GEO270 DINOSAURS!
Fall 2019
TR, 12:30-1:45; SIMS 201
Instructor: Dr. Diana Boyer
e-mail: boyerd@winthrop.edu
Office: 212B Sims
Office Hours: Tues 9:00-11:00 and by appointment
Course Objective: The goal of
this course it to introduce you to fundamentals of dinosaur paleontology
including evolution, classification and extinction of this amazing group of
reptiles. This will include discussions of the life and times of dinosaurs.
What I am most excited about is our discussions of how we acquire information about
extinct animals. For example, behavior, diet, color and use of enigmatic
features- e.g. plates on Stegosaurus, what are they used for? You will also
leave this class with the tools to track down primary sources for scientific
information and the ability to tackle this type of literature. You will also
have an appreciation for science in the popular media and how to go beyond the
headlines.
Text: Fastovsky, D. and Weishampel, D.B, 2016, Dinosaurs: a
concise natural history, Cambridge University Press, third edition, 477p. REQUIRED
Grading:
Participation and assignments 20%
2 exams 40%
Quizzes 20%
Final Exam 20%
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Tentative
schedule of topics* |
Readings* |
Assignments due* |
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Aug 20 |
Paleontology, intro to geology |
Ch 1 |
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Aug 22 |
Science and Geologic time |
Ch 2 |
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Aug 27 |
Climate |
Ch 2 |
Climate
evidence |
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Aug 29 |
Evolution and Cladistics |
Ch 3 |
Climate paper |
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Sep 3 |
Dino Anatomy |
Ch 3 |
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Sep 5 |
Road to the dinosaurs |
Ch 4,5 |
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Sep 10 |
Early
Dinosaurs, Intro to Saurischia |
Ch 5, p106-107 |
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Sep 12 |
Theropods-meaty
and scary |
Ch 6 |
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Sep 17 |
More
theropods and T rex |
Ch 6, 7 |
Beady eyes |
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Sep 19 |
Theropods and feathers |
Chap 6, 7 |
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Sep 24 |
Exam 1 |
Ch 1-7 |
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Sep 26 |
Dinos are birds |
Ch 8 |
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Oct 1 |
Can you out
run a T rex? |
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trackway data |
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Oct 3 |
Sauropodomorpha |
Ch 9 |
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Oct 8 |
More long
necks |
Ch 9 |
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Oct 10 |
Intro to Ornithischia,
Thyreophorans |
p. 228-236 Ch 10 |
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Oct 15 |
No Class Fall Break |
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Oct 17 |
Stegosaur & Ankylosaur |
Ch 10 |
Stego plates |
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Oct 22 |
Marginocephalia-Pachycephalia |
Ch 11 |
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Oct 24 |
Marginocephalia-Triceratops
& friends |
Ch 11 |
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Oct 29 |
Ornithopods and nests |
Ch 12 |
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Oct 31 |
Exam 2 |
Ch 8-12 |
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Nov 5 |
Endothermy vs
ectothermy |
Ch 13 |
Endo-ecto evidence |
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Nov 7 |
dino diversity |
Ch 14 |
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Nov 12 |
K-Pg Extinction |
Ch 16 |
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Nov 14 |
History
of Dino Paleontology |
Ch 15 |
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Nov 19 |
Dinos and pop
culture |
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Nov 21 |
Review |
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Nov 24 |
No Class Thanksgiving |
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Nov 26 |
No Class Thanksgiving |
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Dec 3 |
Study day |
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Dec 5 |
Final exam Thurs 11:30 |
Ch 1-16 |
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* Schedule is subject to change