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.
Dino 101: Dinosaur Paleobiology
Instructor: Philip John Currie, PhD
79,230 already enrolled
Included with
(3,584 reviews)
Skills you'll gain
Details to know
Add to your LinkedIn profile
12 assignments
See how employees at top companies are mastering in-demand skills
Earn a career certificate
Add this credential to your LinkedIn profile, resume, or CV
Share it on social media and in your performance review
There are 12 modules in this course
This lesson covers the diversity in dinosaur appearances, and will be able to identify major features of the major groups of dinosaurs.
What's included
7 videos4 readings1 assignment
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.
What's included
3 videos1 reading1 assignment
This module looks at the variety of food types, feeding habits, and feeding adaptations amongst the major groups of dinosaurs.
What's included
4 videos1 reading1 assignment
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.
What's included
4 videos1 reading1 assignment
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.
What's included
3 videos1 reading1 assignment
Examines the behaviours and structures that may have served for attack or defence through the lifetime of a dinosaur.
What's included
3 videos1 reading1 assignment
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.
What's included
3 videos1 reading1 assignment
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.
What's included
3 videos1 reading1 assignment
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.
What's included
3 videos1 reading1 assignment
This module presents the basic concepts in plate tectonics and the evolution of the earth’s surface.
What's included
4 videos1 reading1 assignment
This module will look at the evolution of dinosaurs from non-dinosaurian archosaurs.
What's included
3 videos1 reading1 assignment
The module will examine the end-Cretaceous extinction event, and provide examples of vertebrate groups that both persisted and died out during the event.
What's included
4 videos1 reading1 assignment
Instructor
Offered by
Recommended if you're interested in Basic Science
University of Alberta
Tel Aviv University
University of Colorado Boulder
Dartmouth College
Why people choose Coursera for their career
Learner reviews
3,584 reviews
- 5 stars
92.16%
- 4 stars
7.10%
- 3 stars
0.58%
- 2 stars
0.05%
- 1 star
0.08%
Showing 3 of 3584
Reviewed on Oct 1, 2017
I thought this course had a lot of interesting information and I learned a lot from it. Some of the material was little to complicated for me to understand when I went over it the first time.
Reviewed on Nov 15, 2020
This was such an awesome course! Philip and Betsey were great to listen to, they make the course fun and every lesson is fascinating to learn. My love for dinosaurs have grown so much more.
Reviewed on Jul 26, 2019
This was honestly incrediable. So much fun, fully engaging, amazingly interesting. I've been a prehistoric life here all my life but I've learned so much that I'm kinda sad it's over already
New to Basic Science? Start here.
Open new doors with Coursera Plus
Unlimited access to 10,000+ world-class courses, hands-on projects, and job-ready certificate programs - all included in your subscription
Advance your career with an online degree
Earn a degree from world-class universities - 100% online
Join over 3,400 global companies that choose Coursera for Business
Upskill your employees to excel in the digital economy
Frequently asked questions
Access to lectures and assignments depends on your type of enrollment. If you take a course in audit mode, you will be able to see most course materials for free. To access graded assignments and to earn a Certificate, you will need to purchase the Certificate experience, during or after your audit. If you don't see the audit option:
The course may not offer an audit option. You can try a Free Trial instead, or apply for Financial Aid.
The course may offer 'Full Course, No Certificate' instead. This option lets you see all course materials, submit required assessments, and get a final grade. This also means that you will not be able to purchase a Certificate experience.
When you purchase a Certificate you get access to all course materials, including graded assignments. Upon completing the course, your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile. If you only want to read and view the course content, you can audit the course for free.
You will be eligible for a full refund until two weeks after your payment date, or (for courses that have just launched) until two weeks after the first session of the course begins, whichever is later. You cannot receive a refund once you’ve earned a Course Certificate, even if you complete the course within the two-week refund period. See our full refund policy.