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Biology · Palaeontology

Dinosaur Dig

Dig a fossil out of layered rock, fit its bones together, read speed from footprints and date the rock with a half-life clock.

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First lesson01 · What counts as a fossilSee all 28 lessons →

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The course

7 worlds · 28 lessons

World 1 · How a Fossil Forms

FREEBody fossils and trace fossils, the race between rotting and burial, rock layers and deep time
  1. 01What counts as a fossilBody fossils, trace fossils and the missing majority · 9 min
  2. 02From carcass to fossilThe race between rotting and burial · 10 min
  3. 03Rock layers: where fossils hideSedimentary rock, superposition and index fossils · 10 min
  4. 04Deep time and the age of dinosaursThe Mesozoic on a clock · 11 min

World 2 · Dig It Up

PROProspecting, the excavation grid, brushes and plaster jackets, and the preparation lab
  1. 01Where to look, and why permits matterProspecting, context and the rules · 10 minPRO
  2. 02The excavation gridSquares, datum points and maps · 10 minPRO
  3. 03Brushes, glue and plaster jacketsTaking a fossil out in one piece · 10 minPRO
  4. 04In the lab: preparation, scanning and castsWhat happens after the jacket · 10 minPRO

World 3 · Build a Dinosaur

PROBones and joints, the two hip types, a T. rex skeleton, balance and body mass
  1. 01Bones, joints and the two hipsSaurischia, Ornithischia and standing upright · 11 minPRO
  2. 02Build a T. rexFitting bones into an animal · 11 minPRO
  3. 03Pose and balance: dragging tail or level tail?Centre of mass and a century of mistakes · 11 minPRO
  4. 04How big was it? Estimating massBones as scales, and honest error bars · 11 minPRO

World 4 · Footprints Tell Speed

PROTrackways, hip height from footprint length, Alexander’s formula and the walk, trot, run question
  1. 01Trackways: frozen momentsWhat a line of footprints can tell you · 10 minPRO
  2. 02From footprint to hip heightA rule of thumb with honest error bars · 10 minPRO
  3. 03Alexander’s speed formulaStride length, hip height and speed · 12 minPRO
  4. 04Walk, trot or run?Relative stride length and the T. rex speed debate · 12 minPRO

World 5 · Teeth Tell Diet

PROTooth shapes, the jaw as a lever, plant-eating tricks and reading bite marks
  1. 01Teeth shapes and dietBlades, bananas, leaves and batteries · 10 minPRO
  2. 02Bite force and jaw leversA lever, a muscle and a very wide range · 11 minPRO
  3. 03Plant-eaters’ tricksBatteries, beaks and long necks · 10 minPRO
  4. 04Hunter or scavenger? Reading bite marksHow scientists weigh evidence · 11 minPRO

World 6 · Feathers, Birds and Extinction

PROFeathers before flight, Archaeopteryx, the asteroid at the K–Pg boundary and the survivors
  1. 01Feathers before flightFossils with filaments, vanes and quill knobs · 11 minPRO
  2. 02Archaeopteryx and the dinosaur–bird treeBirds are living dinosaurs · 11 minPRO
  3. 03The asteroid at the K–Pg boundaryEvidence for an impact 66 million years ago · 12 minPRO
  4. 04Survivors and what came nextBirds, mammals and empty ecological niches · 10 minPRO

World 7 · How Old Is That Bone?

PRORelative dating, half-life, the uranium–lead clock and choosing the right method
  1. 01Relative dating and index fossilsBefore and after, without years · 10 minPRO
  2. 02Half-life: the atomic clockDecay, halving and the age equation · 12 minPRO
  3. 03Dating volcanic ash around the fossilThe sandwich method and the uranium–lead clock · 12 minPRO
  4. 04Why not carbon-14?Choosing the right clock · 10 minPRO
Dinosaur Dig — interactive 3D lab · Novareka