You know how you were always jealous of Dinosaurs?
They were always bigger than you, had that cocky swagger about them. (No? just me huh?) Well it turns out they were once underdogs as well, long before dogs even existed!!
During the dinosaurs’ early years there was another group of kids on the block bigger and cooler than they were named Crurotarsans.
"Scientists led by Steve Brusatte of Columbia University and in New York conducted an extensive review of fossils and found that the two groups were evolving at roughly the same pace and the Crurotarsans actually had a larger range of body types, diets and lifestyles." American Museum of Natural History
So the Crurotarsans were basically the Alpha Betas from "Revenge of the Nerds" and the dinosaurs were the Lambdas. Facing off against each other in a newly developing world.
"The fundamental question is why were the dinosaurs able to become so dominant," Brusatte, whose study is in the journal Science, said in a telephone interview. "Evolution on a big scale oftentimes is a matter of luck."
So eventually the Nerds (Dinosaurs) won through dumb luck when some sort of geoclimatic change occurred in their favor just like in the movie. Although its been years since I’ve actually watched the movie I seem to remember it ending that way.
"If we were standing around in the late 210 million years ago and were asked what group is going to go on and take over the world, I think a reasonable gambler would say the Crurotarsans. It’s not that the dinosaurs weren’t doing well. The crurotarsans were doing more," Brusatte said." Triassic period
So like so many Bad News Bears, and Mighty Ducks, This rag tag group of misfits known as Dinosaurs triumphed over their stronger faster better counter parts because they had heart and luck on their side. And maybe some Angels in the Outfield as well, throwing asteroids at the Crurotarsans.
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