I’ve had the pleasure of interviewing him a couple of other times and meeting him in person several times. (*He and Matthew Mossbrucker are not above peer pressuring a grown man into trying salad when he is clearly a carnivorous pastaivore.) I should know by now that one can ask Dr. Bob a direct question, but they should not expect a direct or short answer. What you’re about to read is my latest attempt to interview this most interesting fellow as he, Bob, finds himself talking to a friend, me, vs some anonymous reporter. You’ll see what I mean. So find a comfy seat and come and “listen in” to my latest visit with one of paleontology’s most interesting characters, Dr. Robert Bakker.
Tony Campagna: Well… should we begin with dinosaur-related questions?
Bob Bakker: Absolutely! Well, this is dinosaur-related. What would be the difference? I was just thinking about this actually! Because I have this very nice Brontosaurus skull, you can see the braincase and its whole brain wouldn’t be much bigger than your thumb in an animal that weighs as much as 10 15 elephants? And good ol’ Professor Marsh in 1879, he was the first to cut open a sauropod braincase and went, “Gahh!” and that’s why he named it Morosaurus grandis which means – The Grand Stupid Lizard.
This story is from the Spring 2020 edition of Prehistoric Times.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the Spring 2020 edition of Prehistoric Times.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
What's New in review
Papo of France creates highly detailed prehistoric animal figures (if not always the most scientifically accurate.)
The Thunderbird
Today we have an excellent, new kit based upon a scene from Ray Harryhausen's cowboys vs. dinosaur film, The Valley of Gwangi.
WHAT I DID ON MY LOCKDOWN
A tyrannosaur in the local area? How cool!
The Forgotten Dinosaur Art of Robert T. Bakker
A renaissance marks a shift in the attitudes and behaviours of an entire society.
Sauropelta
A flock of Deinonychus dart from the dense forest they had been moving through across the broad floodplain to the tree line on the far side.
Reminiscing Over Dinosaurus!
“Alive! After 70 million years! Roaring! Walking! Destroying!” (Ad line for Dinosaurus!)
Longisquama
“Determined to travel from the North Pole to the South Pole, Amos Barrett and his team of adventurers have arrived in the Late Triassic to drive the length of Pangea, the only time in the planet’s history when the continents had fused into one giant landmass.
How to Draw Dinosaurs
Putting it all together, the body of Ankylosaurus
Dinosauriana Imagined 13
Dinosauriana Iberiana (A Spain-ful Endeavor)
Paleoracism
With the nation and much of the western world contending with the fallout of the chronic problem of racism, this is as good a time as any to take a look at the issue within the world of vertebrate paleontology.
