About this item
What can long-dead dinosaurs teach us about our future? Plenty, according to paleontologist Kenneth Lacovara, who has discovered some of the largest creatures to ever walk the Earth.By tapping into the ubiquitous wonder that dinosaurs inspire, Lacovara weaves together the stories of our geological awakening, of humanitys epic struggle to understand the nature of deep time, the meaning of fossils, and our own place on the vast and bountiful tree of life. Go on a journey--back to when dinosaurs ruled the Earth--to discover how dinosaurs achieved feats unparalleled by any other group of animals. Learn the secrets of how paleontologists find fossils, and explore quirky, but profound questions, such as: Is a penguin a dinosaur? And, how are the tiny arms of T. rex the key to its power and ferocity? In this revealing book, Lacovara offers the latest ideas about the shocking and calamitous death of the dinosaurs and ties their vulnerabilities to our own. Why Dinosaurs Matter is compelling and engaging - a great reminder that our place on this planet is both precarious and potentially fleeting. "As we move into an uncertain environmental future, it has never been more important to understand the past."
About the Author
Dr. Kenneth Lacovara has unearthed some of the largest dinosaurs ever to walk our planet, including the super-massive Dreadnoughtus, which at 65 tons weighs more than seven T. rex. In his quest to understand these titanic creatures that strain the human imagination, Lacovara blends exploration in remote locations across the globe with the latest imaging and modeling techniques from engineering to medicine. When he's not excavating fossils in far-flung locations, Lacovara applies cutting edge technology to the study of dinosaurs. By using 3D imaging, 3D printing, robotics, and medical modeling techniques, his work is helping to shift our perspective of giant herbivorous dinosaurs from their historic portrayal as hapless lumbering prey to that of fearsome, hulking, hyper-efficient eating machines that deserve our awe and respect.Lacovara's TED Talk, "Hunting for dinosaurs showed me our place in the Universe," was among the Top 10 TED Talks of 2016. "He's got a way of illuminating the bigger picture, of somehow turning 'why' into wonder. It's not just that he's speaking about what happened way back when, but what it might mean for us today." Says Chris Anderson, Curator of TED. Indeed, Dr. Lacovara is sought around the world for his ability to bring the wonders of science and the thrill of discovery to a wide range of audiences. He has appeared in numerous television documentaries and his discoveries have landed him three times in Discover magazine's 100 Top Science Stories of the year and in Time's Top Stories of 2014. Lacovara was named by Men's Journal as one of "The Next Generation of Explorers" and he is an elected fellow of the prestigious Explorers Club in New York.In Why Dinosaurs Matter (Simon and Schuster) , Lacovara takes readers on a deep dive into Earth history. "As we move into an uncertain environmental future, it has never been more important to understand the past. The lessons written in stone and buried beneath our feet are both profound and urgent." Lacovara argues that, "only the past provides the broad view that we desperately need to prepare for the future."Lacovara led the effort to create the Edelman Fossil Park in New Jersey. Within its quarry, Lacovara and his team are using a rich cache of 65 million year old fossils to solve the mystery of the extinction of the dinosaurs.Dr. Lacovara holds a Ph.D. in Geology from the University of Delaware. At Rowan University he is the founding Dean of the School of Earth & Environment and Director of the Jean & Ric Edelman Fossil Park.
