Reference no: EM133207793 , Length: Word count: 2 Pages

Assignment Task: Dinosaur Extinction Theory

The theory explaining the extinction of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago involves several aspects of the scientific method, geology, paleontology, physics, chemistry, astronomy, oceanography, biology, & history. The video, "The Day the Mesozoic Died" goes through the not-so-straightforward-journey in putting together all the pieces of the puzzle resulting in the creation of the theory.

-What Killed All the Dinosaurs?-

The disappearance of the dinosaurs at the end of the Cretaceous period posed one of the greatest, long-standing scientific mysteries. This 3-act film tells the story of the extraordinary detective work that solved it.

After viewing the video, "The Day the Mesozoic Died" answers the following questions:

1. What type of common ocean plankton fossil did Walter Alvarez initially analyze as a marker of geologic time in his discovery of the end of the dinosaur age?

2. The "K-T Boundary" designates the dividing line between the Mesozoic Era (age of dinosaurs: 252 million years ago - 65 million years ago) and the Cezozoic Era (age of mammals: 65 million years ago - present). What does "K-T" stand for?

3. In the journey towards discovering the reason for the end of the dinosaurs, the different scientific disciplines of geology, physics, biology, chemistry, and paleontology all came into play. How did the element "iridium" connect to the hypothesis?

4. Evidence of the existence of spherules, shock quartz, and tektites were used to further refine the location of the impact crater. What were the estimated age of the crater, and the estimated size of the asteroid that made the crater? What is the approximate size and where is the location of the "Chicxulub Crater"?

5. After the asteroid impact, dinosaurs became extinct; why did smaller animals initially survive?

6. This example of mass extinction occurring about 65 million years ago shows us that it's not necessarily the "survival of the fittest" but in this case, survival of the ....?

7. Explain how you think the scientific method was used in coming up with the theory of the extinction of the dinosaurs. Discuss some of the complications involved in the journey towards this idea.

8. How did the interactions between the different types of scientists complicate this scientific process?

9. So after all those discoveries and research involved in the theory, is the idea that a meteorite impact caused the extinction of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago, the absolute truth? (In other words have all the discoveries & research "proved" without a doubt, that a meteorite impact did indeed kill all the dinosaurs?).