**古生物学家迈克尔·j·本顿(Michael J. Benton)在这篇引人入胜、通俗易懂的综述中,揭示了我们对恐龙的理解是如何被最近的化石发现和新技术所改变的。
在过去的二十年里,对恐龙的研究已经转变成一门真正的科学。新技术揭示了锁在史前骨骼中的秘密,这些秘密以前没有人能预测到。我们现在可以计算出恐龙的颜色、咬合力、运动的最快速度,甚至它们是如何照顾幼崽的。
令人瞩目的新化石发现——巴塔哥尼亚的巨型蜥脚类恐龙骨架,中国的长有羽毛的恐龙,缅甸琥珀中的一条小恐龙尾巴——仍然是现代古生物学的命脉。然而,由于技术和方法的进步,从这些化石发现中收集到的新信息的范围最近发生了一场革命。
本书中,**古生物学家迈克尔·j·本顿收集了所有最新的古生物学证据,追溯了恐龙研究从原始的自然历史到无可争议的科学领域的转变。这本书探讨了恐龙遗骸是如何被发现和挖掘的,尤其是古生物学家如何从恐龙化石中了解恐龙生活的细节——它们的颜色、它们的生长,甚至我们是否能够让它们复活。本顿的描述表明,尽管恐龙已经灭绝,但它们仍然是我们世界的重要组成部分。
In this fascinating and accessible overview, renowned paleontologist Michael J. Benton reveals how our understanding of dinosaurs is being transformed by recent fossil finds and new technology.
Over the past twenty years, the study of dinosaurs has transformed into a true scientific discipline. New technologies have revealed secrets locked in prehistoric bones that no one could have previously predicted. We can now work out the color of dinosaurs, the force of their bite, their top speeds, and even how they cared for their young.
Remarkable new fossil discoveries―giant sauropod dinosaur skeletons in Patagonia, dinosaurs with feathers in China, and a tiny dinosaur tail in Burmese amber―remain the lifeblood of modern paleobiology. Thanks to advances in technologies and methods, however, there has been a recent revolution in the scope of new information gleaned from such fossil finds.
In Dinosaurs Rediscovered, leading paleontologist Michael J. Benton gathers together all the latest paleontological evidence, tracing the transformation of dinosaur study from its roots in antiquated natural history to an indisputably scientific field. Among other things, the book explores how dinosaur remains are found and excavated, and especially how paleontologists read the details of dinosaurs’ lives from their fossils―their colors, their growth, and even whether we will ever be able to bring them back to life. Benton’s account shows that, though extinct, dinosaurs are still very much a part of our world.
120 illustrations