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Author | Steve Brusatte |
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Illustrator | Todd Marshall |
Subject | Evolution and extinction of dinosaurs |
Publisher | Mariner Books |
Publication date | 2018 |
Pages | 416 |
ISBN | 978-0-06-249043-8 |
The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs: A New History of a Lost World is a 2018 book by paleontologist Steve Brusatte. The book chronicles the evolution of dinosaurs, their rise as the dominant species, and ends with an account of their extinction from the Chicxulub asteroid. It also includes a discussion of the evolution of feathered dinosaurs and birds' descent from dinosaurs, and an epilogue of sorts discussing the post-dinosaur emergence of mammals. Brusatte includes anecdotes from his own dinosaur-obsessed childhood and his fieldwork and research, as well as descriptions of other historical and modern paleontologists responsible for various discoveries.
It received strongly positive reviews, praising the author's enthusiasm, vivid writing, and up-to-date research. A few reviewers criticized the focus on big-name dinosaurs such as T. rex at the expense of breadth.
The author, Steve Brussatte, is a paleontologist at the University of Edinburgh. [1] A review in The Times described him as "a man who ranks as one of the leading experts in his field: a palaeontologist who seems to have studied with all the greats and to have dug up fossils everywhere that matters." [2] He became interested in dinosaurs as a teenager, not a young child like many palaeontologists, so he read adult popular science books, which he described as a "gateway into science". He wanted to write an up-to-date book on "the whole evolutionary story of dinosaurs" that would fill that niche and cover new discoveries, which hadn't been written about in that format. [3]
The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs was Brusatte's first book for a popular adult audience, but he had written a number of popular science articles and several children's books. [4] It was published in 2018 by Mariner Books, an imprint of HarperCollins. The cover was designed by Mumtaz Mustafa and illustrated by Todd Marshal. [5]
The book begins with the evolution of proto-dinosaurs and dinosaurs' emergence from the Permian-Triassic extinction. The early dinosaurs were not very successful. They became the dominant animals at the beginning of the Jurassic period, which was marked by a mass extinction of many of their competitors. After covering this evolution, he discusses the speciation of dinosaurs in the Jurassic, with an especial focus on sauropods. The author then spends two chapters describing the evolution and characteristics of Tyrannosaurus rex and its ancestors, his "favorite dinosaur". [4]
In the next chapter he emphasizes that dinosaurs did not go extinct, but rather continue today as birds. He discusses various discoveries of feathered dinosaurs, how the scientific consensus came to agree that they were the ancestors of modern birds, and the evolution of wings and flight.
The last chapter deals with the end of the dinosaurs, with a detailed description of the first few days after the asteroid impact that scientists now believe caused their extinction and the longer-term climate effects. He also discusses why the dinosaurs died out while other animals did not, the history of our understanding of the causes of dinosaur extinction, and competing theories. The epilogue covers the rise of mammals after the dinosaur extinction, the subject of Brusatte's next book The Rise and Reign of the Mammals. Writing for the London Review of Books , Francis Goodling comments on the epilogue that "dinosaurs frequently appear as an ambiguous proxy for contemporary human concerns ... here Brusatte is no different from his predecessors." [6]
Reviewers generally praised Brusatte's writing, with several calling it "vivid". [4] [7] Tom Holland at The Times and other reviewers especially singled out his ability to describe paleontological landscapes. [2] [8] The Christian Science Monitor praised his "narrative exuberance" and "completely winning blend of technical expertise and storytelling ability". [1]
Several other reviewers also commented on the author's command of modern research and "ability to write in plain English". [8] Holland called it a "readable and up-to-date survey of the current state of palaeontological knowledge" which "grippingly ... demonstrates the quickening pace of research". He also calls it "the best book on the subject written for the general reader since Robert Bakker's The Dinosaur Heresies back in the 1980s." [2] Oliver Moody at The Times likewise praised Brusatte's "steering a course between pedantry and patronizing oversimplification with flair". [7] A review in Systematic Biology strongly praises source notes at the end of the book, in which Brusatte provides a brief summary of the primary sources he uses, calling it "an innovative attempt to directly engage readers with the scientific research". [9]
Brusatte focuses heavily on anecdotes about modern paleontologists from his own life, leading one review to call the book "part autobiography and part popular science". [4] This split reviewers, with Steve Donoghue at the Christian Science Monitor finding the stories "interesting and amusing" [1] and Ira Flatow writing for The New York Times claiming they "made the book special", [10] while Moody writes that "there are too many humdrum anecdotes that involve Brusatte jogging to catch trains in foreign countries, or men sitting in the desert drinking beer, or men standing around in conference centres drinking spirits. He is also so nice about his colleagues that it makes you long for a juicy academic vendetta or some Lucky Jim -style campus theatrics". [7] A review in Systematic Biology complains that the book "at times seems a review of his and his colleagues' accomplishments" but nevertheless calls it overall "captivating". [9]
Several reviewers criticized Brusatte's focus on T. rex and other "celebrity" [9] clades, with one reviewer complaining that they "got somewhat out-T. rexed". [4] [11]
In a rare negative review, Verlyn Klinkenborg criticizes Brusatte's pop-science metaphors. She describes the book as "a lost world of [Brusatte's] own, where metaphors war anachronistically in defiance of what scientists understand". [12]
The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs was a New York Times bestseller. [13]
Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the evolution of dinosaurs is a subject of active research. They became the dominant terrestrial vertebrates after the Triassic–Jurassic extinction event 201.3 mya and their dominance continued throughout the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods. The fossil record shows that birds are feathered dinosaurs, having evolved from earlier theropods during the Late Jurassic epoch, and are the only dinosaur lineage known to have survived the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event approximately 66 mya. Dinosaurs can therefore be divided into avian dinosaurs—birds—and the extinct non-avian dinosaurs, which are all dinosaurs other than birds.
The Jurassic is a geologic period and stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period 201.4 million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately 145 Mya. The Jurassic constitutes the middle period of the Mesozoic Era and is named after the Jura Mountains, where limestone strata from the period were first identified.
Jurassic Park is a 1993 American science fiction action film directed by Steven Spielberg, produced by Kathleen Kennedy and Gerald R. Molen, and starring Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum, and Richard Attenborough. It is the first installment in the Jurassic Park franchise, and the first film in the original Jurassic Park trilogy, and is based on Michael Crichton's 1990 novel of the same name, with a screenplay by Crichton and David Koepp. The film is set on the fictional island of Isla Nublar, off Central America's Pacific Coast near Costa Rica, where a wealthy businessman John Hammond (Attenborough), and a team of genetic scientists have created a wildlife park of de-extinct dinosaurs. When industrial sabotage leads to a catastrophic shutdown of the park's power facilities and security precautions, a small group of visitors, including Hammond's grandchildren, struggle to survive and escape the now perilous island.
John Robert Horner is an American paleontologist most famous for describing Maiasaura, providing the first clear evidence that some dinosaurs cared for their young. In addition to his paleontological discoveries, Horner served as the technical advisor for the first five Jurassic Park films, had a cameo appearance in Jurassic World, and served as a partial inspiration for one of the lead characters of the franchise, Dr. Alan Grant. Horner studied at the University of Montana, although he did not complete his degree due to undiagnosed dyslexia, and was awarded a Doctorate in Science honoris causa. He retired from Montana State University on July 1, 2016, although he claims to have been pushed out of the Museum of the Rockies after having married an undergraduate student and now teaches as a Presidential Fellow at Chapman University.
Robert Thomas Bakker is an American paleontologist who helped reshape modern theories about dinosaurs, particularly by adding support to the theory that some dinosaurs were endothermic (warm-blooded). Along with his mentor John Ostrom, Bakker was responsible for initiating the ongoing "dinosaur renaissance" in paleontological studies, beginning with Bakker's article "Dinosaur Renaissance" in the April 1975 issue of Scientific American. His specialty is the ecological context and behavior of dinosaurs.
Dilong is a genus of basal tyrannosauroid dinosaur. The only species in this genus is Dilong paradoxus. It is from the Lower Cretaceous Yixian Formation near Lujiatun, Beipiao, in the western Liaoning province of China. It lived about 126 million years ago. This theropod discovery was significant as it was one of the first tyrannosauroids with fossil evidence of simple feathers.
Gregory Scott Paul is an American freelance researcher, author and illustrator who works in paleontology. He is best known for his work and research on theropod dinosaurs and his detailed illustrations, both live and skeletal. Professionally investigating and restoring dinosaurs for three decades, Paul received an on-screen credit as dinosaur specialist on Jurassic Park and Discovery Channel's When Dinosaurs Roamed America and Dinosaur Planet. He is the author and illustrator of Predatory Dinosaurs of the World (1988), The Complete Illustrated Guide to Dinosaur Skeletons (1996), Dinosaurs of the Air (2001), three editions of The Princeton Field Guide to Dinosaurs, Gregory S. Paul's Dinosaur Coffee Table Book (2010), The Princeton Field Guide to Pterosaurs (2022), The Princeton Field Guide to Mesozoic Sea Reptiles (2022) and editor of The Scientific American Book of Dinosaurs (2000).
In the geological timescale, the Tithonian is the latest age of the Late Jurassic Epoch and the uppermost stage of the Upper Jurassic Series. It spans the time between 149.2 ±0.7 Ma and 145.0 ± 4 Ma. It is preceded by the Kimmeridgian and followed by the Berriasian.
The New Dinosaurs: An Alternative Evolution is a 1988 speculative evolution book written by Scottish geologist and palaeontologist Dougal Dixon and illustrated by several illustrators including Amanda Barlow, Peter Barrett, John Butler, Jeane Colville, Anthony Duke, Andy Farmer, Lee Gibbons, Steve Holden, Philip Hood, Martin Knowelden, Sean Milne, Denys Ovenden and Joyce Tuhill. The book also features a foreword by Desmond Morris. The New Dinosaurs explores a hypothetical alternate Earth, complete with animals and ecosystems, where the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event never occurred, leaving non-avian dinosaurs and other Mesozoic animals an additional 65 million years to evolve and adapt over the course of the Cenozoic to the present day.
Carcharodontosauridae is a group of carnivorous theropod dinosaurs. In 1931, Ernst Stromer named Carcharodontosauridae as a family, which, in modern paleontology, indicates a clade within Carnosauria. Carcharodontosaurids include some of the largest land predators ever known: Giganotosaurus, Mapusaurus, Carcharodontosaurus, and Tyrannotitan all rivaled Tyrannosaurus in size. Estimates give a maximum weight of 8–10 metric tons for the largest carcharodontosaurids, while the smallest carcharodontosaurids were estimated to have weighed at least 500 kilograms (1,100 lb).
Tyrannosaurus rex is unique among dinosaurs in its place in modern culture; paleontologist Robert Bakker has called it "the most popular dinosaur among people of all ages, all cultures, and all nationalities". Paleontologists Mark Norell and Lowell Dingus have likewise called it "the most famous dinosaur of all times." Paleoartist Gregory S. Paul has called it "the theropod. [...] This is the public's favorite dinosaur [...] Even the formations it is found in have fantastic names like Hell Creek and Lance." Other paleontologists agree with that and note that whenever a museum erects a new skeleton or bring in an animatronic model, visitor numbers go up. "Jurassic Park and King Kong would not have been the same without it." In the public mind, T. rex sets the standard of what a dinosaur should be. Science writer Riley Black similarly states, "In all of prehistory, there is no animal that commands our attention quite like Tyrannosaurus rex, the king of the tyrant lizards. Since the time this dinosaur was officially named in 1905, the enormous carnivore has stood as the ultimate dinosaur."
Stephen Louis Brusatte FRSE is an American paleontologist and evolutionary biologist who specializes in the anatomy and evolution of dinosaurs. He was educated at the University of Chicago for his Bachelor's degree, at the University of Bristol for his Master's of Science on a Marshall Scholarship, and finally at the Columbia University for Master's in Philosophy and Doctorate. He is currently Professor of Palaeontology and Evolution at the University of Edinburgh. In April 2024, Brusatte was elected to fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.
Edwin Harris "Ned" Colbert was a distinguished American vertebrate paleontologist and prolific researcher and author.
The Princeton Field Guide to Dinosaurs is a reference work on dinosaurs written by the paleontologist and paleoartist Gregory S. Paul. It was first published by Princeton University Press in 2010. In the United Kingdom it was published by A & C Black under the title Dinosaurs: A Field Guide. An updated second edition was released in 2016. A third edition was released in 2024.
Aurornis is an extinct genus of anchiornithid theropod dinosaurs from the Jurassic period of China. The genus Aurornis contains a single known species, Aurornis xui. Aurornis xui may be the most basal ("primitive") avialan dinosaur known to date, and it is one of the earliest avialans found to date. The fossil evidence for the animal pre-dates that of Archaeopteryx lithographica, often considered the earliest bird species, by about 10 million years.
How to Build a Dinosaur: Extinction Doesn't Have to Be Forever is a 2009 book by paleontologist Jack Horner and James Gorman. The book outlines Horner's theory for being able to resurrect a maniraptoran dinosaur by altering the genes of a chicken embryo. In 2010, a paperback version was published under the title How to Build a Dinosaur: The New Science of Reverse Evolution.
Jurassic World Evolution is a construction and management simulation video game developed and published by Frontier Developments. Based on the 2015 film Jurassic World, the game was released in June 2018, for PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One. A Nintendo Switch port of the game was released in November 2020. In the game, players construct a dinosaur park on Las Cinco Muertes Archipelago, a group of five islands also known as the "Five Deaths". The game features more than 40 types of dinosaurs; their genes can be modified to introduce new features. Players are given contracts to fulfill by three divisions, Science, Security and Entertainment, allowing them to progress. A sandbox mode set on Isla Nublar, the setting of the first and fourth films, can be unlocked. It can also be used from the main menu without having to be unlocked.
The biogeography of Paravian dinosaurs is the study of the global distribution of Paraves through geological history. Paraves is a clade that includes all of the Theropoda that are more closely related to birds than to oviraptorosaurs. These include Dromaeosauridae and Troodontidae and Avialae. The distribution of paraves is closely related to the evolution of the clade. Understanding the changes in their distributions may shed light on problems like how and why paraves evolve, eventually gaining the ability to fly.
Jurassic Park, later also referred to as Jurassic World, is an American science fiction adventure media franchise. It focuses on the cloning of dinosaurs through ancient DNA, extracted from mosquitoes that have been fossilized in amber. The franchise explores the ethics of cloning and genetic engineering, and the morals behind de-extinction.