tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-55871280371502607122024-03-13T15:00:16.999-05:00Tentacle NewsThe thoughts and musings of illustrator and writer, Jeff Powers.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger588125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-65486786357257964462016-09-25T09:00:00.000-05:002016-09-25T09:00:01.841-05:00The Lost Calling - Chapter 13<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Present Day</div>
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Near planet Kor'Daren</div>
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Imhari system, Inner Laskaris Arm</div>
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<br></div>
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<br></div>
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Calrose was given the co-pilot's seat beside Keona, while the others
strapped in behind them. Driz and Arabel occupied seats in front of data
terminals where they could monitor the ship's systems and do their best to aid
in the execution of the plan. But it was really down to Captain Keona and her
piloting skills to get the tethered ships moving and manage to control the
metal monstrosity toward the surface of Kor'Daren.</div>
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The engines of the Dasaq'Wen fired and the mass of the two ships slowly
began to move. Driz's short child-like fingers played over the control panel as
he bypassed systems that Arabel had worked hard to design. Though he wore no
CDT, he was using very similar skills to jack into the GRV's control system. He
fired up the solitary engine that Uden had managed to get running and opened
the throttle.</div>
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The conjoined ships twisted as Keona tried her best to control the
direction of the ship, while engines of vastly different strengths pumped out
thrust in slightly different directions. The stars in the front viewport spun
and twisted before slowly steadying. Keona managed to angle the connected ships
toward the planet, visually sighting it in the window and trying to keep it in
place. The cockpit she sat in hadn't changed, but she could feel the difference
in the shape of the ship. Her view no longer sat in the center of her thrust
vector, but was off to one side. It threw her off, but innate piloting skills
and years of practice on numerous ships allowed her to quickly adapt.</div>
</div><a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.com/2016/09/the-lost-calling-chapter-13.html#more">Continued... »</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-16115380803595598962016-09-18T09:00:00.000-05:002016-09-18T09:00:08.080-05:00The Lost Calling - Chapter 12<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Present Day</div>
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Near planet Kor'Daren</div>
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Imhari system, Inner Laskaris Arm</div>
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<br></div>
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Jett was laying unconcious, strapped to a bed to keep from floating away
in the micro-gravity. A tall feminine figure drifted over him, scanning his
body with an attachment connected to her CDT. Large almond-shaped eyes glanced
back and forth from the med-scanner display to her patient.</div>
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"What happened?" Calrose asked as she entered the med-bay. She
pushed herself up to the bedside, grabbing its siderails for support. "Is
he alright?"</div>
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The woman hovering over Jett was the Salacean Calrose had seen on the
communication feed. Up close the more alien features of her face were more apparent.
Her eyes were much larger than a humans with long eyelashes and thin eyebrows.
Above her eyes, at the center of her forehead were the small slits of her
nostrils, subtly opening closing with her breath. The space between her eyes
were completely devoid of the nose structure of a human, instead the soft
rust-red skin sloped down gradually to big full lips. Her mouth was perhaps her
most humanoid feature, opening to reveal a human-like tongue and teeth.</div>
</div><a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.com/2016/09/the-lost-calling-chapter-12.html#more">Continued... »</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-7492384153671469972016-09-11T09:00:00.000-05:002016-09-11T09:00:27.719-05:00The Lost Calling - Chapter 11<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Present Day</div>
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Near planet Kor'Daren</div>
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Imhari system, Inner Laskaris Arm</div>
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<br></div>
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"That is not what I was expecting," Arabel said, staring out
the front viewport window. "It looks nothing like the schematics their
ident is broadcasting."</div>
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"Captain Hakar warned me about that. It worried me at first, but I
can't say I wouldn't do the same. The hull of this thing is still factory,"
Calrose patted her palm against the wall," but between you and Jett, the
inner workings aren't exactly to original specifications."</div>
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"I guess," Arabel conceded.</div>
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They both continued to look out the viewport. The Dasaq'wen was still on
approach. It had been decelerating for the past few hours as it neared the GRV.
It had only come into visual range within the last few minutes and the two
women couldn't take their eyes off it as it slowly crept closer and closer.</div>
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The Dasaq'wen began to grow before them, the distance shrinking and the
true size of the ship becoming apparent. The ship dwarfed the GRV, easily twice
the length of the little waste hauler, with massive bird-like wings that
stretched out on either side. Its general form was sweeping and graceful
without any sense of angular aggression, but as the ship grew closer, Calrose
could see that the hard planysteel hull was a patchwork quilt of mismatched
pieces as if the entire ship had been built a hundred times over from whatever
was lying around.</div>
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"Are they here yet?" Jett called out from behind them,
ascending the ladder from the lower deck. The two women jumped, unaware of his
presence.</div>
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"They are approaching now. I have the ship in a stable position so
the Dasaq'wen can attach to our airlock." Calrose responded, still staring
out the window.</div>
</div><a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.com/2016/09/the-lost-calling-chapter-11.html#more">Continued... »</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-33538252155540842022016-07-24T09:00:00.000-05:002016-07-24T09:00:13.943-05:00The Lost Calling - Alien Species<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
The twelve alien species that make up the Republic in The Lost Calling were not fully realized while I was working on the comic form of the story. In the early stages I had a basic idea for each of the races, but had not yet decided how they would fit into the story. They weren't fleshed out until I began work on adapting the setting to be used in a weekly roleplaying game with my friends. To help them visualize and understand their choices of possible alien races to play as, I needed to finally design these creatures. Each with a distinct evolutionary backstory and a timeline within the history of the Republic, they served as distinct alien races to populate my fictional galaxy.<br>
Below are the original designs provided to my gaming group and currently used on the data entry pages in the Far Reaches wiki.<br>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-88k1q-pekzE/V3mokQqytkI/AAAAAAAACVI/jBKT_SDIPXcWCxWGQg3TLZoDKc_t-ujngCLcB/s1600/Bantonians-web.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-88k1q-pekzE/V3mokQqytkI/AAAAAAAACVI/jBKT_SDIPXcWCxWGQg3TLZoDKc_t-ujngCLcB/s640/Bantonians-web.jpg" width="492"></a></div>
</div><a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.com/2016/07/the-lost-calling-alien-species.html#more">Continued... »</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-3808241527271317582016-07-17T09:00:00.000-05:002016-07-17T09:00:17.715-05:00The Lost Calling - Character Concepts<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
As I have noted before, The Lost Calling was originally planned as a graphic novel. I actually scripted and illustrated the first couple chapters of this graphic novel before abandoning the idea of a comic and instead focusing on telling the story of Rebecca Calrose and her crew in the form of a novel series.<br>
Below is some of the early concept art I did when designing the characters of the story.<br>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eyu-INohvh8/V3mi4otzvgI/AAAAAAAACUc/YVm1A-tN190g3AORw-3S7tObmR37pVGLwCLcB/s1600/Calrose%2Bdesign%2Bsheet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eyu-INohvh8/V3mi4otzvgI/AAAAAAAACUc/YVm1A-tN190g3AORw-3S7tObmR37pVGLwCLcB/s640/Calrose%2Bdesign%2Bsheet.jpg" width="492"></a></div>
</div><a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.com/2016/07/the-lost-calling-character-concepts.html#more">Continued... »</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-18917330751034366242016-07-10T09:00:00.000-05:002016-07-10T09:00:37.487-05:00The Lost Calling - Chapter 10<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Chapter 10</div>
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<br></div>
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Present Day</div>
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Nexus Gate</div>
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Location Unknown</div>
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<br></div>
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"This is Keona Hakar of the transport vessel Dasaq'wen," the
Krahl said slowly, enunciating every word in Kheprilectic, ensuring her words
were as well understood as possible. "We have received your distress
beacon and have come to offer assistance."</div>
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The Krahl female wasn't as large and bulky as Calrose remembered the
males of the species. She was big by human standards, but on the viewscreen,
the pilot appeared sleek, her scaled arms filled with long wiry muscles. She
was also a brilliant blue-green color with patches of lighter greens that
spattered across her face like freckles. Blue-green colorations in Krahl were
rare enough, but it was the combination of her skin color with the brilliant
golden plumage on her head that made her stand out. Krahl females, unlike other
species of reptiles, were the more colorful. They sported long scale-like
protrusions on top of their head. At a distance they looked like sharp pointed
feathers arranged almost hair-like on their scaly heads. But they were actually
a strange structure that evolved from modified proto-feathers from their
ancient ancestors. Upon closer inspection, the plumage looked more like quills
than feathers, a gift from their evolutionary past on Kra Lok. The Krahl
evolved from a line of creatures that were just beginning to branch out from
their reptilian ancestors and take on more mammalian traits. A similar chain of
events has played out on a trillion worlds, usually culminating in mammals who
then have a higher likelihood of evolving sentience. But things were different
on Kra Lok and the Krahl were the only sentient species of reptiles discovered
in the galaxy.</div>
</div><a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.com/2016/07/the-lost-calling-chapter-10.html#more">Continued... »</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-38377221478005796342016-07-03T09:00:00.000-05:002016-07-03T09:00:00.731-05:00The Lost Calling - Chapter 9<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Chapter 9</div>
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<br></div>
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Nexus Gate</div>
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Location Unknown</div>
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<br></div>
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The short range of the GRV was once again working against them. Despite
broadcasting for a solid three standard days, radiowaves could only travel so
fast. There was no reason to put a sublight frequency communications array into
a ship built to operate within a single solar system. Without the ansible, the
beacon had to rely on sending a signal that could only travel at the speed of
light. But unless it was interrupted or was lost in the noise of other
radiation, the signal should soon be making its approach to the edges of
whatever solar system they found themselves in.</div>
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Calrose sat in the small mess of the ship doing the math in her head.
Imagining every few hours just how far the signal had reached by now. With a
gate in the system, there had to be someone nearby. Gates were rarely built or
continuously maintained in systems that wouldn't use them. They were autonomous
constructs that could operate without the help of a sentient being for quite
some time, but it was unnecessary to have one where it wasn't being used to
help Republic species traverse the galaxy.</div>
</div><a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.com/2016/07/the-lost-calling-chapter-9.html#more">Continued... »</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-27850232516389728902016-06-26T09:00:00.000-05:002016-06-26T09:00:08.507-05:00The Lost Calling - Chapter 8<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Chapter
8</div>
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<br></div>
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Present Day</div>
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Nexus Gate</div>
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Location Unknown</div>
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<br></div>
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Calrose felt the nausea wash over her. Most humans experienced FTL
sickness, but all humans felt gate-sickness. The reality warping properties of
being spat out on the other side of the galaxy were hard to stomach. No matter
how many times you did, and for Calrose it was still few, you never got used
it. Every gate had a robotically maintained 'runway' that gave incoming and
outgoing jumps, plenty of space for their crew to deal with the affects.</div>
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Calrose looked over at Arabel. The gravity-nets were still down and the
massive braid of red hair coiled around the teen like a serpent. Arabel was
unconcious, a common symptom of the jump. Even the most well designed numan
adaptations couldn't overcome the way gate travel affected their bodies. Other
species fared better, but it would always feel like the unnatural thing that it
was.</div>
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The captain heard Jett vomiting behind her. She really hoped that he
found the sickbags in time. Gate jumps weren't a regular thing for the GRV, a
small craft built for hauling things back and forth within a star system. But
it had made jumps before. Even small haulers tended to make jumps just to get
to the system they were working in. So it had a coordinate-dialer and the
necessary nav-computer to use the gates. But it was such a rare thing and with
no FTL drive, there was little occasion to stock sickbags in easy to reach
locations.<br>
</div></div><a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.com/2016/06/the-lost-calling-chapter-8.html#more">Continued... »</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-22505161168389064982016-06-22T09:00:00.000-05:002016-06-22T09:00:11.695-05:00The Lost Calling - Chapter 7<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Chapter 7</div>
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<br></div>
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Five Years Ago</div>
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Som Len Bar, planet Drosi</div>
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Malentar System, Inner Bellus Arm</div>
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<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
"I spent half a cycle in that hellhole," Calrose said nursing a
drink far stronger than she should be drinking in the middle of the day. She
nibbled at a meager snack laid in front of her by the bartender, trying his
best to put food in her if she was going to drink like that.</div>
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"I'm sorry to hear that. I know quite a few folks who have spent
time in lock up. But you seem pretty broken up about something that happened
over a decade ago." The Zygoshan knew better than to say something like
that, but the woman had been moaning at his bar for nearly two hours. If he
didn't push her, he wasn't going to get rid of her anytime soon.</div>
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"Prison wasn't really the problem," the woman looked up at him.
He always thought humans looked weird, how could anyone find such hairless
creatures appealing. But this one looked particularly rough. Her dark features
seemed puffy and undernourished. She probably hadn't seen a decent sleep in
ages. He had his share of drunks, especially human ones, but there was more to
this particular patron.</div>
</div><a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.com/2016/06/the-lost-calling-chapter-7.html#more">Continued... »</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-59483679489327861642016-06-19T12:00:00.000-05:002016-06-20T10:49:44.729-05:00The Lost Calling - Chapter 6<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Chapter 6</div>
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<br></div>
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Fourteen Years Ago</div>
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The Yucari, capital-class peace-keeper</div>
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Hestatian System, Inner Ghanan Arm</div>
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<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
Over two standard years after her graduation, Rebecca Calrose had risen
to the rank of Chief Lieutenant. Monitoring the gunning systems of the Yucari,
a capital class assault ship in service to the Thoren military. Her terminal
sat so far from the piloting deck on the bridge that it was far too easy to
forget her dreams of ever flying again. She hadn't controlled so much as a
drone in months. Her smile had faded weeks into her last post, a position that
would only last a few months. Her hopes starting to fade as well, she resigned
her fate and took the gunnery post on the Yucari.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
Leaving the Republic Protectorate behind her was the last straw. She made
excuses that she was just leaving one peace-keeping ship for another, but she
knew better. The Yucari was classified as a capital-class peace-keeper, but anyone
who knew anything about military craft, knew all too well that the Yucari was
just an assault ship with a fancy paint job.<br>
</div></div><a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.com/2016/06/the-lost-calling-chapter-6.html#more">Continued... »</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-19633879044463036092016-06-15T12:00:00.000-05:002016-06-15T12:00:16.507-05:00The Lost Calling - Chapter 5<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Chapter 5</div>
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<br></div>
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Sixteen Years Ago</div>
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Republic Station - Talanovia</div>
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Krontomera System, Inner Ghanan Arm</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
Rebecca Calrose always wanted to be a pilot. To see the stars and travel
the infinite worlds between them. But life had a habit of getting in the way.
Her thoughts wandered back to her youth and how she went from a small station
brat to finally graduating from the Academy of Republic Forces. She hoped her
parents would be proud if they were still alive to see her now. Decked from
head to foot in the finest uniform given to cadets. It would become her dress
uniform worn as an entrance cadet on whatever ship or station she found
employment on.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
Waiting with her peers, the commencement speeches began, but her
excitement could hardly let her pay attention. A squat blue-skinned figure
stood on the platform. It was Commander Rota, one of her favorite teachers at
the Academy. But even though the short statured Bantonian was speaking
Kheprilictic, the most common tongue in the Republic, to Calrose, at that
moment, it was all just noise.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
It had been generations since her family left the Earth-controlled
regions of space. The Mynaterra Arm of the galaxy was mostly controlled by a
number of xenophobic human zealots, often putting them at odds with the
Republic and its goals of peace among sentient species. Worst of these human
factions was the Heritage League, which Calrose refused to admit that her own
lineage had ties to. She was more proud
of her great great grandmother who fled human controlled space for the more
civil worlds of the Republic.</div>
</div><a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.com/2016/06/the-lost-calling-chapter-5.html#more">Continued... »</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-85416221251611088582016-06-12T13:33:00.000-05:002016-06-12T13:33:01.076-05:00The Lost Calling - Chapter 4<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
Chapter 4</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<br></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
Gavriel System Gate - NX-G5411698</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
Gavriel System, Inner Bellus Arm</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
"There it is," Arabel pointed at one of her displays. Touching
a thin point of light on the screen the pixel expanded into a detailed
schematic of the Nexus Gate. The diagram spun into two seperate two-dimensional
images showing the ring-like object from different angles while listing out
current information about its relative systems.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
"How much further?" Calrose asked, her mind was back on track,
plotting out her objectives for the next stage of her plan, ignoring those
parts that had already gone awry. She fell back on her military training. After
the initial shock of what she had done, she had to press on. Complete her
mission and worry about the ramifications later. What's done is done, as her
mother used to always say.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
"Another two megameters to the gate. If you keep this heading we
should see the entry vector beacons soon."</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
A moment's pause and the captain pointed out of her viewport window.
"There. I see it."</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
"And it looks like we're not alone," the purple numan said,
pulling up even more scan data onto her screens. "I am picking up at least
three more of those nasty ships orbiting the gate."</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
"Dammit," Calrose muttered solemnly.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
"Well I suppose it couldn't have been that easy," Arabel said
and then immediately regretted it. "Sorry, Cap."</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
The captain ignored the comment and the apology. She was determined to
stay on point.</div>
</div><a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.com/2016/06/the-lost-calling-chapter-4.html#more">Continued... »</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-41356859321567399612016-06-05T12:00:00.000-05:002016-06-05T12:00:06.516-05:00The Lost Calling - Chapter 3<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
Chapter 3</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<br></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
Waste Disposal Collection Port</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
Gavriel System, Inner Bellus Arm</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
Captain Calrose gritted her teeth as she maneuvered the ship around
waypoint beacons as she got closer to the traffic of ships surrounding the
port.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
"Bel," she called over her shoulder to the redhead. "I
have an idea, but it's a really stupid one."</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
Arabel seemed to brighten at the comment, a smirk breaking across her
thin purple lips. Any fear she was feeling was quickly being replaced with
excitement. This is the action she was hoping for. And she knew she could put
their lives in the hands of her capable captain. She looked back at Calrose,
admiring the dark-skinned woman with those piercing eyes. Arabel wasn't usually
one to be attracted to women, or humans for that matter, but there was
certainly something alluring about the sense of strength the captain possessed.
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
"What do you have in mind, Cap?" the teenager asked.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
"Something that might just get us killed," Calrose grimmaced,
her full lips becoming tight. "But I think I have an idea of how we can
actually outrun this thing."</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
"How? Even after dumping all that mass, we don't have a peak drive
anywhere near as powerful as whatever that <i>thing</i>
is packing. That ship certainly isn't human tech."</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
"It looks like the hate-filled lovechild of a Predator-class assault
ship and a trade frigate from the Dagon Empire," Jett observed. "A
bad ass piece of 'rat-tech if I ever saw one."</div>
</div><a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.com/2016/06/the-lost-calling-chapter-3.html#more">Continued... »</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-87525604355734459902016-06-01T12:00:00.000-05:002016-06-01T12:00:04.966-05:00The Lost Calling - Chapter 2<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
Chapter 2</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<br></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
Waste Disposal Collection Port</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
Gavriel System, Inner Bellus Arm</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
"You really think it could be pirates?" Arabel asked, her
excitement helping her initial fear to subside. "What would they want with
a Garbage Port?"</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
"Pirates, anti-Republic activists, scrap thieves, who knows. I don't
plan on sticking around long enough to find out."</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
Jett climbed up a ladder from the lower deck. His two meter height poking
up halfway into the cockpit.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
"What's going on, Captain?"</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
"Bel says someone is jamming all signals in the area. Not sure who,
or why," Calrose replied simply, her attention was on the manual controls
as she gunned the accelerator.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
"I think I've got something."</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
As Jett pulled himself into the room, he and Calrose turned to look at
Arabel. The redhead scanned the readout on her wrist, turning her seat to them,
but not actually looking up. Hard tap wired ran from her CDT to her terminal on
the wall. Data scrawled across the screens at a blinding speed.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
"I've managed to cancel out the source of the jam," she looked
up just long enough to flash an impish smile. "Scanners are now reading a
large vessel."</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
She looked up at the two others in the room, a serious look on her purple
face.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
"And it's coming straight at us!" her voice rose with
excitement. "Captain, I suggest you step on it!"<br>
</div></div><a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.com/2016/06/the-lost-calling-chapter-2.html#more">Continued... »</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-49518725744543348082016-05-29T12:00:00.000-05:002016-05-29T12:00:16.230-05:00The Lost Calling - Chapter 1<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
Chapter 1</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">
193 lightseconds from Gavriel</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">
Gavriel System, Inner Bellus Arm</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
The soft hum of the engines, vibrating through the ship, was lulling
Captain Rebecca Calrose to sleep. The delicate white noise, that she normally
tuned out, and the thick blanket of stars that filled her viewport were as good
as any lullaby. It was always hard on the longer stretches. The auto-nav had
control of the ship, and she was just taking her shift monitoring systems and
counting the hours before they arrived at their destination.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
The ship, formally known as the GRV-219, didn't have a proper
faster-than-light drive on it. Such expensive technology was rather unheard of
for a Garbage Retrieval Vehicle. The standard issue peak-drive sufficed to get
their mass moving at nearly the speed of light. This was complex enough when
trying to haul three or four waste disposal transports behind the ship in
normal space. The faster a ship accelerates toward the speed of light, the more
massive it becomes, therefore making it harder to get moving. The quantum
vacuum point cell that powered the drive was like scaled down version from the
massive power plants that ran Nexus Gates. It wasn't spectacular, but Calrose
was happy for what she had. Anything less and the constant trips back and forth
within the Gavriel system would take months rather than hours.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
The lights in the cockpit flickered and died. The hum of the engine
stopped and the sudden silence was almost deafening. For an odd frightening
second, Calrose feared she had gone deaf and blind. But as her eyes adjusted to
the nearly perfect dark, she could see the stars again through the viewport.
Her confusion turned to annoyance.</div>
</div><a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.com/2016/05/the-lost-calling-chapter-1.html#more">Continued... »</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-81470957369940645242016-05-28T13:18:00.002-05:002016-05-28T13:18:48.150-05:00The Lost Calling and the Far Reaches Project<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Last year I began a new project. This is not surprising as I am constantly starting new projects. But this was an idea that would have a number of twists and turns while it found its way to fruition. It started with the desire to do another comic series. Something between the high action work of A Drop of Blood and the strip format of GeoGuys (both previous projects of mine you can check out).<br />
I began work on a webcomic series that would tell the story of the crew of a space garbage truck. While fleshing out designs and the setting of this story I started thinking about world-building. One of my favorite passtimes, but quite an undertaking. I fell back to an old idea I once had of getting a group of creative types together and having a collective that works together to create a single universe. The shared universe idea is nothing new, especially for fans of comics. And the writer collective working on a collections of collected stories isn't an original idea either, but it always intrigued me. What if you have artists, writers, web designers, prop-makers, and others all working to create works that connected to a shared fictional space. This is an idea I will keep coming back to until it works, but from this was born the Far Reaches project.<br />
Out of this collective was born a shared wiki that over time has built up a catalogue of information about a science fiction setting. From my initial set up, members have created technology, locations, and alien creatures. This evolving galactic encyclopedia now forms the basis for numerous new creative works. Art, writing, and even games have spawned out of it.<br />
The first big work to come out of this project has been a large scale role playing game that my weekly game buddies and I participate in. They all play characters struggling to make a living in a wild and thriving galaxy. But unlike most RPGs where the gamemaster holds all the power of creation in the world, our game plays out like an improv group. Players help create and describe the places they are exploring. They are as much a part of the world building as I am. All of this gets fed back into the wiki to further flesh out this fictional world.<br />
Now back to the webcomic. With scripts written for nearly fifty pages of the comic, and most of the design work done, I began work on the comic. Drawing every few days to get pages made. Those of you that follow my online streams may have watched some of this. However, about 14 pages in I began to feel the weight of this project, the scale of what I was trying to take on. It was also becoming harder to fit all of this work into a growing busy schedule.<br />
As my projects often do, this got set aside for some time. But I was still running the RPG which kept me invested in the setting. I thought about the last big RPG setting I created, which spawned the idea for a serial novel (the first few chapters are posted on this blog). This time, instead of just writing the same story of my players, I would write a tale that fit into this same universe. Toying with plots and a few failed attempts at short works, I kept coming back to the abandoned webcomic. Now I have dedicated part of my writing time to fleshing out the original comic script into a full novel. Without the added time and pressure of illustrating the book (just yet at least), I have been able to quickly dive into this new idea. I never have expectations when it comes to my writing. I have been working on one of my novels off and on for over a decade. They may never get finished, and this work might just have the same fate. But I plug away at it none-the-less.<br />
I have decided to start sharing my first draft of this novel as I write it. Posting a chapter or two as they are written. So stayed tuned to this blog and help me out by commenting and giving constructive feedback as I share The Lost Calling.<br />
<br />
(If you are a creative type and would like to participate in the Far Reaches project, or would like information for running your own roleplaying games in the setting, feel free to contact me.)</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-61239184998496955742016-05-28T12:48:00.000-05:002016-05-28T12:48:06.219-05:00Distraction, Writing, and the future of TentacleNews<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
It has been a long time since I have posted anything on here. Over 5 months in fact. But that isn't to say I haven't been busy. Sadly blogging has become less of a hobby for me. Twitter has become my go to place to share links and little events in my life. Streaming services like Twitch and places like Tumblr and dA have become new places to debut new art. The online store has taken off and we are doing well with sales, so I have been working on an odd variety of projects from prop replicas to a new novel concept. My new part time job even employs some of my art skills as I help design the look of new rooms at an Escape Room entertainment venue.<br />
But I will try to not completely neglect this place. It is really where I got my start. But it can be tough to devote time and proper attention to every social media platform and project I have on the go. But I am hoping to turn this place into a source for one thing. While I will still do my annual best of list, this blog will become the site upon which I share my writing projects. I hope to return to my literary analysis projects of Lovecraft 101 and Pulp 101, which were still in their infancy when I took a few years off from them. But also my plan is to return to my bigger writing projects. The half dozen novels I have in progress, mainly. This site will hopefully become a place I can share early drafts and get feedback. My goal is to write one day every week. Pushing me to create new material that I can then share.<br />
I hope those of you still following and reading this blog will enjoy what is to come.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-4517199575962605502016-01-01T10:51:00.000-06:002016-01-01T10:51:44.831-06:00Best of 2015<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7k9-bEaVAH4/VoanVokQWiI/AAAAAAAACRs/ZthzKtfahJs/s1600/Best2015-big.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7k9-bEaVAH4/VoanVokQWiI/AAAAAAAACRs/ZthzKtfahJs/s200/Best2015-big.png" width="200" /></a></div>
How can it possibly be the end of the year already?! This year has gone by so fast I don't even know what hit me. And a whirlwind year it has been. Filled with a lot of challenges and good times. Not as much painting and artwork as I really would have liked, but a rather successful year nonetheless. With so much going on as the holidays near, company coming to visit, juggling time between two families, planning Yule parties and get-togethers, even finding time to finish long promised projects. Well with only a few days left in the year, I finally have a few brief moments to finalize my list of the best things I enjoyed this year.<br />
<br />
As per usual, this is not necessarily the best things from 2015, but merely things I discovered and immensely enjoyed this year. From movies, to shows, comics to games, there has been a lot going on. I failed to read as many books as I did last year (120), even counting all the numerous graphic novels this year, I will be happy to break 100.<br />
<br />
Let's get to the list!<br />
<a href="http://cdn3-www.comingsoon.net/assets/uploads/gallery/mad-max-fury-road-1406144100/11110866_658246694280855_1682386295316885693_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://cdn3-www.comingsoon.net/assets/uploads/gallery/mad-max-fury-road-1406144100/11110866_658246694280855_1682386295316885693_o.jpg" height="320" style="cursor: move;" width="215" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Movies</b>:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Live Action - Feature</span><br />
Winner: <b>Mad Max: Fury Road </b>(2015)<br />
Honorable Mentions: <b>Ant-Man</b> (2015), <b>The Martian </b>(2015), and <b>Star Wars: The Force Awakens </b>(2015)<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Documentary - Feature</span><br />
Winner: <b>Going Clear </b>(2015)<br />
Runner Up: <b>Print the Legend</b> (2015)<br />
Honorable Mentions: <b>Citizen Four</b> (2014) and <b>Jorodowsky's Dune </b>(2013)<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Animated - Feature</span><br />
Winner: <b>Inside Out</b> (2015)<br />
Runner Up: <b>Minions</b> (2015)<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/starwars/images/a/a6/RebelsPoster.png/revision/latest?cb=20140805200015" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/starwars/images/a/a6/RebelsPoster.png/revision/latest?cb=20140805200015" height="320" width="218" /></a></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Television:</b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Live Action - Drama Series</span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
Winner: <b>Jessica Jones</b> (Netflix)</div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Live Action - Comedy Series</span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
Winner: <b>Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt</b> (Netflix)</div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Animated Series</span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
Winner: <b>Star Wars Rebels </b>(Disney)</div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
Runner Up: <b>Steven Universe</b> (Cartoon Network)</div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Anime Series</span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
Winner: <b>One Punch Man </b>(Viz)</div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
Runner Up: <b>Sailor Moon Crystal</b> (Viz)</div>
<br />
<a href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4c/Halsey_-_Badlands.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4c/Halsey_-_Badlands.png" width="200" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Music and Audio:</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Artist of the Year</span><br />
Winner: <b>Halsey</b><br />
Runner Up: <b>Taylor Swift</b><br />
Honorable Mention: <b>Halestorm</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<span style="font-size: large;">Album of the Year</span><br />
Winner: <b>Endless Forms Most Beautiful</b> - Nightwish (2015)<br />
Runner Up: <b>Adventure</b> - Madeon (2015)<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.chancentre.com/sites/chancentre.com/files/welcome-to-nightvale-podcast.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.chancentre.com/sites/chancentre.com/files/welcome-to-nightvale-podcast.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Podcast</span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
Winner: <b>Welcome to Nightvale</b></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
Runner Up: <b>No Such Thing as a Fish</b></div>
<b><br /></b>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<b><b><span style="font-size: large;">Books and Comics:</span></b></b></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Crime Fiction</span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
Winner: <b>Sins of the Father</b> - Lawrence Block (1976)</div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
Runner Up: <b>Cadillac Jukebox</b> - James Lee Burke (1996)</div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
Honorable Mention: <b>Blind Descent</b> - Nevada Barr (1998)</div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Horror Fiction</span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
Winner: <b>Curse of the Wendigo</b> - Rick Yancey (2010)</div>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Science Fiction and Fantasy</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100905202027/honorverse/images/8/86/The_Honor_of_the_Queen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100905202027/honorverse/images/8/86/The_Honor_of_the_Queen.jpg" height="320" width="216" /></a></span></div>
<br />
Winner: <b>Honor of the Queen </b>- David Weber (1993)<br />
Runner Up: <b>Leviathan Wakes</b> - James S A Corey (2011)<br />
Honorable Mention: <b>The Witcher </b>series - Andrzej Sapkowski<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Children's Fiction</span><br />
Winner: <b>Zita the Spacegirl</b> series - Ben Hatke (2011)<br />
Runner Up: <b>Princess and the Pony</b> - Kate Beaton (2015)<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Non-fiction</span><br />
Winner: <b>What If?</b> - Randall Munroe (2014)<br />
Runner Up: <b>The Disappearing Spoon</b> - Sam Kean (2010)<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Comics</span><br />
Winner: <b>Giant Days</b> (Boom)<br />
Runner Up: <b>Big Feminist But</b> (Alternative Comics)<br />
Meg's Pick: <b>Nimona</b> (Harper Collins)<br />
Honorable Mention: <b>Princess Princess</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GJ3lyCmItlE/VoarCoZKV6I/AAAAAAAACR4/QHwmJtMD6pI/s1600/triple%2Bcomics.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GJ3lyCmItlE/VoarCoZKV6I/AAAAAAAACR4/QHwmJtMD6pI/s400/triple%2Bcomics.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/images/pic2073821.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="318" src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/images/pic2073821.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Games:</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Tabletop Game</span><br />
Winner: <b>Steampunk Rally</b> (Roxley)<br />
Runner Up: <b>Evolution</b> (North Star Games)<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Roleplaying Games</span><br />
Winner: <b>Deadlands </b>(Pinnacle Entertainment)<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Video Games -</span><br />
Best RPG: <b>Yokai Watch</b> (3DS)<br />
Best Action Game: <b>Elite Dangerous </b>(PC)<br />
Best Artistic Game: <b>Ori and the Blind Forest </b>(PC)<br />
Best Multiplayer: <b>Monaco</b> (PC)<br />
Best Casual Game: <b>Pokemon Picross</b> (3DS)<br />
Best Gaming Surprise: <b>Rocket League</b> (PC)<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FGlfOEcUzMg/VoauIqYORVI/AAAAAAAACSE/lJdng9T3zfk/s1600/Untitled-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="340" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FGlfOEcUzMg/VoauIqYORVI/AAAAAAAACSE/lJdng9T3zfk/s640/Untitled-1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
I hope you all enjoyed your 2015 as much as I did. Be sure to check out all these great recommendations, and if you have any awesome things I should check out in the new year, let me know in the comments! Have a fantastic new year!!<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-8833404485399108912015-06-19T08:00:00.000-05:002015-06-19T08:00:06.155-05:00Understanding Dinosaurs - Part 10: Further Reading<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
So now I hope you all know at least a little bit more about dinosaurs than when we started this series. It has been a lot of fun to research and write. If you would like to know more on some of the topics I covered, you can always go back and explore all the links within each article.<br />
What? You already did that? Still want more? Okay, I think I can help you there. Below are a number of books, websites and documentaries to further scratch that paleontology itch. I hope it further ignites an interest not only in dinosaurs, but in science in general.<br />
A special thanks to everyone who has been very supportive of this article series.<br />
<br />
<i>Further Reading:</i><br />
<i>Books~</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<a href="http://www.amazon.ca/DinosaursThe-Grand-Tour-Everything-Zuniceratops/dp/1615192123/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1434652066&sr=1-1&keywords=dinosaurs+the+grand+tour" target="_blank">Dinosaurs: The Grand Tour - Keiron Pim/Jack Horner</a><br />
The book that inspired this entire series. One of the best general overviews of dinosaurs with dozens of facts about hundreds of species. Beautifully illustrated and written in simple layman's terms that anyone can read and understand. A great introduction to the deeper world of dinosaurs.<br />
<i><br /></i>
<a href="http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/0806522607/ref=x_gr_w_bb?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_w_bb_ca-20&linkCode=as2&camp=15121&creative=330641" target="_blank">The Great Dinosaur Debate - Robert T Bakker</a><br />
Written by the author of my favorite fictional dinosaur book (Raptor Red), this enjoyable non-fictional book discusses some of the more controversial theories to come out of paleontology in the last few decades. Most interestingly is Bakker's theories on warm-blooded dinosaurs (a theory now widely accepted).<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/039330700X/ref=x_gr_w_bb?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_w_bb_ca-20&linkCode=as2&camp=15121&creative=330641" target="_blank">Wonderful Life - Stephen Jay Gould</a><br />
This book, by one of the greatest evolutionary biologists, covers the evolution of early life on earth as depicted in the Burgess Shale fossils found in the Canadian Rockies. It doesn't discuss dinosaurs, but rather the earliest forms of life from nearly half a billion years ago.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/0375824197/ref=x_gr_w_bb?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_w_bb_ca-20&linkCode=as2&camp=15121&creative=330641" target="_blank">Dinosaurs: The Most Complete, Up-to-Date Encyclopedia - Dr. Thomas R Holtz Jr.</a><br />
Like the first entry on this list, this is a massive encyclopedic tome written as a great introduction into the many forms of dinosaurs and interesting facts about their lives and evolution. Written for young readers, its facts and concepts are easy to understand. Great for young dino-nerds who are craving a big reference book.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/0195372662/ref=x_gr_w_bb?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_w_bb_ca-20&linkCode=as2&camp=15121&creative=330641" target="_blank">Feathered Dinosaurs: The Origin of Birds - John Long</a><br />
A thorough and well written overview of the evidence showing the connection between birds and dinosaurs. Beautifully illustrated, this feathered branch of the dinosaur family tree comes to life with current up-to-date science.<br />
<br />
<i>Documentaries~</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Dinosaur-Planet-Forman-Shane/dp/B00062IZZE/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1434653478&sr=8-4&keywords=dinosaur+planet" target="_blank">Dinosaur Planet</a><br />
A four-episode series produced by Discovery Channel, with a more narrative style than straight up fact-driven documentary.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.ca/Walking-With-Dinosaurs-Original-remastered/dp/B00FQI1S1G/ref=pd_bxgy_74_img_y" target="_blank">Walking with Dinosaurs</a><br />
This is an obvious recommendation. Though a few years out of date, it was the first major CGI driven dinosaur documentary. Rather than presenting boring interviews and shots of fossils, BBC created a series that looked and felt more like the nature documentaries of David Attenborough. This series has since gone on to inspire literally every dinosaur documentary since.<br />
(Note: a theatrical film was also released but had a ridiculous audio track added on top giving the dinosaurs voices. I do not in any way recommend that. However if you have the bluray, or see the newly released version titled Prehistoric Planet, the original documentary audio track is available.)<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.ca/Planet-Dinosaur-Various/dp/B0083VP2KQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1434653405&sr=8-1&keywords=planet+dinosaur" target="_blank">Planet Dinosaur</a><br />
The follow-up series from BBC plays like an updated Walking with Dinosaurs, however this series covers more of what is known and speculated about dinosaur anatomy and behavior. It also shows a few less depicted species alongside the more well known ones.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/nature/bigger-than-t-rex.html" target="_blank">Bigger than T. rex</a><br />
This Nova documentary covers the history of the spinosaurus discovery, the loss of its fossil remains during WWII and more excitingly takes a deep look at the new evidence that shows how little we really know about this creature. Sadly, after watching it, you'll probably start pointing out the inaccuracy of every spinosaurus toy in the toystore.<br />
<br />
Note: Many Discovery Channel and other well made TV documentaries are available on YouTube. Many of these are uploaded without the permission of the producers. They can be found by searching for "dinosaur documentaries". However, be warned, amateur and less scientific 'documentaries' also exist here.<br />
<br />
<i>Web Videos~</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
SciShow - Hank Green's fantastic science show answers lots of dino related questions.<br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ly8K257P2BI" target="_blank">5 Animals That Aren't Dinosaurs</a><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1iNcRJGzzxs" target="_blank">What Killed the Dinosaurs?</a><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cnb7LdKablY" target="_blank">Will We Ever Run Out of Dinosaurs?</a><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-0mT4oQH3o" target="_blank">Resurrection Biology</a><br />
<br />
CrashCourse - related to SciShow, a quick classroom overview of various topics.<br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=crash+course+evolution" target="_blank">Evolutionary Biology</a><br />
<i><br /></i>
Vsauce - Michael Stevens discusses interesting ideas and the science behind them<br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4AJmvzImbM" target="_blank">Jurassic World Science</a><br />
<br />
Discovery News - Answers to all your odd science questions<br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=dnews+dinosaurs" target="_blank">Dinosaur related topics</a><br />
<br />
<br />
<i>Websites~</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<a href="http://news.discovery.com/animals/dinosaurs" target="_blank">Discovery Channel - Dinosaurs</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://paleobiology.si.edu/dinosaurs/index.html" target="_blank">The Smithsonian Institute</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2007/12/bizarre-dinosaurs/dinosaur-interactive" target="_blank">Bizarre Dinosaurs - National Geographic</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.newscientist.com/movie/dinosaurs-interactive" target="_blank">Dinosaur Timeline - The New Scientist</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/sn/prehistoric_life/games/dinosaur_world/" target="_blank">Dinosaur World - BBC</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.livescience.com/" target="_blank">Live Science</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://dinopedia.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page" target="_blank">Dinopedia</a></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-14013862225377052622015-06-18T08:00:00.000-05:002015-06-18T08:00:04.682-05:00Understanding Dinosaurs - Part 9: Dinosaur Extinction<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">About 66 million years ago, the
Cretaceous period, and the Mesozoic era with it, ended. Like the great Permian
extinction that began the Mesozoic, it too wiped out a large portion of the
life on earth (around 75%). But most notable among these extinctions was the
demise of the non-avian dinosaurs, leaving only the birds to continue into the
Cenozoic era that we live in today.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">For well over a century, scientists
have debated about what wiped out these creatures and why none of them
continued on to today. It has only been in the last 20-30 years that we have
begun to cement a firm theory as to what happened (though many alternative
theories do still exist). By looking at the layer of rock known as the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cretaceous%E2%80%93Paleogene_boundary" target="_blank">K-Pg (or sometimes K-T) boundary</a>, we can look at the moment of extinction in the fossil
record. Below it, are the older periods of time, such as the Cretaceous and the
Triassic before that. Above this line, is the Paleogene, first period of the
Cenozoic era. Within that line, however, exists some rather interesting things,
namely the concentration of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iridium" target="_blank">iridium</a> a metallic element similar to platinum. It
exists in this layer in much higher concentrations than in the rock above or
below it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In 1980, a physicist named <a href="http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/physics/laureates/1968/alvarez-bio.html" target="_blank">LuisAlvarez</a> and his son, noticed that this band of odd rock could be found all over
the world. Iridium being an incredibly rare element on earth, it lead
scientists to the idea that the earth was hit by some foreign body, causing
some global catastrophe. This is now known as the <a href="http://paleobiology.si.edu/dinosaurs/info/everything/why_2.html" target="_blank">Alvarez Impact Hypothesis</a> and
is the most widely held theory as to the cause of the Cretaceous-Paleogene Extinction.
Thirty-five years of science since then, have lead to further evidence to
support this theory. The discovery of the <a href="http://www.space.com/19681-dinosaur-killing-asteroid-chicxulub-crater.html" target="_blank">Chicxulub Crater</a> off the coast of
Mexico seemed to be the clincher. All evidence pointed to a large astronomical
object (probably 10 km wide) smashing into the earth with the force of over 2
million nuclear bombs.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uSzw2fpSF38/VYB6DS29ykI/AAAAAAAACQ4/eRFpsct_xis/s1600/Dinosaur%2BExtinction.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="376" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uSzw2fpSF38/VYB6DS29ykI/AAAAAAAACQ4/eRFpsct_xis/s640/Dinosaur%2BExtinction.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But it <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8Ij9xboreA" target="_blank">wasn't just the impact</a> itself
that would have wiped out the majority of life across the globe. While anything
near the site would just be incinerated, the rest of the planet suffered
through years of horrendous side effects. The cloud of dust and debris from the
impact would have blocked out the rays of the sun, killing off plants and
phytoplankton that could no longer create food. This would have worked its way
up the food chain, killing off herbivores who no longer had plants to eat, and
then carnivores who lost things to hunt.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Because dinosaurs made up the greater
bulk of the food chain, they would have been hit the hardest. They were large
animals who needed an enormous amount of food to survive. On top of that, they
would have been more vulnerable to the toxic gases, acid rain, firestorms and
shifting weather brought on by the cataclysm . It would be the smallest of
things, lizards and early mammals, insects of various kinds, and some birds
that would survive by seeking shelter underground, requiring less food, or
being able to make long trips to find suitable shelter and nourishment.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This has been the standard model for
many years. Often focus shifts on the aftermath as to the leading cause of the
long term die off around the world. Sometimes it is a massive global winter,
while other times it is something else. But other theories do still exist that
play down the importance that even the Chicxulub impact had on the event.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deccan_Traps" target="_blank">Deccan Traps Hypothesis</a> points
the finger at a massive group of volcanic eruptions leading to a slow die off
as toxic gases and dust filled the air. There is a lot of evidence to support
this theory as well, which has lead many scientists to add it into the larger
Alvarez Hypothesis. It is unlikely any one thing caused the global devastation,
but more likely an incalculable chain of events that coalesced into the event
that nearly wiped out all life on earth once again. It is often these combination
theories that make the most sense for such a wide spread phenomena. Theories of
a <a href="http://studentresearch.wcp.miamioh.edu/ExtinctionsRadiations/MassExtinctionSeaLevel.pdf" target="_blank">severe drop in sea levels</a>, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/05/science/new-theory-on-dinosaurs-multiple-meteorites-did-them-in.html" target="_blank">multiple impacts</a>, volcanic eruptions, <a href="http://www.qm.qld.gov.au/microsites/dino/02-dinosaur-extinction-theories/climate-change.html" target="_blank">climate changes</a> and <a href="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/04/070420-extinctions.html" target="_blank">radiation</a> are prevalent. But all could easily work together to
create a really bad 'wrong place at the wrong time' kind of event.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Regardless of the how, scientists do
agree on one thing. The Cretaceous-Paleogene Extinction event saw the end of
the non-avian dinosaurs. We find no fossil evidence of them above the K-Pg
Boundary. It is unlikely that even the smaller non-avian dinosaurs lived beyond
a few hundred thousand years of the event. Evidence found, just outside my
door, in the Red Deer River also points to the fact that these <a href="http://www.amnh.org/our-research/science-news/2012/were-dinosaurs-undergoing-long-term-decline-before-mass-extinction" target="_blank">dinosaurs were on the decline</a> in the last 10 million years leading up to the event. As their
numbers paled, a massive ecology altering event would easily wipe the remaining out.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But every story has to have an
ending. Though the event took out all the non-avian dinosaurs, we were left
with the avian ones who survive to this day. Sure we have fossils and other
traces of dinosaurs that grace the exhibits of a thousand museums, but there is
just something awesome about knowing that there are still dinosaurs just
outside your window.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Next Time:
Further Reading<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-39031002497988865242015-06-17T08:00:00.000-05:002015-06-17T08:00:05.450-05:00Understanding Dinosaurs - Part 8: Prehistoric Time<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I find it hard to tell time without a
watch. Time seems even more complicated before humans even existed. We have
come pretty far in understanding what dinosaurs were, where they came from, and
we will get to where most of them went. But I think to best grasp that
information and to really place what we have learned so far, we should take a
look at time. And there has been a lot of it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/videos/the-birth-of-earth/" target="_blank">The earth formed out of the accretiondisk of the sun</a>, around 4.5 billion years ago. Taking its sweet time to cool
(and get bombarded with space rocks), it wouldn't be for half a billion years
later that the earth would be right enough for life to exist. Now, we are
talking dinosaurs here, so we have to fast forward from the 4 billion year old
Archean era to about 250 million years ago. We call this the <a href="http://www.livescience.com/38596-mesozoic-era.html" target="_blank">Mesozoic era</a> and
it is the time of the dinosaurs. Before it was the <a href="http://www.cotf.edu/ETE/modules/msese/earthsysflr/paleozoic.html" target="_blank">Paleozoic era</a>, during which
most complex life evolved. But the Mesozoic saw the emergence of that new hip
socket adaptation that made up the dinosaurs.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We can divide the Mesozoic into three
distinct periods. These are pretty well known names to most dino-fans, they are
the Triassic, the Jurassic, and the Cretaceous.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kG-cV91yq0k/VX86MPaTe7I/AAAAAAAACQk/lZT9B8TpID8/s1600/Geological%2BTime.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kG-cV91yq0k/VX86MPaTe7I/AAAAAAAACQk/lZT9B8TpID8/s640/Geological%2BTime.jpg" width="417" /></a></div>
<br />
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<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triassic" target="_blank">Triassic</a></span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Beginning about 250 million years ago
and lasting about 50 million years, the Triassic world was much different than
our own. This period began with the great<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6ig6zKiNTc" target="_blank"> Permian extinction</a>. This event,
sometimes called the Great Dying, wiped out 96% of all marine life and 70% of
all terrestrial species. It would take the earth another 10 million years to
recover. But as it did, new forms of life evolved from the limited diversity of
the survivors. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Among those new lifeforms were the
<a href="http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/taxa/verts/archosaurs/archosauria.php" target="_blank">archosaurs</a>, a prehistoric lizard group that would eventually branch off into
the dinosaurs. The second major group to come out of this event were the
<a href="http://dinosaurs.about.com/od/otherprehistoriclife/a/beforedinos_2.htm" target="_blank">therapsids</a>, who would develop the rodent-like ancestors of mammals.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">These creatures lived on hot earth,
with a heavy CO2 atmosphere. The land of earth at the time was broken up into
two massive supercontinents known as Laurasia (in the north) and Gondwana (in
the south), which together formed<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pangaea" target="_blank"> Pangaea</a>. The air was hot and dry, but would
begin to humidify over the course of the period as these two major landmasses
began to break up and move apart.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The Triassic period ended like it
began, in yet another extinction event known as the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triassic%E2%80%93Jurassic_extinction_event" target="_blank">triassic-jurassic extinction.</a> It was this event that allowed more room for dinosaur evolution and
gave them a foothold into becoming the dominant creatures on earth.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The most well known dinosaur from
this period would probably be <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coelophysis" target="_blank">Coelophysis</a>, a small therapod dinosaur who has
appeared in countless works of literature since its discovery over a hundred
years ago.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jurassic" target="_blank">Jurassic</a></span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The time period (at least in name)
that we are all most familiar with (<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6424171-jurassic-park?from_search=true&search_version=service" target="_blank">thanks Mr. Crichton</a>). After the
triassic-jurassic extinction event around 200 million years ago, dinosaurs and
other ancient reptiles really began to flourish and spread across the earth.
This time period has also come to be known as The Age of Reptiles (<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Age-Reptiles-Omnibus-Vol-1/dp/1595826831" target="_blank">an amazingcomic book series too BTW</a>).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Named for the Jura Mountains in Europe
where this layer of rock was first identified, the Jurassic period contained
some of the most distinctive and iconic dinosaur forms we have come to know. As
well as dinosaurs, it saw the return of ancient lizards to the sea, giving to
the rise of the aquatic reptiles. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The earth, still hotter than today,
was now covered in dense plant life. Jungles like those of the previous era,
spread across the world. Pangaea broke into the more distinctive lands of
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/?title=Laurasia" target="_blank">Laurasia</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gondwana" target="_blank">Gondwana</a>, while what would become the Gulf of Mexico began to tear
into what would become North America.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The Jurassic gave us many of the
dinosaurs we know so well now. Brachiosaurs, stegosaurs, allosaurs, and
diplodocoids were common. We also had the non-dinosaurs such as plesiosaurs in
the ocean and many of the pterosaurs that ruled the air. Even the earliest
birds began to show up in Archaeopteryx and others like it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cretaceous" target="_blank">Cretaceous</a></span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">145 million years ago saw the final
period of the Mesozoic era, and the end of most dinosaurs. This period gets its
name from the Latin for 'chalk', making up much of the rock's composition in
the geological layer. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">By the Cretaceous, Pangaea was
completely broken up into the present day continents, though none stood where
they do now. North America was split in half by a massive inland sea making it
a hot bed of both marine fossils as well as the remains of the terrestrial
animals that kept close to the coast.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The Cretaceous gave us even more
iconic dinosaur species to love than the Jurassic period (I guess Cretaceous
Park just didn't sound as good). It gave us Triceratops, Tyrannosaurus,
Parasaurolophus, and many others.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Birds became numerous and ranged in
diversity as much as other dinosaurs. Even the plants were becoming more like
the shapes we know today, as flowers began to develop. But unlike the birds,
and the plants, and the crocodilids, the dinosaurs would not survive the end of
the Cretaceous period.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It ended with a bang...possibly,
around 65 million years ago. And much like the Mesozoic began, it ended in an
enormous extinction event we call the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cretaceous%E2%80%93Paleogene_extinction_event" target="_blank">Cretaceous-Paleogene Extinction event</a>(often abbreviated at the K-T, or K-PG boundary). We will look more at this
event in the next segment.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The Mesozoic gave us the rise and
fall of the dinosaurs (but as we discussed before, we still got to keep the
birds). By understanding these time periods, we can look at when particular
species evolved and further help us understand where they fit on the dinosaur
family tree.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Next Time: Part
9 - Dinosaur Extinction<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-68932933771564927972015-06-16T08:00:00.000-05:002015-06-16T08:00:04.741-05:00Understanding Dinosaurs - Part 7: That's Not a Dinosaur!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In<a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.ca/2015/06/understanding-dinosaurs-part-1-what-is.html" target="_blank"> part 1</a> of this series we looked at
what a dinosaur is. We dove head first into the complicated world of dinosaurs
and grouping them into the Linnaean system. <a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.ca/2015/06/understanding-dinosaurs-part-3.html" target="_blank">We even talked about specific and interestinggroups of dinosaurs</a>, leading up to a look at how <a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.ca/2015/06/understanding-dinosaurs-part-6-bird.html" target="_blank">modern birds are actually grouped in as well, existing as living dinosaurs</a>. But now I want to discuss
something that often annoys me. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I was in the post office the other
day and I noticed a new selection of stamps for the month. Dinosaurs of Canada,
it read. Being an amateur paleoartist I looked over the artwork when I suddenly
grimaced. Now I will admit, this sort of thing annoys me, but not anger-induced
rant sort of annoyed. Out of the six available stamps of
"dinosaurs", only five were actually dinosaurs.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This comes up a lot. Often there are
many <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Jurassic-Dinosaur-Figures-Playset-Prehistoric/dp/B0029ANSR6" target="_blank">creatures that get lumped in with dinosaurs</a> as a matter of convenience. I
suppose most people don't want to say, "dinosaurs and other prehistoric reptiles."
But I am not so sure that is simply the case. I think it is a matter of
everyone easily mistaking all ancient reptiles as dinosaurs. <a href="http://io9.com/all-together-now-dimetrodon-is-not-a-dinosaur-1580344011" target="_blank">So let's set this issue straight</a> (then you can bust out the facts at those cocktail parties we still aren't being invited to). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In the first part we talked about
that specially adapted hip socket that set dinosaurs apart. It was simply that
that made them a distinct group of vertebrates. But without studying the
skeletons of every ancient creature, how do we know at a glance which ones are
and aren't dinosaurs. I'll admit, there can be some deceptive creatures that
might trick you, but most are pretty obvious. So let's look at the biggest
offenders.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pterosaur" target="_blank">Flying Reptiles</a></span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This is one I see in almost every
grouping of dinosaurs. Many even get referred to as "flying
dinosaurs", but as we have now learned from the previous entry, the only
flying dinosaurs were birds and select bird-like dinosaurs such as
Archeopteryx. Pterosaurs, as they are properly called, lacked the hip-socket feature
to qualify it as a dinosaur.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So what were they? In one word,
amazing. Pterosaurs ('winged-lizard') were the first vertebrates to gain the
power of flight. Unlike birds, <a href="http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/vertebrates/flight/evolve.html" target="_blank">who evolved a different manner of flight mechanics</a>, Pterosaurs had long thin arms that stretched their skin out into
wings to catch the air. They ranged from the tiny <a href="http://www.livescience.com/2288-tiny-pterodactyl-fossil.html" target="_blank">Nemicolopterus</a> (less than 10
inches in length), to the whopping <a href="http://dinopedia.wikia.com/wiki/Quetzalcoatlus" target="_blank">Quetzalcoatlus</a> (with a 52 foot wingspan),
the largest creature ever to fly.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9xR6HALPvxE/VX8g1bWevJI/AAAAAAAACQU/t2YvUIgymaY/s1600/Ancient%2BReptiles.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="512" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9xR6HALPvxE/VX8g1bWevJI/AAAAAAAACQU/t2YvUIgymaY/s640/Ancient%2BReptiles.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://planetdinosaur.com/PrehistoricMarineReptiles.aspx" target="_blank">Marine Reptiles</a></span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Remember when I said that dinosaurs
were not lizards? Well they also were not crocodilids, turtles, or snakes. Just
as we still have many living lizards and land-reptiles, we also have numerous
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marine_reptile" target="_blank">extant marine reptiles</a>. And while variations of turtles and crocodiles have
been around since the dinosaurs, they are not at all related. We have to go up
our Linnaean chart to the Chordata phylum to find any real connection. And yet,
often, extinct aquatic reptiles get lumped in with dinosaurs. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ichthyosaur" target="_blank">Ichthyosaurs</a>
('fish-lizard') were the ancient reptile equivalent of dolphins. And like
whales and dolphins, evolved from earlier land-based vertebrates. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plesiosauria" target="_blank">Plesiosauria</a>
('near-lizard') evolved similarly. It is one of the few I am more likely to
forgive for being included with dinosaurs, as they are somewhat sauropod-like.
But even their name shows they are closer to a lizard than a dinosaur or a fish
(<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpIm4SWOI34" target="_blank">although, don't get me started on what a fish is</a>). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synapsid" target="_blank">Synapsids</a> (Protomammals)<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Synapsids are a strange group. Many
of this group look sort of dinosaur-like, and I know I have seen them on stamps
and posters. Hell, when I was a child, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dimetrodon" target="_blank">Dimetrodon</a> was my favorite
"dinosaur". Oh poor naive me. Synapsids, such as Dimetrodon and
others, are sometimes called '<span id="goog_893674396"></span>protomammals<span id="goog_893674397"></span>' as they include the mammal-like
reptiles of the Permian period (<a href="http://www.tor.com/2014/02/05/nine-of-your-relatives-that-ruled-before-dinosaurs/" target="_blank">before the dinosaurs</a>). Technically Synapsids
include everything in the 'mammal branch' of the tree of life, but we are
specifically focusing on the mammal-like reptiles. These creatures existed long
before the dinosaurs evolved, which means they didn't have the distinct hip-socket adaptation, and were therefore not dinosaurs. Sorry Dimetrodon and
childhood me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This group of reptiles would
eventually take on more mammal like qualities by the time of the dinosaurs.
<a href="http://dinosaurs.about.com/od/otherprehistoriclife/a/earlymammals.htm" target="_blank">Mammals did exist by the time dinosaurs</a> were around, but were more often snacks
for hungry therapods. It wasn't until after the extinction event at the end of
the Cretaceous that mammals would have the opportunity to evolve beyond small
rodent like creatures and fill the broader ecological niches of the extinct
dinosaur species.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Next time: Part 8 - Prehistoric Time</span></div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-6869202839839847162015-06-13T08:00:00.000-05:002015-06-13T08:00:03.224-05:00Understanding Dinosaurs - Part 6: The Bird Connection<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The connection between birds and
dinosaurs is not a new idea. In fact it was a theory championed in the mid
1800s by <a href="http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/thomas-henry-huxley-and-the-dinobirds-88519294/?no-ist" target="_blank">Thomas Huxley</a>. Most of these ideas were fueled by the discovery of
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archaeopteryx" target="_blank">Archeopteryx</a>, the first fossil that really blurred the lines between the
bird-like therapods and actual birds. At first they didn't know which side to
classify it on. To make it a bird, they had to broaden their definition of
birds to include those with clawed fingers and teeth. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We now know that Archeopteryx and its
similar cousins make up a subgrouping within Maniraptora (the same subgrouping, Avialae, that contains birds). In the century and
half since its discovery, we have come a long way in refining our theory of the
dinosaur-bird connection. As we have seen with our look at trying to map out
species on the larger Linnaean tree, sometimes it can get really complicated
trying to trace a direct lineage of a single species. But with the added
evidence of the last number of years, we have gotten closer to finding where
your chicken dinner sits on the family tree near its more terrifying cousins. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K1nSdMJl3jw/VXX55JAbJUI/AAAAAAAACQA/d5CdulUKsyI/s1600/Dinos%2Bto%2BBirds.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="434" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K1nSdMJl3jw/VXX55JAbJUI/AAAAAAAACQA/d5CdulUKsyI/s640/Dinos%2Bto%2BBirds.jpg" width="640"></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"></span><br>
</div></div><a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.com/2015/06/understanding-dinosaurs-part-6-bird.html#more">Continued... »</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-52184484274064977072015-06-12T08:00:00.000-05:002015-06-12T08:00:05.714-05:00Understanding Dinosaurs - Part 5: Saurischian Dinosaurs - Therapods<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The second suborder of Sauruschian
dinosaurs are called the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theropoda" target="_blank">Therapods</a> (which means 'beast foot'). The creatures of
this grouping are largely carnivores, though a few later animals were not. Most
therapods possessed significantly shorter forelimbs leading to most of this
group to be bipedal (walked on two feet). This is the group we mostly think of when we think of
carnivorous dinosaurs, or bird-like dinosaurs. In fact, modern birds are now
actually considered part of the therapod suborder (more on that in bit). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I'd like to be able to break down the
therapods as easily and cleanly as I did with the previous groups, but it
really wouldn't do the group justice. The suborder consists of numerous
infraorders, divisions, and subdivisions. The best I can do is to direct you to
look at <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theropoda#Major_groups" target="_blank">more detailed dinosaur classification charts</a>. These charts can better
fit these groups into the Linnaean system (though it gets a lot more complex
than the simple version of the system we have previously discussed).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Instead, let's look at some of the
most iconic groups and subgroups.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2u6BQgX3JaY/VXX2sW52KBI/AAAAAAAACP0/9bec4xqstZQ/s1600/Therapoda.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="494" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2u6BQgX3JaY/VXX2sW52KBI/AAAAAAAACP0/9bec4xqstZQ/s640/Therapoda.jpg" width="640"></a></div>
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</div><a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.com/2015/06/understanding-dinosaurs-part-5.html#more">Continued... »</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587128037150260712.post-91420634346176798352015-06-11T08:00:00.000-05:002015-06-11T08:00:01.907-05:00Understanding Dinosaurs - Part 4: Saurischian Dinosaurs - Sauropods<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Unlike the <a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.com/2015/06/understanding-dinosaurs-part-3.html" target="_blank">Ornithischian dinosaurs</a>,
Saurischia vary greatly in their body plan. So rather than just giving you a
handful of subgroups to look at, we have to further break lizard-hipped
dinosaurs into more manageable groups. The first group we will look at is the
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sauropoda" target="_blank">sauropods</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Sauropod (if you haven't pieced it
together from all the fancy lingo you are picking up), means "lizard
foot", though most people will identify them by their more
Land-Before-Time-ish name of 'long-necks'. This group contains the largest
dinosaurs that ever lived and are probably the most recognizable group.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We can break up the sauropods into
three major groups (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sauropoda#Classification" target="_blank">again there are others</a>, but this is just easier right?),
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diplodocoidea" target="_blank">Diplodocoids</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brachiosaurus" target="_blank">Brachiosaurs</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titanosaur" target="_blank">Titanosaurs</a>. These are among the most distinguishable of the sauropods, though it is really only a sampling of the later forms. The easiest way two distinguish the
Diplodocoids from the other two is that they tended to grow horizontally, while
the Brachiosaurs and Titanosaurs grew vertically. The former group contained
genera like Apatosaurs, Diplodocus, and <a href="http://www.wired.com/2015/04/scientists-say-time-reinstate-brontosaurus/" target="_blank">Brontosaurus</a>, while the latter two had Brachiosaurus and
Giraffatitan.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">(<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saltasaurus" target="_blank">Saltasaurus</a> would be an easy exception to this rule as its body plan was more horizontal despite being part of the Titanosaur clade. But a closer look at how the neck attaches to the body, shows its separation from the Diplodocoid groups). </span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zUlAsNl2AJw/VXXyEWMIgQI/AAAAAAAACPo/wmhLaosJSPM/s1600/Sauropods.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zUlAsNl2AJw/VXXyEWMIgQI/AAAAAAAACPo/wmhLaosJSPM/s400/Sauropods.jpg" width="400"></a></div>
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</div></div><a href="http://tentaclenews.blogspot.com/2015/06/understanding-dinosaurs-part-4.html#more">Continued... »</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0