Discover the world of paleontology with these great resources. From an app that provides info on all known and characterized dinosaurs, to books covering various topics in the field, learn more about these ancient creatures.
Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs is an app containing info on all known and characterized dinosaurs. The format makes the app suitable for all ages, from primary school to adult. Information includes the family type, geological era, size, location, name meaning, type of fossils, comments, and species list. It has a built-in dictionary. The information can be browsed, or accessed by name, country of origin, size or geological time period, or searched by individual words or from an extensive index.
So You Want to Become a Paleontologist? A Career in Paleontology. Academic Invest receives requests for advice on how to become a paleontologist and which colleges offer programs in paleontology. Rather than have potential paleontologists write to the list and list members recreate answers with each new inquiry, the authors of this page hope that what has been assembled here will simplify the process for potential paleontologists seeking information on pursuing such a career. The authors welcome expansion of this site if anyone would like to contribute information about undergraduate or graduate school paleontology programs… READ MORE
Dinosaur Books
Books are still a more important resource and the best one for dinosaur information. I recommend the following:
Currie, P.J., and K. Padian, (eds.), 1997, “Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs,” Academic Press, 869 pages. This book is a good encyclopedia of information, current ideas on dinosaurs in one encyclopedia. Topics are short but at least give you information on many ideas and information that current for the field of dinosaur study.
Glut, Donald, 1997, “DINOSAURS: THE ENCYCLOPEDIA,” McFarland,1076 pp. Of the three listed this book is number one in my collection because it contains information about every dinosaur known as of 1997. So if you are looking for information on a well known or an obscure dinosaur for your research then this book should be number one on your list of references to check! This is probably the biggest number of questions I am asked. Teachers and students alike: I will not do this kind of research for you, you need to find a source for this book yourselves. While I would love to have the time to provide some of the data found in this book you do not learn something if I type it in for you. If you can afford it (it is $150) I recommend you add it to your own personal library. If not perhaps you can get your local public library to purchase a copy – this should be the number one dinosaur reference in their collection.
Farlow, J.O., and M.K. Brett-Surman, (eds.), 1997, “The Complete Dinosaur“, Indiana University Press, 752 pages. Next to the second reference above this is a must in your own reference collection. This is a well written book at the general level that covers all current topics and areas of knowledge in the dinosaur field of science and what is known about the various groups of dinosaurs.
Fastovsky, D. E. and D. B. Weishampel, 2005, second edition, “The Evolution and Extinction of the Dinosaurs,” Cambridge University Press, ISBN: 0521811724, 512 p. This recent book is written in an easy to understand style, basically an entry level college course type book so any dinosaur enthusiast should find this book quite educational. Makes an excellent companion book on your shelf to the more technical Dinosauria listed above . Book presents in a condensed and simpler manner the general info in dinosaurs found in Dinosauria, but with new thinking and ideas of scientists that has come to light since the publication of Dinosauria. This is a definite “must have” on your bookshelf! Other reviews (of 2nd edition) Written for non-specialists, this detailed survey of dinosaur origins, diversity, and extinction is designed as a series of successive essays covering important and timely topics in dinosaur paleobiology, such as “warm-bloodedness,” birds as living dinosaurs, the new, non-flying feathered dinosaurs, dinosaur functional morphology, and cladistic methods in systematics. Its explicitly phylogenetic approach to the group is that taken by dinosaur specialists. The book is not an edited compilation of the works of many individuals, but a unique, cohesive perspective on Dinosauria. Lavishly illustrated with hundreds of new, specially commissioned illustrations by John Sibbick, world-famous illustrator of dinosaurs, the volume includes multi-page drawings as well as sketches and diagrams. First edition Hb (1996): 0-521-44496-9
Weishampel, D.B., P. Dodson, and H. Osmolska (eds.), 2004, “The Dinosauria,” University of California Press: Berkeley. 861p. Simply put, the definitive text on dinosaurs. Now out in a second edition (December 2004) this is probably your most important reference and a must have. When the The Dinosauria was first published more than a decade ago, it was hailed as “the best scholarly reference work available on dinosaurs” and “an historically unparalleled compendium of information.” This second, fully revised edition continues in the same vein as the first but encompasses the recent spectacular discoveries that have continued to revolutionize the field. A state-of-the-science view of current world research, the volume includes comprehensive coverage of dinosaur systematics, reproduction, and life history strategies, biogeography, taphonomy, paleoecology, thermoregulation, and extinction. Its internationally renowned authors-forty-four specialists on the various members of the Dinosauria-contribute definitive descriptions and illustrations of these magnificent Mesozoic beasts. The first section of The Dinosauria begins with the origin of the great clade of these fascinating reptiles, followed by separate coverage of each major dinosaur taxon, including the Mesozoic radiation of birds. The second part of the volume navigates through broad areas of interest. Here we find comprehensive documentation of dinosaur distribution through time and space, discussion of the interface between geology and biology, and the paleoecological inferences that can be made through this link. Illustrations: 330 line illustrations, 28 tables. Available from Amazon.com click here.