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Summary: Thought provoking, entertaining
Review: Dr. Bob Bakker, long known for his unorthodox views on many subjects in Paleontology, has done an excellent job of bringing these long dead creatures to life. Although his arguments sometimes a little shaky, he has obviously put a great deal of research and thought into this book.Excellent for anyone interested in the subject.
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Summary: Fascinating Story of Bakker and The New Dinosaurs
Review: I have always been riveted by the story of the dinosaurs and Dr. Bakker has, with this book, shown me the depth of modern scholarship, its evolution of ideas, and his own story. Bakker describes his own ideas, giving full credit to those in whose (sometimes petrified) tracks he has followed, not hesitating to describe when and how he has been mistaken. I was impressed by the extreme care with which he makes his points about the hot-blooded theory, how, in fact, it has been kicked around since the early 19th Century. Another great thing about the book is the profusion of pen and ink illustration, all by Bakker. I bought this book four days ago at Western Mich. Univ. at which Dr. Bakker gave a fascinating two-hour presentation. By the way, if you can spend two hours with Robert Bakker and not want to IMMEDIATELY go on a dig then you have no life force! Before you go on the dig, read the book, eat the book: 462 pages will never go so quickly again!
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Summary: For he's a jolly, good...
Review: I haven't read Bakker's ground-breaking book since I was a freshmen in high school, and after reading it again for the second time, I must still agree with his casual, yet compelling arguments of his view of Dinosauria. In fact, he was the one scientist who attracted me to the whole subject, and it amazes me that his theories would still seem "unorthidox." but apparently, a small community of the old school of paleontology will not open its eyes to "radical" views of these fanastic creatures which, in my opinion, have been clearly accepted in the general publc. Granted most people are not inate experts in the field, but the interest will always be there, and I attribute this to Crighton's novels and Spieldburg's subsequent movies. In essence, there is now more awareness of dinosaurs and the controveries surrounding the study of them, replacing the naive notion that Tyrannosaurus rex, or Triceratops horridus are but passing fads in our collective childhoods. Rather, Bakker has started a "renaissance" in paleontology; one where entire paleo-ecosystems, with their endless denizens can truly come to life.
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Summary: the best dinosaur book ever
Review: I loved it I think this book is for every literate person who loves dinosaurs and paleontlogy in general
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Summary: The best dinosaur book ever written.
Review: I've been reading dinosaur books ever since I was a little boy in the 1970s. I remember being fascinated at these creatures that the then "conventional wisdom" said were bulky, obese, overweight, dumb, slow witted, slow moving, cold blooded swamp dwellers. Ha! Our knowledge of dinosaurs sure has come far since then. In this book, Bakker presents a tremendous amount of evidence to challenge many of the popular ideas about dinosaurs. Bakker uses evidence in the fossil record to argue that dinosaurs were warm blooded, active creatures who lived in groups, and migrated, and raised their young, and were capable of running at rather rapid speeds, and who did not live in swamps. Actually, many of these ideas had been proposed during the 19th century, only to be swept under the rug. Bakker revives many of these ideas, as well as coming up with many original ideas of his own. This is an excellent book.
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Summary: Dinosaurology At Its Best - And Wildest
Review: If you are over age ten and still into dinosaurs, like me, you will find Dr. Bakker's "Dinosaur Heresies" a wonderful distraction from the typically immature or too-mature work on dinosaurs. Dr. Bakker's writing is delightfully entertaining, easy to understand, and thought-provoking; even those points that may be outdated or capable of enraging orthodox dinosaur theorists will make you want to learn more and keep "digging dinosaurs." Dr. Bakker's arguments are passionate and even a bit one-sided, but Paleontology, after all, can be a "rough and tough" area of science, and the ideas presented in this book are expected to instill a more powerful curiosity in the reader by
making him or her disagree. Dr. Bakker does not shoot down the work or abilities of those paleontologist whose theories he does not agree with; he simply presents the "old" ideas and his reasons for not complying with them.
For an exciting and mentally stimulating read on dinosaurs, this is the book to read!
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Summary: Astonishing dinosaurs
Review: Incredibly compelling book about the possible evolution of velociraptors into birds. Dinosaur Heresies goes beyond mere dinosaur evolution, however. As an enthusiastic gardener, I was bemused and delighted to learn of the powerful link between Cretaceous herbivorous dinosaurs and the rise of flowering plants, how it was BECAUSE of these saurian herbivores that we have flowering plants instead of a world of gymnosperms (aka pines, cycads, ginko, etc.). It was a FUN read!
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Summary: Astonishing dinosaurs
Review: Incredibly compelling book about the possible evolution of velociraptors into birds. Dinosaur Heresies goes beyond mere dinosaur evolution, however. As an enthusiastic gardener, I was bemused and delighted to learn of the powerful link between Cretaceous herbivorous dinosaurs and the rise of flowering plants, how it was BECAUSE of these saurian herbivores that we have flowering plants instead of a world of gymnosperms (aka pines, cycads, ginko, etc.). It was a FUN read!
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Summary: A primer on how to think and write like a great scientist
Review: Interested in dinosaurs? Interested in learning how to analyze complex scientific problems and present them in an exciting, unifying, and altogether compelling fashion? Either way, you should go no further. This is book that had to be written, and only Bakker could write it. Is it all true? Did Bakker's ornery, warm-blooded beasts (with captivating illustrations) ever stalk and chomp their way across the earth? Maybe--and I'd even say probably. He draws from so many truths and so many crushingly elegant insights that you can't help but agree with him. Now, if I could only get him to teach in my children's schools--
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Summary: A WHACKY BLAST FROM THE PAST
Review: Its a pity Bakker was not consulted during the filming of Jurassic Park and the lost World. Look, let's face it, most people wouldn't know the difference between an archaeopteryx and a coelecanth if they were bitten on the butt, and so I guess we have no idea if Bakker is right or wrong. Bakker claims that current paleontology theory paints dinosaurs as stupid, cold-blooded swamp monsters. OK let's say he is right and dinos were warm-blooded, well, I read a book recently entitled something like "Science of Jurassic Park and the Lost World". By my calculations, there is more chance of Pauly Shore winning an Oscar than of us resurrecting dinos in the next 500 years. So I guess until Tyrranosaurus rules the earth again, it doesn't matter who is right, just so long as we keep digging, right, guys? I'm not a biologist, but Bakker's book is really interesting, though, and I believe he did all the sketches.
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