Related topics: fossil , tyrannosaurus rex , paleontologist , jurassic period , extinction
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
BoarCroc, RatCroc, DogCroc, DuckCroc and PancakeCroc
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Nov 19, 2009 |
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A suite of five ancient crocs, including one with teeth like boar tusks and another with a snout like a duck's bill, have been discovered in the Sahara by National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence Paul Sereno. ...
Warm-blooded dinosaurs worked up a sweat
Nov 11, 2009 |
5 / 5 (5) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Were dinosaurs endothermic (warm-blooded) like present-day mammals and birds or ectothermic (cold-blooded) like present-day lizards? The implications of this simple-sounding question go beyond ...
Bye bye 'Hogwarts dinosaur'? New analyses of dinosaur growth may wipe out one-third of species
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Oct 30, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Paleontologists from the University of California, Berkeley, and the Museum of the Rockies have wiped out two species of dome-headed dinosaur, one of them named three years ago - with great ...
Team Discovers New Dinosaur Species From Montana
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Oct 30, 2009 |
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A husband and wife team of American paleontologists has discovered a new species of dinosaur that lived 112 million years ago during the early Cretaceous of central Montana.
Researchers claim a third of dinosaurs might never have existed
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Oct 13, 2009 |
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(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 ...
Inside the First Bird, Surprising Signs of a Dinosaur
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Oct 08, 2009 |
4.3 / 5 (7) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- The raptor-like Archaeopteryx has long been viewed as the archetypal first bird, but new research reveals that it was actually a lot less “bird-like” than scientists had believed.
Paleontologists discover a new Mesozoic mammal
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Oct 08, 2009 |
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Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA…An international team of paleontologists has discovered a new species of mammal that lived 123 million years ago in what is now the Liaoning Province in northeastern China. The ...
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Origin of birds confirmed by exceptional new dinosaur fossils
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Sep 25, 2009 |
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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 ...
'Giraffe of the Mesozoic' Discovered
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Sep 08, 2009 |
4 / 5 (3) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A creature dubbed a "Giraffe of the Mesozoic" has been discovered in China. The animal, with its giraffe-like long neck and long forelimbs is the first well-preserved Early Cretaceous brachiosaurid dinosaur ...
Canadian scientist aims to turn chickens into dinosaurs
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Aug 25, 2009 |
4.1 / 5 (24) |
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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.
Crashing comets not likely the cause of Earth's mass extinctions: new research
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
Jul 30, 2009 |
3.7 / 5 (18) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have debated how many mass extinction events in Earth's history were triggered by a space body crashing into the planet's surface. Most agree that an asteroid collision 65 million ...
After dinosaurs, mammals rise but their genomes get smaller
Jul 27, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Evidence buried in the chromosomes of animals and plants strongly suggests only one group -- mammals -- have seen their genomes shrink after the dinosaurs' extinction. What's more, that trend continues today, ...
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.
54-million-year-old skull reveals early evolution of primate brains
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Jun 22, 2009 |
4.7 / 5 (14) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at the University of Florida and the University of Winnipeg have developed the first detailed images of a primitive primate brain, unexpectedly revealing that cousins of our earliest ...
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.
