Dinosaurs

[Henryn]

Were enourmous dinosaurs really able to move as fast as Hollywood portrays them doing?

[Peter R]

If you want two archaeologists to have an argument, ask this question :-) Its possible that a lot of the smaller ones were very agile... but for this the weather had to either be just right, or they would have had to be warm blooded - that is, unlike other lisards, they would not have to lie in the sun each morning just to get warm. As for the bigger dinosaus, they could not have been agile - they are simply too big. But, just like an elephant can be fast, they wouldn't have to move much to get a long way!

[incitatus]

Evidence suggests that theropods could move quite fast. Bob Bakker once memorably described T. Rex as a "thirty ton meat-eating road runner" (Beep Beep). Also the warm blood/cold blood argument still rages. Dinosaurs look like cold blooded creatures, but we don't know this for sure. Large animals can be very spritely. See charging rhinos for details. The truth is we don't know, but a top speed of 30 mph for Trex seems reasonable given its balance point and mode of locomotion.