With the release, and huge success, of Jurassic World, dinosaurs are certainly on everyone’s mind this summer. Being a lover of the original Jurassic Park, but none too impressed by the series that followed, it’s been hard for me to go see the newest edition. But that won’t keep us from having a Jurassic World-inspired Friday Flicks!
Once again, our movie master, Max Yip, brings us a cool Friday Flick to check out: a video from VSauce, a YouTube channel that analyzes various topics historically, etymologically, scientifically, and philosophically.
From Max:
This video uses the release of Jurassic World as a catalyst for an examination of certain concepts about dinosaurs with the help of movie star Chris Pratt and paleontologist/technical adviser to the Jurassic Park series, Jack Horner. It gets into what we mean when we say “fossil fuel,” and why we are so fascinated with dinosaurs.
This cheeky video hits on a lot of topics: where does fossil fuel really come from (not “dinosaur ghosts,” it turns out), the relationship between birds and dinosaurs, and what fossilized poo smells like. Max had a few questions for you after watching the video:
- Why do you think movies about dinosaurs never show them with feathers?
- Given what we know about dinosaurs and their relationship to birds, should the scientists in Jurassic Park have used bird DNA instead of frog DNA?
- Have you seen Jurassic World? Is it more Hollywood junk science, or is good science represented?
Add your thoughts in the comments below!
