Thank you, Pippin14, for the article!!
This article is basically discussing whether dinosaurs were cold-blooded or warm-blooded. Dinosaurs seem cold-blooded, but in my opinion, they seem to be so different from the regular reptile of this day that anything may be possible! Apparently, a study from the journal PLoS ONE stated that they were probably warm-blooded. Being warm-blooded, dinosaurs would have been able to move fast and live in colder climates, but they would have to eat more. This seems like an adequate description of some of them to me! Some scientists decided to find out for sure. Of course, this issue is something that will probably be debated on for a while, but this study may bring some interesting evidence to light. Personally, I think that dinosaurs are probably earm-blooded; they are more like birds than we thought possible before, yet it's true! Warm blooded animals have a higher energy rate than cold-blooded. The scientists concluded that if they found out how much energy dinosaurs spent when walking or running, they would have a better chance of determining the type of blood. To me, it seems an impossible task, but then again, the computer seemed impossible in the 18 century, yet here we are! The scientists did find a way in the end. Energy cost of walking and such is strongly related to the leg size. Using the bones, the scientists found reliable information. To me, it seems that it would be difficult to find a collective answer, as all the dinosaurs have different size legs. Still, I'd trust a scientist over my judgement! Also, they decided to use another method where they would compare the weight of the legs to what they thought was the speed. However, they had to do a lot of tests to estimate the amount of muscle in the legs. Using their basic principles of locomotion, the scientists examined 13 different dinosaur species, and compared their results to other warm-blooded dinosaurs of today. This seemed very exciting work; the scientists were probably more impatient than I am to know the result! Finally, they found the answer: both experiments suggested strongly that dinosaurs were warm-blooded. Surprisingly (to me too), it showed also that this may have been a trait that dinosaurs inherited. The scientists think that this is why they had such a successful time during their reign. I think that it also showed that the warm-blooded animals are more successful than the cold-blooded. Dinosaurs were the top in their time, then came birds, then mammals, and all were warm-blooded! This new study has provided us with a different outlook in dinosaurs. I believe that this information is revolutionary, as it gives us so much information, and also leads us to as many questions.
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