Science Communication with Dinosaurs

Introduction

Dinosaurs are often hailed as a scientific communication breakthrough, but is this really the case? Does the ‘and finally’ news story, usually based upon a recent publication, give credit to the years of painstaking work from discovery to final interpretation? The same can be said for many areas of science, where the object of the science becomes the story but not the science itself. This, in part, is the fault of both media and the scientists, given we must be more aware of how our science is translated into digestible chunks that can be understood by non-specialist audiences. Dinosaurs, however, are in a unique position. These animals have the potential to unlock many new areas of research to the public, given they provide a unique vehicle to deliver often complex science. Whether it be particle physicists blasting fossils with high energy X-rays at a synchrotron (Bergmann et al, 2010) (Figure 1) or computational biologists making dinosaurs run in virtual environments (Sellers & Manning, 2007), it is clear these extinct giants have a role to play in engaging the public with more than just old fossil bones.

Figure 1.

The fossil of Archaeopteryx being scanned at the Stanford synchrotron, using the recently developed technique of synchrotron rapid scan X-ray fluorescence (SRS-XRF)

In the past ten years the science of palaeontology has been reinventing itself, looking to new disciplines to help solve very old questions. Now that palaeontology is such a diverse, interdisciplinary research area, it has successfully facilitated in the communication of multiple fields of science. Interdisciplinary work with engineers, physiologists, geneticists, computational scientists and many other disciplines provides avenues that might excite interest in what might be considered discrete or obscure areas of research. Indeed, computational palaeontology is a splendid example of how the digitisation of specimens and subsequent computational analyses are both eye-catching and easy to distribute though modern media. This chapter aims to present a number of case studies detailing the different ways to communicate research undertaken on dinosaurs that helps facilitate the wider understanding of science to a public audience, focussing, where possible, on the application of computational science. The use of museum displays, science festivals, television, and schools’ outreach programmes will be but a few examples discussed, to illustrate the application of past life to presenting 21^st Century science.

Dusty Dinosaur Bones

The public perception of palaeontology, and particularly the study of dinosaurs, begins with excavations, usually in the desert with field teams digging up fossil bones. Whilst this image has been glamorised and perpetuated by television and film, there is some core of truth here. However, even the collection of specimens is beginning to change, as a function of the development and application of new technology. The use of laser scanning technology at dig sites (Manning, 2008) is now yielding important spatial data in the relationship between fossil bones and the sediments that entomb them (Figure 2). The collection of samples at a dig site for proteomic analyses (Manning et al, 2009a) is more akin to that of a crime scene than how many perceive a dinosaur dig. This changing face of palaeontology is possibly one of the more difficult aspects to communicate to the public. Encouraging volunteers to participate in digs can only reach a very small minority, while the rest must make do with pictures or media in order to understand the work that goes into excavating a dinosaur.

Figure 2.

The user of Light Detection and Range (LiDAR) surveying equipment (Z+F Imager 5006i) on excavation and fossil sites provides a rapid way of acquiring spatial data to construct digital out-crop models. Such models provide a powerful tool to aid in site interpretation and public engagement.