Topic: Dinosaur flatulence may have warmed Earth

[Chozo Ghost]

http://news.yahoo.com/gas-dinosaur-flatulence-may-warmed-earth-184418164.html

Maybe the mystery of how the dinosaurs became extinct has been solved at last?

[Dasmos]

Huh, so this isn't funhaus material?

[Oblivion]

I saw this yesterday. I'll ask the same question I wondered when I first saw it: How the hell do they know this?

[nickmitch]

When I saw this on tonight's Colbert Report, I thought it was a joke. Didn't know it was actual news.

[TJ Spyke]

I saw this yesterday. I'll ask the same question I wondered when I first saw it: How the hell do they know this?

They admit that it is based on assumptions (http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-205_162-57429334/dinosaur-gas-may-have-warmed-prehistoric-earth/):

"They used a mathematical model to determine how much gas these plant-eating giants would have eaten. They extended data on methane production by modern mammals, based on size, up into the reaches of the sauropods.

In their calculations the researchers used middle-of-the-road numbers: 10 sauropods, each weighing 20,000 pounds (9,071 kilograms), could have roamed 1 square kilometer of lush Mesozoic habitats. "We've taken a middle-ground value," Wilkinson said. "We tried to be reasonably conservative."

They found that these 10 sauropods would have contributed 7.6 tons (6.9 tonnes) of methane every year. Expanding this number to cover the amount of land estimated to be hospitable habitat for these animals (about half the land on Earth at the time), the researchers end up with more than 550 million tons (500 million tonnes) of methane produced every year.

"I was expecting a number like that produced by cows, so the size of the number really surprised me," Wilkinson said. "It's way, way, way ahead of the estimated methane production by modern livestock." (Cows produce 55 to 110 million tons (50 to 100 million tonnes) of methane each year, he estimated.)"

[Oblivion]

Considering how big the dinos got, I'm not surprised.

[Chozo Ghost]

Every animal living today farts so why wouldn't dinosaurs? And since Dinosaurs were the largest creatures that ever lived its very logical that they had the largest farts.

[BlackNMild2k1]

I saw this yesterday. I'll ask the same question I wondered when I first saw it: How the hell do they know this?

They took a core sample of fossilized gas deposits in the atmosphere and applied an ion neutrino bombardment to carbon date it.

Very scientific stuff, Halbed will fill you in on the rest.

[GoldenPhoenix]

I'm going to continue believing in an asteroid being responsible for the death of dinosaurs or a major volcanic eruption, it sounds much better then farting oneself into extinction.

[BranDonk Kong]

DINOSAURS NEVER EXISTED THE WORLD IS ONLY 2000 YEARS OLD AND GLOBAL WARMING IS A LIE!

[Ian Sane]

The dinosaur extinction "mystery" will never be solved until you build a time machine and go back and see what happened.  Anything else is just a good guess at best.

With dinosaurs farting themselves to death and stuff about livestock being a major contributor to global warming it seems like global warming is like some sort of punishment for being alive.  What the hell are you supposed to do about it?  If agriculture is going to bring about the end then we're doomed no matter what.

[NWR_insanolord]

Well, we could all become vegetarians, which would bring down the demand for and population of cattle, but personally I think that's worse than causing our own extinction.

[Chozo Ghost]

Well, we could all become vegetarians, which would bring down the demand for and population of cattle, but personally I think that's worse than causing our own extinction.

There is a way we can eat meat without having to deal with cattle and their flatulence.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_vitro_meat

By growing the meat artificially we take the animal out of the equation. No animal means no flatulence, and its also more ethical because you don't have to kill an animal in order to obtain the meat. It might also eventually become cheaper than regular meat, and maybe even could cure world hunger.

[ShyGuy]

I think Brandogg is half right. /POLOTICKZ

[NWR_insanolord]

I think Brandogg is half right. /POLOTICKZ

So you think only half the dinosaurs existed, the Earth is 4,000 years old, and Global Warming is a half-truth?

[Halbred]

3,000 years old.

This story is hogwash. Along with the "potential alien dinosaurs on other worlds," the "dinosaurs must have lived underwater," and now this, it's been a bad few weeks for paleontology.

[nickmitch]

Well, we could all become vegetarians, which would bring down the demand for and population of cattle, but personally I think that's worse than causing our own extinction.

You know PETA would then start bitching about cows going extinct because no one wants to take care of them if they can't become juicy steaks. . .or milk, I guess.

[Caliban]

The dinosaur extinction "mystery" will never be solved until you build a time machine and go back and see what happened.

That is if Time exists. If it doesn't then how are we supposed to go back?

[TJ Spyke]

3,000 years old.

This story is hogwash. Along with the "potential alien dinosaurs on other worlds," the "dinosaurs must have lived underwater," and now this, it's been a bad few weeks for paleontology.

To be fair, the scientists doing the report don't say they went extinct because of it, just that it helped contribute to the Earth being warmer (along with stuff like the volcanoes). Or is your issue with the report of dinosaurs producing so much methane? Just curious.

[Chozo Ghost]

If the Earth was only 2,000 years old that would mean the Earth is the same age as Jesus, but what about Moses and all the other stuff which happened before Jesus?

[BlackNMild2k1]

If the Earth was only 2,000 years old that would mean the Earth is the same age as Jesus, but what about Moses and all the other stuff which happened before Jesus?

If it was supposed to make sense, it would have never been said in the first place.

[nickmitch]

Let's not take creationist theory parodies as literal, before we go down that dark path of making the mods do actual mod stuff.

[Oblivion]

I still think the only reason why we can't have discussions like that is because the lot of you are douches when it comes to that stuff. I can easily talk about that kind of stuff on a forum for a children's cartoon without the shitstorm that happens here.

[ShyGuy]

Just wait till Morari gets involved, Oblivion. Then SUPER. Better lock this thread now, Crimm.

[Oblivion]

I apologize in advance for what I said.