Experts Concluse that Asteroid Impact Wiped Out Dinosaurs

This 'Impact Theory of Mass Extinction' is discussed since about 30 years.

Another group of experts (e.g. Gerta Keller/Princetown and colleagues) denies this strongly, having the theory that volcano outbursts in India led to the end of dinos.

And that's what actually just happened after that above quoted report was published last week: the discussion goes on ...

Actually, theories as to what wiped dinosaurs from the face of the planet range from super volcanoes through to asteroid impact and prehistoric climate change. When you look at the papers of last Friday, you'll find 'experts' with "secure" findings 'proving' each ...
(Keller seems to prefer a combined theory now since she noted that a combination of the two theories could provide the ultimate answer:
"The dinosaurs might have faced an unfortunate coincidence of a one-two punch - of Deccan volcanism and then a hit from space,
We just show the Deccan eruptions might have had a significant impact - no pun intended.")

Interesting. Thanks.

What actually killed the dinosaurs was summed up by David Raup the best

1Dinosaurs were a bad idea to begin with

2They had gone on quite long enough.

The dinosaurians were going extinct from the Cenomanian all theway to the Maastrichtean They were doing it in a family by family basis. Certain species disappeared from the fossil record well before the bolide "smackdown" at the end of the MAastrichtian. Hoever, now that we know that such a bolide did indeed exist it became a convenient event indicator to end the K and begin the earliest Paleocene.

Several classes of mammals also disappeared in this time interval.

I dont think that the magazine will stop the KT controversy. Its what fuels symposia.


PS, Walter, its PRINCETON , that is the name of the town as well.

I love that!

Knew/know that it was one of my "thinking-loud-writing-wrong" typos ...

oh, nevermine then. I can unnerstand creative spelling. Ive been a student for yeasr.


BTW, all the remaining AMMONITES (4 genera) became extinct at this same time pwriod, xcept their ending was not as gradual as the dinosaurs. These guys abruptly went extinct and the show fossil wevidence of the fact that their rntire oceans were losing bicarbonate ion.

Part of the meteor theory is that it caused the volcanic activity on the other side of the world by shock waves through the centre. I have always been suspicious of a single event theory because if you make it big enough to wipe out the dinosaurs it makes it difficult to make it small enough for any land life to survive. Why did delicate little frogs survive ? Multiple blows seem most plausible.

The recent arrival of flowers adding chemicals that weaken the egg shell to the diet of plant eaters is one that springs to mind. Why did the grasses take hold at the same time ? What stopped the ferns from coming back ? It was a time of great change, not just with animal life.

The dinosaurs were a good idea, they had evolved night vision, depth perception, cold adaptations, feathers, flight, and so on...a long list. If you have to go with one event, go with the evolution of a virus or bacteria that they were susceptible to and in conjunction with territory destroying events (esp for migratory animals), they snuffed it.

Thats it!
The dinos all turned Gay when flowers started to appear then developed got Aids

Doh ! (slaps forehead) why didnt i see it before ! We are doomed people !! Repent now ! Take your anti-gay pills before it is too late ! Forget the gourd, the sandal is the true sign !!!

A little bit of me died when I read that.

Dont believe it Seed. One dinasaur might have been as intelligent as us by now. (thinks...was it called the troodon ?)

I've seen Jurassic Park a million times over. I saw how the raptor opened the door. From what I have seen around here, that's smarter then some of the members posting on these boards.

DAve Raup is one of the really great paleontologists whose spent a lifetime studying such drivvle. Hes allowed a wacked out sense of the absurd .

HE is probably the top expert on extinctions of species and his comment to that is "NAture always bats last"

What drivel would that be ?

Isn't drivvle a Jewish verb used for Jewish basketball players and their fancy ball handling?

If it was jewish wouldnt it be written - elvvird ??

Vertebrate paleontology is for totally life-free individuals.