COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH: Triassic-Jurassic Fossils and the Origin of the Crocodilian Skull

GSTDTAP

项目编号	1636753
	COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH: Triassic-Jurassic Fossils and the Origin of the Crocodilian Skull
	James Clark
主持机构	George Washington University
项目开始年	2016
	2016-08-01
项目结束日期	2020-07-31
资助机构	US-NSF
项目类别	Standard Grant
项目经费	279868(USD)
国家	美国
语种	英语
英文摘要	Crocodilians and their closest relatives have an exceptional fossil record from the last 250 million years, documenting the origins of their many specializations. Here the PIs investigate for the first time the origins of the unique jaw-closing system that allows crocodilians to have the strongest bite force of any vertebrate, using biomechanical analyses integrated with a study of their evolutionary relationships. The PIs will also study how the size of air spaces in the skull relates to a dramatic increase in global temperatures and decrease in atmospheric oxygen at the end of the Triassic Period. The study seeks to determine whether the origin of features increasing bite force were related to the increase in air spaces in the skull, or whether these two signature adaptations of modern crocodilians evolved independently. Crocodilians are charismatic animals that lend themselves well to educational outreach, and this project will utilize the Smithsonian?s National Museum of Natural History's Q'rius learning center and University of Missouri's Inside Dinosaurs program as platforms to contribute to public scientific literacy and public engagement with science. The PIs and their students will engage in public presentations and develop interactive experiences based on 3D skulls printed from project CT scans. Collaboration with researchers in China will strengthen international collaboration.
来源学科分类	Geosciences - Earth Sciences
文献类型	项目
条目标识符	http://119.78.100.173/C666/handle/2XK7JSWQ/69959
专题	环境与发展全球科技态势
推荐引用方式 GB/T 7714	James Clark.COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH: Triassic-Jurassic Fossils and the Origin of the Crocodilian Skull.2016.