Could we live in a dinosaur world?

Key takeaways

The late Cretaceous period was characterized by large dinosaurs, a warmer climate with higher CO2 levels, and a landscape lacking modern grasses and prairies.
High atmospheric CO2 levels in the past made breathing more difficult for humans, indicating significant environmental differences from today.
Fossil evidence shows that dinosaurs experienced infections similar to those in modern birds and animals, suggesting ancient disease and virus presence.
Imagining walking through that era offers insight into both the Earth's ancient ecosystems and the challenges that would face modern humans in such an environment.

Summary

Imagining Life in the Cretaceous Era

The episode begins with a hypothetical scenario where a person is transported back to the late Cretaceous period, about 66 million years ago, right before the asteroid impact that led to the dinosaurs' extinction. Paleontologist Steve Brusatte discusses what the environment and atmosphere would look like. Key observations include the dominance of large dinosaurs like T. rex, the presence of 'weird' birds with teeth and claws, and flying pterodactyls. It is also noted that mammals would be tiny and scarce, and the landscape would lack grasses and prairies. The atmosphere would be significantly warmer due to higher CO2 levels, making breathing more arduous for humans, as the oxygen chemistry was different. The episode explores how the atmospheric conditions could affect humans, emphasizing that CO2 levels were roughly triple today, and the implications for breathing and survival.

Challenges and Risks in a Dinosaur World

The conversation shifts to the potential dangers that humans would face in a prehistoric world, such as being pursued by predators like T. rex. It highlights the environment's hostile conditions, including increased temperatures and higher CO2 levels, which would make respiration more difficult, and the scarcity of other life forms like mammals and plants familiar to us. The discussion encompasses possible threats from diseases and infections, considering fossil evidence of infections in dinosaur bones, and the likelihood of viruses or bacterial infections existed then, which could still threaten humans.

Reflections and Historical Moments in the Dinosaur Era

In the closing moments, Brusatte expresses fascination with witnessing the last day of the dinosaurs—the morning before the asteroid impact—featuring a world filled with diverse and large dinosaurs oblivious to the impending disaster. He emphasizes the dramatic change that the Earth would undergo after that event and hopes to experience that historic moment. The episode ends with a reminder of Brusatte’s work on the evolutionary history of birds and a promotion for the podcast's resources and contact information.

Show notes

In the new movie “The End Of Oak Street,” bits of a suburban Michigan neighborhood get sucked back through time to a prehistoric world of dinosaurs. It made us wonder, aside from the danger of getting snacked on by an allosaurus, what other challenges would modern humans face in that ancient world?

Flora talks with paleontologist Steve Brusatte about the conditions of the late Cretaceous era.

Guest:

Dr. Steve Brusatte is a paleontologist and author of “The Story of Birds: A New History from their Dinosaur Origins to the Present.”

Transcript will be available after the show airs on sciencefriday.com.

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