Articles – Getting Started
The Mesozoic Era
The Mesozoic Era, spanning from 252 to 66 million years ago, was the "Age of Dinosaurs," marked by the evolution, dominance, and eventual extinction of non-avian dinosaurs. It consisted of the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous periods and saw major changes in climate, geography, and life on Earth.
Major Groups of Dinosaurs
This article explores the major groups of dinosaurs, dividing them into Saurischians (including long-necked sauropods and bipedal theropods like T. rex) and Ornithischians (including horned, armored, and duck-billed dinosaurs like Triceratops and Stegosaurus). It explains key traits, evolutionary relationships, and the diversity of body forms and lifestyles across dinosaur clades.
How Do Fossils Form?
This article explores how fossils form, the different types (like bones, footprints, and coprolites), how paleontologists find and date them, and how new dinosaur species are identified from fossil evidence.
The End‑Cretaceous Mass Extinction
This article explains the end-Cretaceous mass extinction 66 million years ago, caused by a massive asteroid impact that wiped out all non-avian dinosaurs and about 75% of life on Earth. It explores the evidence for the impact, the Chicxulub crater, global effects, extinction toll, and what survived.
Evolution and Natural Selection
Evolution is the process by which species change over time through variation, inheritance, and natural selection. It began at least 3.5 billion years ago, leading to the diverse life forms we see today.
