around the world. Dinosaurs have become a part of world culture and remain consistently popular. They have been featured in best-selling books and films (notably Jurassic Park), and new discoveries are regularly covered by the media.
For more information about Dinosaur, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with dinosaurs
Superior Super Earths
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
Nov 30, 2009 |
4.8 / 5 (43) |
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Super Earths are named for their size, but these planets - which range from about 2 to 10 Earth masses - could be superior to the Earth when it comes to sustaining life. They could also provide an answer to ...
Discovery raises new doubts about dinosaur-bird links
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Jun 09, 2009 |
4.4 / 5 (24) |
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Researchers at Oregon State University have made a fundamental new discovery about how birds breathe and have a lung capacity that allows for flight - and the finding means it's unlikely that birds descended from any known ...
Dinosaurs survived 2 mass extinctions and 50 million years before taking over the world and dominating ecosystems
Biology /
Sep 30, 2008 |
4.4 / 5 (22) |
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Reporting in Biology Letters, Steve Brusatte, Professor Michael Benton, and colleagues at the University of Bristol show that dinosaurs did not proliferate immediately after they originated, but that their ...
Geoscientist offers new evidence that meteorite did not wipe out dinosaurs
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
May 04, 2009 |
4.5 / 5 (21) |
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A Princeton University geoscientist who has stirred controversy with her studies challenging a popular theory that an asteroid wiped out the dinosaurs has compiled powerful new evidence asserting her position.
Feathers fly over new dinosaur find
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Mar 18, 2009 |
4.7 / 5 (20) |
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The discovery of a petite, plant-eating dinosaur with primitive plumage could mean that the dinosaur from which all others evolved had feather-like protrusions, said a study released Wednesday.
Canadian scientist aims to turn chickens into dinosaurs
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Aug 25, 2009 |
4 / 5 (22) |
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After years spent hunting for the buried remains of prehistoric animals, a Canadian paleontologist now plans to manipulate chicken embryos to show he can create a dinosaur.
Researchers claim a third of dinosaurs might never have existed
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Oct 13, 2009 |
4.4 / 5 (20) |
5
(PhysOrg.com) -- A new ten-year study by US paleontologists suggests that up to a third of dinosaur fossils may have been incorrectly identified as new species, when they are actually juveniles of species ...
Mummified dinosaur skin yields up new secrets
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Jul 01, 2009 |
4.7 / 5 (18) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists from The University of Manchester have identified preserved organic molecules in the skin of a dinosaur that died around 66-million years ago.
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Origin of birds confirmed by exceptional new dinosaur fossils
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Sep 25, 2009 |
4.7 / 5 (17) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Chinese scientists today reveal the discovery of five remarkable new feathered dinosaur fossils which are significantly older than any previously reported. The new finds are indisputably older ...
Proteins, Soft Tissue from 80 Million-Year-Old Hadrosaur Add Weight to Theory that Molecules Preserve Over Time
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Apr 30, 2009 |
4.8 / 5 (16) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A North Carolina State University paleontologist has more evidence that soft tissues and original proteins can be preserved over time - even in fossilized remains - in the form of new protein ...
T.rex 'followed its nose' while hunting
Biology /
Oct 29, 2008 |
4.8 / 5 (16) |
2
Although we know quite a bit about the lifestyle of dinosaur; where they lived, what they ate, how they walked, not much was known about their sense of smell, until now.
CT scans reveal that dinosaurs were airheads
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Dec 08, 2008 |
4.4 / 5 (17) |
5
(PhysOrg.com) -- Paleontologists have long known that dinosaurs had tiny brains, but they had no idea the beasts were such airheads.
Down Under dinosaur burrow discovery provides climate change clues (w/ Video)
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Jul 10, 2009 |
4.6 / 5 (16) |
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On the heels of his discovery in Montana of the first trace fossil of a dinosaur burrow, Emory University paleontologist Anthony Martin has found evidence of more dinosaur burrows - this time on the other ...
Mini Dinosaurs Prowled North America (w/Video)
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Mar 16, 2009 |
4.6 / 5 (15) |
0
Massive predators like Albertosaurus and Tyrannosaurus rex may have been at the top of the food chain, but they were not the only meat-eating dinosaurs to roam North America, according to Canadian researchers w ...
Australian scientists hail triple dinosaur find
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Jul 03, 2009 |
4.5 / 5 (15) |
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Australian scientists hailed the country's most significant dinosaur discovery in decades on Friday after three new species were unearthed in a Queensland billabong.
