The Evolution and Extinction of the Dinosaurs - Hardcover

Fastovsky, David E.; Weishampel, David B.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0521444969 ISBN 13: 9780521444965

Publisher: Cambridge University Press, 1996

Synopsis

This is a comprehensive treatment of dinosaurs designed to be used mainly as a textbook for students in first or second year undergraduate courses, although non-specialists are also sure to find the book of great interest. Nonetheless, it is unique in that it truly portrays dinosaurs from a specialist viewpoint. It is the only comprehensive text that takes an explicitly phylogenetic approach to this group. The geological context of dinosaurs is also stressed, and dinosaurs are presented in the context of contemporary plate tectonic and climatic settings. The authors also cover topics of interest in dinosaur palaeobiology, 'hot-blooded' dinosaurs, aspects of dinosaur functional morphology and the relationships of dinosaurs to birds. All of the discussion is couched in lively and accessible language, and the book is lavishly illustrated by specially commissioned line drawings and colour plates that show dinosaurs in a variety of natural settings.

About this title

Book Description:

A comprehensive student text book on dinosaurs that non-specialists will find fascinating. The dinosaurs are discussed within an explicitly phylogenetic framework but they are also presented in the context of their geology, contemporary plate tectonic and climatic settings. The discussion is lively and accessible, and the book is lavishly illustrated by many line drawings and colour plates.

About the Author:

David Fastovsky is Professor of Geology at the University of Rhode Island and tutor at the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico. His interest in dinosaurs started as a child when he read about a 1920s fossil collector's adventures in the Gobi Desert. Dinosaurs won out years later when he had the tough decision of choosing between a career in music (he takes his viola on his many field trips) or paleontology, and he has had many of his own adventures in far-flung parts of the world. He is known as a dynamic teacher as well as a respected researcher with a focus on the environments in which dinosaurs roamed. When dinosaur fossils are found he is called on to reconstruct the place where they lived. He has made several television documentary appearances, and was presented with the Distinguished Service Award by the Geological Society of America in 2006.

David B. Weishampel is professor in the Center for Functional Anatomy and Evolution at The Johns Hopkins University. His research focuses on dinosaur evolution and how dinosaurs function and he is particularly interested in herbivorous dinosaurs and the dinosaur record of Europe. Among his many publications he is senior editor of The Dinosauria and has contributed to a number of popular publications including acting as consultant to Michael Crichton in the writing of The Lost World, the inspiration for Steven Spielberg's film Jurassic Park.

John Sibbick has been creating illustrations of extinct life forms and their environments for over twenty years, producing numerous books on dinosaurs, as well as pterosaurs, and general books on prehistoric life. His work has appeared in scientific magazines, such as National Geographic, and in television documentaries and museums world-wide.

About this edition

• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Publication date: 1996
• ISBN 10: 0521444969
• ISBN 13: 9780521444965
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 479