Seminar Details

Seminar Lab Date: December 12, 2022

Seminar Lab Subject: Hunting for Dinosaurs: The Search for Ancient Giants

Seminar Lab Presenter: Alex Hastings, Ph.D., Fitzpatrick Chair of Paleontology, Science Museum of Minnesota

Seminar Lab Location:

U of Minnesota Keller Hall Room 3-210

Address: 200 Union St. SE, Minneapolis MN

Seminar Lab Detail:

Hunting for Dinosaurs: The Search for Ancient Giants

Summary

The world has been captivated by dinosaurs for more than 100 years, and dinosaur digs have been pictured in countless media. But what is it really like to find and excavate dinosaur bones? Modern paleontology uses some newer technologies as well as some very tried and true methods going back to the earliest days of the science. Join Dr. Alex Hastings of the Science Museum of Minnesota through his experiences in Wyoming and Montana looking for dinosaurs of the Jurassic and Cretaceous Periods. Dinosaur sites range from tiny teeth of meat-eating dinosaurs to bones of the giant sauropod (long-necked) dinosaurs. Each one presents its own challenges and potential for discovery. 

Brief Bio

Alex has a BS in Geosciences from Penn State University and a PhD in Geology from the University of Florida. He has worked in North, Central and South America plus Germany, primarily on fossil reptiles. Over the years he has named five new species of fossil crocodile-relatives and was on the discovery team of the largest known snake, Titanoboa. He has led fieldwork across the country, collecting everything from dinosaurs to whales to tiny oysters