Slashdot Mirror
New Analysis Shows Dinosaurs Not As Heavy As Previously Believed.
Cognitive Dissident writes "Discovery.com has an article on a new study using computer modeling to estimate the actual amount of flesh needed to cover the skeletons of dinosaurs. Based on a comparison with modern animals, it indicates that these animals could have weighed dramatically less than has been previously estimated. 'A huge Brachiosaur, once thought to weigh 176,370 pounds, is now believed to have weighed 50,706 pounds.' That's only about two-and-a-half times the weight of a modern African elephant. If other evidence can be reconciled with this, many estimates of the ecosystems dinosaurs lived in will also have to be revised."
Except that most people in the world, including myself, have no way to relate these medieval measurements to anything meaningful.
The huge difference in results from this technique and older estimates made me sceptical already.
If one method comes to say 80 tons, and another to say 70 tons, then I say sure, both sound reasonable, and not too far away. But if the other method comes to 23 tons, then I start to wonder what is wrong. One of the methods is wrong for sure, just the question is which one.
Interestingly the article you link to says that the weight of this particular dino was previously estimated at just over 23 tons. Almost exactly what the new method predicts. The 80 ton weight is suggested to be an old figure, and already long since relegated to the history books. The value in the new method is not as much in that the dinos get a lighter weight, it's that it confirms current weight estimates, and will allow for much faster and cheaper measurements on other dino skeletons.
So while your comment is technically correct, it's also slashdot-style suggestive into suggesting that the new technique is wrong, while in fact the new technique confirms the consensus weight of just over 23 tons for the animal. And that would also suggest that current ecosystem calculations are already done with the lighter weight - making the summary even more sensationalist.
I hate it when people deride dark matter without having the first clue about it. Neutrinos interact only through the weak force and gravity. Maybe another particle interacts only through gravity. No EM emissions would make it dark, no strong or weak interactions would make it essentially undetectable on earth. It would only show up on astronomical scales. Oh, and humans (who are very biased towards the types of particles we're made of and interact regularly with) would think the whole thing was voodoo.
And maybe not. There are numerous explanations for dark matter ranging from various forms of exotic matter to fundamental problems with existing theory. So far there are no clear winners. Making a "mathematical error vs. magical substance" dichotomy is so oversimplified it would be better for you to simply be quiet on this topic.