Chinese Dino-mentary

Galvasean

Found this awesome documentary on the cretaceous dinosaurs of China. No idea what the narrator is saying though, but you've got your classic Chinese dinos including Tarbosaurus, Velociraptor, Protoceratops, Microraptor and Therizinosaurus. The narration isn't that important to be honest as the imagery speaks for itself while the music is excellent.

Adam Khor

Very good story Reminds me of many great wildlife documentaries.

Gotta love how the Velociraptor are obviously based on those of Jurassic Park III down to the coloration in males and females XD But it was good seeing the classic raptor pack vs larger herbivore confrontation, and the raptors actually using their killing claw.
And Tsintaosaurus, it was about time!

There's some stuff that didn´t quite make sense, though; for example, why was Microraptor living alongside Tarbosaurus? Not only could it fly but it could also fly through time and space?
There's also the bit in which the Tsintaosaurus slams the ground with its forelegs to intimidate the raptors. Wouldn´t it make more sense if the Tsintao walked on all fours as they supossedly did, and reared to intimidate the raptors or to run away? Lowering your body seems like a bad idea in that particular situation; it was basically offering its throat to the Velociraptor.
I'm not one to complain about featherless dinosaurs (it gave the documentary a nice retro feel about it XD) but the Tarbosaurus did walk kinda like a duck, and sometimes they bent their legs in ways that would probably break their bones. And it seems that no one gets the pterosaurs to move in a realistic way just yet...

but overall I enjoyed it XD

Galvasean

re: Microraptor, I always assumed in shows like this

they 'wedge' time together a bit to include as many animals as possible. Sure Microraptor was not probably around at the time, but there was probably something similar to 'make up the numbers'

Adam Khor

Galvasean wrote: »

re: Microraptor[//i], I always assumed in shows like this

they 'wedge' time together a bit to include as many animals as possible. Sure Microraptor was not probably around at the time, but there was probably something similar to 'make up the numbers'

I don´t think its unlikely that there was something similar around during Tarbosaurus' time,

but actually calling it Microraptor... I mean, Microraptor lived like, 50 million years earlier!

Rubecula

Why use the spoiler?

I think you will find that most of these things are or have been in the past, made to cover 250 million years in on go. There are simply representative of beasts.

Although I do see your point. However a lot of interest in this sort of thing is by youngsters. When they start to learn about these things they also learn the timescales. Get them young then hone the knowledge when they are involved. It is how I started. Pictures of monsters on school posters. (Some of them pretty implausible too I seem to remember. Interest started! The Geology classes, with paleontology bits added. Interest increased. Become an adult, and interest hits a peak. I even did a module on such things when I studied for my applied Biology degree (many years ago).

Only ever got thrown out of a class once too. (For having the entire class including the Tutor in hysterics to the point where they couldn't learn and he couldn't lecture.) So it is not about the pure accuracy of these things, just accurate enough to pique the interest of active young minds. Accuracy can come later. Perhaps not the best way, but it is a way that works I think.

Adam Khor

Rubecula wrote: »

Why use the spoiler?

I think you will find that most of these things are or have been in the past, made to cover 250 million years in on go. There are simply representative of beasts.

Although I do see your point. However a lot of interest in this sort of thing is by youngsters. When they start to learn about these things they also learn the timescales. Get them young then hone the knowledge when they are involved. It is how I started. Pictures of monsters on school posters. (Some of them pretty implausible too I seem to remember. Interest started! The Geology classes, with paleontology bits added. Interest increased. Become an adult, and interest hits a peak. I even did a module on such things when I studied for my applied Biology degree (many years ago).

Only ever got thrown out of a class once too. (For having the entire class including the Tutor in hysterics to the point where they couldn't learn and he couldn't lecture.) So it is not about the pure accuracy of these things, just accurate enough to pique the interest of active young minds. Accuracy can come later. Perhaps not the best way, but it is a way that works I think.

I used the spoiler in case someone hadn´t seen the documentary XD

I am with you, I'm not the one to bitch about accuracy much (you will notice that I didn´t mind about the featherless raptors, which would be the first thing most fanboys would cry bloody murder about). Its just that seeing the Microraptor and the Tarbosaurus together was a little shocking- almost like seeing a Dimetrodon happily going for a walk in a Jurassic forest, for example :pac:

Galvasean

I remember when this dinosaur poster was on the wall of every classroom.
Mammoths!! :eek: