Blog # 6 On Dinosaurs

Growing up you couldn't catch me anywhere without my Styracosaurus. He would accompany me anywhere, in the car, in the yard, in the pool. I once threw my Styracosaurus into the water of a blowup pool during a particularly hot summer, but instead of striking the water its horny frill of spikes smashed into my brother's face. I couldn't wait to get my hands on more dinosaur toys so that the meat eaters could duel it out with the plant eaters. We would go out and play in the sand box and the Stegosaur would strategically defend itself from the ferocious attack of an Allosaur with its spiky tail and flappable armored triangles which protruded from its spine. When I wasn't outside playing I was watching dinosaur movies and envying the paleontologists like Bob Bakker, Jack Horner and Paul Sereno as they dug up new species. What lucky people, to play with dinosaurs every day of their lives. I wanted to know every species, every discovery. I wanted to find my own dinosaur and name it after me. Dinosaurs kicked butt.

Since their discovery in the 19th Century, Dinosaurs (meaning "terrible lizards") have greatly interested the child as well as the adult world. They were the monsters of the Earth from which only bones and footprints remain. We will never be able to observe them, watch them run, know what color their skin was, or if they would have been afraid of us. The images we see in Jurassic Park film try to portray what we think they may have looked like. Still, the head of the Tyrannosaurus Rex is way too big. Through creativity and science, paleontologists have been able to study these long extinct animals and have realized how bizarre they were, especially in the evolutionary chain. Some of the beasts grew feathers and fossils of Archaeopteryx revealed a winged lizard. These large beasts were considered to be lethargic, sluggish and barely movable. Further research has been done to reveal highly vascular bone structures along with other adaptations to show that these "lizards" were not poikilotherms (or cold-blooded) but were actually homeotherms (warm-blooded).

I frequently stroll through the toy section in Wal-Mart or Target to see what kids are playing with now. Transformers and WWE action figures litter the isles of the boys section. Even those dumb Power Rangers toys still make the shelf, probably on their thirteenth edition. Next to them are the Angry Birds stuffed animals. Where are the T-Rex, or Triceratops, or Brontosaurus? My main question though is whether kids even play with toys anymore or if the only entertainment they find enjoyment in is video games and movies. The LCD screens light up their eyes as they drive with their dorky parents past the Grand Tetons en route to Yellowstone and Bozeman, MT. Their minds will continue to chew on how to beat the next level while being dragged against their will across the Bad Lands, not thinking that a terrible lizard could be buried just below his or her feet. The discoveries that could be made, will they continue to be found by our younger generation, or are digital images the only future for them?