How long ago the dinosaurs died

[Pattielli]

Would you please tell me when those animals completely got killed ?
Can you please give me some links to sites that you think good to start with, where I can read a little about this ? I honestly don't know anything about this, or know if this thread would be right to be placed here...Since I have read some threads here about big bang which people consider the main cause for killing these big animals, I create one in here...

Thank you very much,

 

[Janitor]

The number I have memorized is 65 million years ago. There seems to have been a major catastrophe on Earth at that time, maybe an asteroid strike. A lot of the dinosaurs disappear from the fossil record at that time. Yet there are plenty of birds in the world today, and it is thought that they are descendants of dinosaurs, so I guess not all the dinos bit the dust.

If you are using the words "Big Bang" to mean the usual thing, you are talking about a process that got the universe started, and since it came so many billions of years before life on earth, it cannot be fingered as the culprit in any extinctions.

EDIT: spelling error

 

[Pattielli]

Okay, honestly speaking,
I yesterday attended presentations by juniors of CS department in my school. I was really amazed and found it fun, so much fun, when I watched some of them execute their programs simulating the prehistoric environment in which there were different kinds of dinosaurs and and their preys. It was so funny because they could run around chasing their enemies and their food. But when there was a big bang, the environement got deserted and all red, flames were everywhere, no life anymore...I find it really interesting and that might lead me to asking some questions here, hopefully I can get any help from you, any words or instructions are all really appreaciated.

Thank you,

 

[wasteofo2]

The big bang dispersed all the matter in the universe, which later formed the universe as we know it now. This was not what killed the Dinosaurs

There are many theories on how the dinosaurs died, as far as I can tell, at this point the main theory is that a large meteor hit earth, causing massive amounts of debris to fly into the air, blocking out the sun for a long period of time. This killed off most plant life and cooled the earth, and as a result, killed off most of the dinosaurs (along with about 70% of all life on the planet). Janitor was right with the 65 million years ago.

Of course, not all dinosaurs died, there was a kind of dinosaur called an Archaeopteryx (and likely others simmilar to it), which apparently survived and evolved into the birds we now have. http://home.att.net/~spam.football/articles_files/image017.jpg

I learned a lot of what I know abuot dinosaurs at a very young age (from earlier than I can remember till around 9), and I knew a lot. I found the discovery channel special "Walking With Dinosuars" very informative and well done. They give a very good, easily understandable, explanation of how the dinosaurs came about, how they evolved, how they lived and how they died. That would be a good starting point, and the great computer animations don't hurt either.

 

[Pattielli]

I am sorry, I mistook the words "big bang", I thought it was just a stars collision that led to the extinction of many prehistoric species on earth...
I am really sorry about that...

 

[Pattielli]

Thanks wasteofo2 a lot for your information, :sm:

 

[Pattielli]

Can anyone please tell me more about dinosaurs ?

Thank you,

 

[Phobos]

There is a ton of information about dinosaurs available. Sounds like you should start with an encyclopedia or a popular book by a well known paleontologist (e.g., Jack Horner, Bob Bakker) and see where that takes you. I agree that "Walking With Dinosaurs" is probably a good & fun intro too. Watch out for internet sources...some are great & some are nonsense.

"Dinosaur" is a general term for those land-dwelling, reptile-like animals that lived from about 230 to 65 million years ago. There are many different classifications that "dinosaurs" are subdivided into. They were a very successful animal type and they diversified into many shapes & sizes (species), as hinted at by movies like Jurassic Park (of course, that is still Hollywood, not science...but they did consult with some scientists on some things). Dinos weren't reptiles, but dinos & reptiles had a close common ancestor, which explains their similarities.

65 million years ago, the dinosaurs may or may not have already been in hard times when a 6-mile asteroid or comet hit the Earth. All the big dinos died off in the aftermath. Some of the smaller bird-like ones survived & are the ancestors of today's birds.

We keep finding out more & more about dinos and yet there are still many big debates going on. Were they warm blooded or cold blooded or something in between? Were they fast or slow? How did they behave? Are they really the ancestors of modern birds?

Enjoy.

 

[Pattielli]

Again Thanks Phobos a lot, :sm: