Re: A matter of scale?

[David Krentz <David.Krentz@disney.com>]

Dinogeorge@aol.com wrote:
>
> In a message dated 7/18/01 2:10:40 PM EST, ptnorton@msn.com writes:
>
> <<  If its apparent size in the film turns out to actually be within the
> range of scientific possibility....well, it boggles the mind! >>
>
> Also mind-boggling: In Spinosaurus most of the dorsal vertebrae were strongly
> opisthocoelous (true to some extent of other kinds of theropods, too). That
> is, the vertebrae formed ball-and-socket joints (with the ball on the front
> of the vertebral body, or centrum, and the socket in the back of the body;
> opisthocoelous: backward-cupped). This suggests a certain amount of
> up-and-down (dorsoventral) intervertebral mobility or flexibility in the
> Spinosaurus back--a feature I interpret as permitting the animal a few (3-4)
> degrees of rotation between the vertebrae to arch the back. This movement
> would be exaggerated by the elongated neural spines, which would spread
> apart, something like the fingers of one's hand, as animal's back arched
> (e.g., in a display versus another Spinosaurus; lowering the head and
> spreading the sail at the same time). Any skin between the spines would open
> up and stretch out; it would look spectacular on a 60-foot-long, 20-foot-tall
> theropod, particularly if the skin between the spines were a different color
> from the rest of the body. Dorsal ligaments would limit the amount of
> sail-spreading (and keep the animal from falling apart at the vertebrae!),
> but owing to the length of the neural spines (almost 2 meters) >any< amount
> of spreading would work.

  You know, over all, I'd have to say that the DESIGN of the Spinosaurus
was exceptionally weak.  I know that there were some attempts to make it
a little more interesting, but the money folks just didn't care.
  I mean, everything COOL about the animal was sucked right out.  The
arms and claws seemed too small, the sail was stuck on the back like an
afterthought on a kids toy, the face was uninteresting, the lacrimal
horns gave the same silhouette to the head as the raptors and T.rex, the
color was bland..Yikes!  How about some dermal spines on top of the
sail,make it torn through in places, chewed on and beaten up! Carry the
sail over the hips and into the tail to give it more imposing  mass!
Just give it the appropriate single crest for a different look than from
any other predator in the movie...
  I'm really familiar with how these decisions get made, but all the
choices on this animal just seemed plain LAZY.  I would have been
happier if it was a completely made up fantasy animal.

  OK, OK, so I drew lips on Iguanodons...leave me alone, I'm on a
roll...

  David Krentz