Latest news with #T-rex
Irish Independent
5 days ago
- Science
- Irish Independent
Many types of dinosaur had weaker bites than thought, say researchers
Researchers found that, while dinosaurs like the mighty Tyrannosaurus rex were optimised for quick, strong bites – much like a crocodile – many others that walked on two legs, such as the Spinosaurus and Allosaurs, had much weaker bite forces. They instead specialised in slashing and ripping flesh. The research, published in the journal Current Biology, revealed that meat-eating dinosaurs followed many different evolutionary paths in terms of skull design and feeding style, despite their similarly gigantic sizes. 'Tyrannosaurs evolved skulls built for strength and crushing bites, while other lineages had comparatively weaker but more specialised skulls, suggesting a diversity of feeding strategies even at massive sizes,' said Andre Rowe, a palaeobiology research associate at the Univeristy of Bristol and one of the study's authors. 'In other words, there wasn't one 'best' skull design for being a predatory giant; several designs functioned perfectly well,' he added. In the study, scientists probed how walking on two legs influenced skull mechanics and feeding techniques in dinosaurs. 'Carnivorous dinosaurs took very different paths as they evolved into giants in terms of feeding biomechanics and possible behaviours,' Dr Rowe said. Evolution can produce multiple 'solutions' to life as a large, carnivorous biped To understand the relationship between body size and skull biomechanics, researchers used 3D X-ray scanning technology to analyse skull mechanics, and quantify the feeding performance and bite strength of 18 species of two-legged carnivorous dinosaurs ranging in size from small to giant. Researchers were surprised to find clear divergence among the species. For instance, skull stress didn't show a pattern of increase with size. Some smaller dinosaurs even experienced greater stress than the larger species due to increased muscle volume and bite force. ADVERTISEMENT 'Tyrannosaurids like T-rex had skulls that were optimised for high bite forces at the cost of higher skull stress,' Dr Rowe said. 'But in some other giants, like Giganotosaurus, we calculated stress patterns suggesting a relatively lighter bite. 'It drove home how evolution can produce multiple 'solutions' to life as a large, carnivorous biped.' 'Large tyrannosaur skulls were instead optimised like modern crocodiles, with high bite forces that crushed prey. I tend to compare Allosaurus to a modern Komodo dragon in terms of feeding style. 'This biomechanical diversity suggests that dinosaur ecosystems supported a wider range of giant carnivore ecologies than we often assume.'
Miami Herald
6 days ago
- Science
- Miami Herald
Oddity from Alabama creek is tooth of dinosaur that reached 30 feet, experts say
A 'shiny' fossil found in an Alabama creek has been identified as the tooth of a large dinosaur that doesn't quite belong at the site, experts say. Hadrosaurs were land-dwellers, but the tooth surfaced in a spot that was underwater during the age of dinosaurs, according to the Alabama Museum of Natural History. The tooth was discovered in gravel by Dr. John Friel, director of the Alabama Museum of Natural History, as he accompanied a group of fossil enthusiasts to a creek about a 50-mile drive southwest from the University of Alabama campus near Tuscaloosa. 'I have been doing these trips for the past ten years, but this was the first time I have ever found a dinosaur fossil,' Friel told McClatchy News in an email. 'When I first picked it up, I thought it was just another odd piece of bone that I would not be able to identify further. However, when I turned it over and saw that it had a shiny enameled surface with a distinctive texture, I was fairly certain it was a tooth.' Two university paleontologists were included in the group that day, and both confirmed it was likely a hadrosaur tooth, he said. Technically, it's just the base of a tooth, but it is still more than a half inch long. Hadrosaurs were duck-billed herbivores that grew to about 30 to 50 feet in length, and 'had hundreds of teeth,' Fossil Era reports. They were also fast, and 'may have been able to outrun a T-rex.' It's taken educated guesswork to explain how the tooth got in the stream. The water cuts through a layer of sediment that 'formed roughly 84 million years ago when this part of Alabama was submerged under the sea,' Friel said. Visitors typically find ancient shark's teeth and internal molds of ammonites and oyster shells. 'Dinosaur fossils are very uncommon in Alabama since there are no surface deposits of Jurassic age,' Friel said. 'All of the dinosaur fossils discovered in Alabama are thought to be of dinosaurs that died and were then washed out to sea where they were likely scavenged by sharks or other marine creatures before they were fossilized.' The tooth will likely be added to the museum's research collection and could be included in a future exhibit, he said.
Spectator
13-07-2025
- General
- Spectator
Why shouldn't we call children ‘naughty'?
As we approach the final countdown to the school summer holidays and I am faced with the prospect of lots more quality time with my almost-five-year-old, and absolutely no idea what I will fill the days with, it seems a good moment to evaluate my style of parenting and seek out some advice to help the family get through the summer with our sanities intact. These days, there is a whole animal kingdom of parenting styles to choose from: could I be an elephant mother? A panda, a jellyfish? Or the better-known tiger mum – usually associated with parents pushing their children towards over-achievement. This year my son has learned to read, write simple sentences and, significantly, will go for a poo on his own, so I feel like we have already reached the pinnacle of what can be achieved in the academic year – so not tiger for me. Besides, if I'm honest, I'm not really looking for help on how to help my son achieve his goals – especially given his biggest aim is to get me to buy him the Hot Wheels T-rex transporter (for those blissfully unaware: a giant truck with light-up, roaring-effect T-rex head). Really, where I'd be open to some advice is on the day-to-day management of the emotional fallout of being four or five. How do you deal with tantrums and meltdowns, and – the worst – prolonged whining, when your tiny tyrant shows immense resistance to reasoned argument (and you're also dealing with a two-year-old who has recently discovered the power of 'no')? Many modern parenting styles focus on managing a child's emotions and behaviour, such as the millennial favourite 'gentle parenting' – where a child's feelings are validated but parents do not use rewards or punishments. And today's parenting 'experts' also seem to prize the validation of a child's emotion above all else, allowing it to dictate how you discipline a child. My interest was piqued recently by an interview with BBC anchor turned child counsellor Kate Silverton on the Netmums podcast. She suggested that parents ban the word 'naughty', as she claims children can internalise the label and think ''I'm bad. I'm naughty'. And then it becomes: 'That's me. That's who I am.'' She concludes: 'That's where sort of delinquency comes from.' But isn't 'naughty' exactly the kind of word you need when dealing with a young child's bad behaviour? It's an adjective made for children. 'Don't throw your toys everywhere, that's naughty.' 'Don't hit your sister, that's naughty.' You are not labelling your child with a permanently naughty identity – merely explaining to them what is good and bad behaviour, in appropriate terms. And what would you say instead? To actively try not to use the word goes against your parenting instincts. I am not only looking to raise children who are 'heard', I also want to raise individuals who are well-behaved and resilient Parental instincts are not always given enough importance by those offering advice. Silverton makes some decent points about taking a moment to calm yourself so that you can react in a more measured way, and trying not to unload your own childhood emotional baggage on to your children (although that might put her out of business as a therapist). But some of her tricks and tips, such as for defusing tantrums, are cringe-inducing and even counterintuitive. Silverton offers the example of picking up her child from nursery and bringing an apple as a snack when her child wanted an orange. The child proceeds to have a tantrum, lying on the ground in front of other parents. (I feel her pain, as this week I was treated to a full meltdown after I cut my son's toast in half, when he preferred it whole.) In these scenarios, Silverton advises that you should get down with your child and attempt to match their energy as you articulate what you sense they are feeling. She calls it her 'SAS' tool: See/Sense, Acknowledge, Soothe. In the podcast, she demonstrates by adopting an exaggerated angry toddler tone: 'You are so cross right now…' Honestly, I would sooner crawl out of my own skin than do this. And in front of other parents too? Absolutely not. Surely I cannot be the only parent who thinks the key aim in a tantrum scenario is not to validate your child's emotions, but rather to correct the bad behaviour and make your child understand that throwing a tantrum is unacceptable and will not get them what they want. Naturally, I want my children to know they can talk to me about any problem, big or small. But as a mother I am not only looking to raise children who are 'heard', I also want to raise individuals who are well-behaved and resilient. Acknowledging your child needs help regulating their emotions shouldn't mean abandoning all use of negative or authoritative language. When my son made his feelings crystal clear about the injustice of having his toast cut in half and demanded a new piece of toast, I said no, it was cut toast or nothing. And eventually, he ate the toast. Look, I'm not a monster, and for the sake of a peaceful summer I'll try my hardest not to cut his toast again. But if I forget, maybe, just maybe, he won't react the same way again.
Irish Independent
09-07-2025
- Science
- Irish Independent
Rare T-rex blood vessels found in fossil show how dinosaurs healed injuries
Blood vessel structures found preserved in a T-rex fossil are helping scientists understand how dinosaurs healed from injuries. A study published recently in the journal Scientific Reports analyses structures found inside a rib bone from Scotty, the world's largest known Tyrannosaurus rex unearthed in Saskatchewan, Canada, in the 1990s.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
New species of dinosaur discovered that 'rewrites' T.rex family tree
Scientists have discovered a new species of dinosaur - in the collection of a Mongolian museum - that they say "rewrites" the evolutionary history of tyrannosaurs. Researchers concluded that two 86 million-year-old skeletons they studied belonged to a species that is now the closest known ancestor of all tyrannosaurs - the group of predators that includes the iconic The researchers named the species Khankhuuluu (pronounced khan-KOO-loo) mongoliensis, meaning Dragon Prince of Mongolia. The discovery, published in Nature, is a window into how tyrannosaurs evolved to become powerful predators that terrorised North America and Asia until the end of the reign of the dinosaurs. "'Prince' refers to this being an early, smaller tyrannosauroid," explained Prof Darla Zelenitsky, a palaeontologist from the University of Calgary in Canada. Tyrannosauroids are the superfamily of carnivorous dinosaurs that walked on two legs. The first tyrannosauroids though were tiny. PhD student Jared Voris, who led the research with Prof Zelenitsky, explained: "They were these really small, fleet-footed predators that lived in the shadows of other apex predatory dinosaurs." Khankhuuluu represents an evolutionary shift - from those small hunters that scampered around during the Jurassic period - to the formidable giants, including T-rex. It would have weighed about 750kg, while an adult could have weighed as much as eight times that, so "this is a transitional [fossil]," explained Prof Zelenitsky, "between earlier ancestors and the mighty tyrannosaurs". "It has helped us revise the tyrannosaur family tree and rewrite what we know about the evolution of tyrannosaurs," she added. The new species also shows early evolutionary stages of features that were key to the tyrannosaurs' tyranny, including skull anatomy that gave it a strong jaw. Jared Voris explained: "We see features in its nasal bone that eventually gave tyrannosaurs those very powerful bite forces." The evolution of such powerful jaws allowed T-rex to pounce on larger prey, and even bite through bone. Tyrannosaur's last meal was two baby dinosaurs Fossil reveals 240 million year-old 'dragon' Solving the mystery of a dinosaur mass grave The two partial skeletons that the team examined in this study were first discovered in Mongolia back in the early 1970s. They were initially assigned to an existing species, known as Alectrosaurus, but when Mr Voris examined them, he identified the Tyrannosaur-like features that set it apart. "I remember getting a text from him - that he thought this was a new species," recalled Prof Zelenitsky. The fact that this group of dinosaurs were able to move between North America and Asia - via land bridges that connected Siberia and Alaska at the time - also helped them to find and occupy different niches. Mr Voris explained: "That movement back and forth between the continents basically pushed the evolution of different tyrannosaur groups" over millions of years. Prof Zelinitsky added: "This discovery shows us that, before tyrannosaurs became the kings, they were they were princes."
