About this course: Dino 101: Dinosaur Paleobiology is a 12-lesson course teaching a comprehensive overview of non-avian dinosaurs. Topics covered: anatomy, eating, locomotion, growth, environmental and behavioral adaptations, origins and extinction. Lessons are delivered from museums, fossil-preparation labs and dig sites. Estimated workload: 3-5 hrs/week.

Created by: University of Alberta

Taught by: Philip John Currie, PhD, Professor and Canada Research Chair, Dinosaur Paleobiology
Department of Biological Sciences

Level	Beginner
Commitment	12 weeks of study, 1-2 hours/week
Language	English, Subtitles: Italian, French
How To Pass	Pass all graded assignments to complete the course.
User Ratings	4.9 stars Average User Rating 4.9See what learners said

Syllabus

WEEK 1

Appearance and Anatomy

This lesson covers the diversity in dinosaur appearances, and will be able to identify major features of the major groups of dinosaurs.

7 videos, 4 readings

Graded: Appearance and Anatomy

WEEK 2

Death and Fossilization

This module describes how fossils form, how we interpret the taphonomy of skeletons and bonebeds, and looks at the possible biases taphonomic events may create in the fossil record.

3 videos, 1 reading

Graded: Death and Fossilization

WEEK 3

Eating

This module looks at the variety of food types, feeding habits, and feeding adaptations amongst the major groups of dinosaurs.

4 videos, 1 reading

Graded: Lesson 3

WEEK 4

Moving Around

This module helps students understand the general modes and styles of locomotion in the major dinosaur groups. It also describes general methods of evaluating hypotheses on locomotion.

4 videos, 1 reading

Graded: Lesson 4

WEEK 5

Birth, Growth and Reproduction

This module provides a generalized life history of a dinosaur, from birth through adulthood, including reproduction. The student will be able to describe major techniques of evaluating growth stages and rates in dinosaurs.

3 videos, 1 reading

Graded: Lesson 5

WEEK 6

Attack and Defense

Examines the behaviours and structures that may have served for attack or defence through the lifetime of a dinosaur.

3 videos, 1 reading

Graded: Lesson 6

WEEK 7

What is a Species?

This module will teach the different ways of defining what a species is. Students will be able to compare the strengths and weaknesses of different species concepts for different situations.

3 videos, 1 reading

Graded: Lesson 7

WEEK 8

Evolution

This module will describe the basic theories of speciation, and discusses how how these different methods of speciation may have occurred, including both hypothetical and empirical examples.

3 videos, 1 reading

Graded: Lesson 8

WEEK 9

Stratigraphy and Geologic Time

This method provides basic stratigraphic concepts and the scale of earth history. Students will understand the evolution of dinosaurs through time, including which groups evolved when and where.

3 videos, 1 reading

Graded: Lesson 9

WEEK 10

Paleogeography and Plate Tectonics

This module presents the basic concepts in plate tectonics and the evolution of the earth’s surface.

4 videos, 1 reading

Graded: Lesson 10

WEEK 11

Dinosaur Origins

This module will look at the evolution of dinosaurs from non-dinosaurian archosaurs.

3 videos, 1 reading

Graded: Lesson 11

WEEK 12

Dinosaur Extinction

The module will examine the end-Cretaceous extinction event, and provide examples of vertebrate groups that both persisted and died out during the event.

4 videos, 1 reading

Graded: Lesson 12

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University of Alberta

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Ratings and Reviews

Rated 4.9 out of 5 of 143 ratings

this was the best course ever to take and I learned a lot more about the history and study of how dinosaurs behaved how they adapted and how they lived and I love this course I have been into dinosaurs since I was a toddler also Philip and Betsey are the best paleontologist

Very informative and well done.

Very interesting course, sometimes there was too much information but it proved that this course is complete and from very clever sources.

Excellent course. All presentations, either of Betsy Kruky or Dr. Phil Curry were very straightforward. I am a biochemist but my undergraduate field is biology and one of my favourites field of biology is that related with fossil records in particular with all these magnificient animals, the dinosaurs. For a guy with scientific training (as one that is sharing this thoughts) is a pleasure to listen and to read material full of scientific evidence. This aspect makes, to me, a strong, serious and professional way to present this particular course. I want to congratulate all personnel involved in the development of this course, in particular to Betsy and Dr. Curry, and all personnel of University of Alberta. I encourege all of you to see more courses in this field with you guys soon. Congrats!

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