Aug. 28 Introduction; What are Dinosaurs (version 1.0)?
Aug. 30 The Science of Uncovering the Past
Sept. 1 "Fearfully Great Lizards": The History of Dinosaur Studies
Pre-Course Survey due
Sept. 4 LABOR DAY (No classes)
Sept. 6 Pages in the Book of Time: Sedimentary Rocks
Sept. 8 Bones in the Stones: Fossils and Fossilization
Nature of Science HW due
Sept. 11 Deep Time: How Old is That Fossil?
Sept. 13 Fossils from the Field to the Museum
Sept. 15 The Living Earth: Plate Tectonics & Ecology
Geology HW due
Sept. 18 Our Bodies, Our Selves: Introduction to Vertebrate Osteology
Sept. 20 Taxonomy and Species
Sept. 22 Evolution I: Descent with Modification
Anatomy & Taxonomy HW due
Sept. 25 Evolution II: Patterns and Processes and Systematics I: The Tree of Life
Sept. 27 Systematics II: Cladistics
Sept. 29 Four on the Floor: Tetrapod Colonization of the Land
Phylogeny HW due
Oct. 2 Triassic Transitions & the Age of Reptiles
MIDTERM EXAM I available 10/2-10/4
Oct. 4 The Rise of the Dinosaurs: What is a Dinosaur (version 2.0)?
Oct. 6 Thyreophora: Defense! Defense! Defense!
Oct. 9 Ornithopoda: Beaks, bills & crests
Oct. 11 Marginocephalia: That's using your head!
Oct. 13 Sauropodomorpha I: Dawn of the Thunder
Dinosaur Diversity I HW due
Oct. 16 Sauropodomorpha II: Neosauropoda: Size Matters [LECTURE PRE-RECORDED; please watch on Panopto on ELMS]
Oct. 18 Theropoda I: Dinosaurs Red in Tooth and Claw [LECTURE PRE-RECORDED; please watch on Panopto on ELMS]
Oct. 20 Theropoda II, Coelurosauria: Tyrant Kings and Lesser Royals [LECTURE PRE-RECORDED; please watch on Panopto on ELMS]
Dinosaur Diversity II HW due
Oct. 23 Theropoda III, Maniraptora: The Flying Dinosaurs
Oct. 25 Theropoda IV: Rise of Birds
Oct. 27 Dinosaurs Take Flight
Dinosaur Diversity III HW due
Oct. 30 The Worlds of Dinosaurs & Dinosaurs Without Bones: Trace Fossil Analysis
Nov. 1 Dinosaur Olympics: Locomotion and Dinosaurs in the World of Physics
MIDTERM EXAM II available 11/1-3
Nov. 3 Flesh on the Bones: Reconstructing Dinosaur Soft-Tissue and Integument
Nov. 6 Through the Eyes of a Dinosaur: Dinosaur Brains & Senses
Nov. 8 Tyrannosaurus Sex: Dinosaur Social Behavior
Nov. 10 Bringing Up Baby: Dinosaur Families and Growth
Nov. 13 Giants in the Earth: Dinosaur Size
Smithsonian Field Trip Project due
Nov. 15 The Hot-Blooded Dinosaurs
Nov. 17 So You Want to Be An Endotherm?
Dinosaur Biology HW due
Nov. 20 Dinosaur Hearts and Lungs
Nov. 22-24 Thanksgiving Recess: enjoy your roasted maniraptoran
Nov. 27 Life in the Fast Lane
Nov. 29 Dragons of the Sea & Air
Dec. 1 In the Shadow of the Dinosaurs: Mesozoic Mammals
Dec. 4 The Cretaceous-Paleogene Extinction I: All Good Things...
Dec. 6 The Cretaceous-Paleogene Extinction II: Earth's Worst Day Ever
Dec. 8 The Cretaceous-Paleogene Extinction III: Dinosaur Apocalypse
Dec. 11 Dinosaurs in the Cenozoic: The Legacy of the Dinosaurs
Dec. 18-20 FINAL EXAM ONLINE
Note: This is a tentative schedule, and subject to change as necessary: monitor the course ELMS page for current deadlines. In the unlikely event of a prolonged university closing, or an extended absence from the university, adjustments to the course schedule, deadlines, and assignments will be made based on the duration of the closing and the specific dates missed.
For a formatted printable copy of the complete syllabus, click here.
Denizens of the Mesozoic HW due
Dinosaur Extinction HW due
Post-Course Survey dueLast modified: 6 July 2023