Raising the Dinosaur Giant

Gr 4–7—A gobsmacked Sir David Attenborough hosts this account of the 2014 discovery of an as yet unnamed titanosaur unearthed in Argentina—the largest dinosaur so far discovered—and the creation of a life-size skeleton of the colossus. This twofold story line should be of interest to budding paleontologists and to young makers in general. It documents fossil bones being excavated, preserved, and examined for evidence of how the original skeleton was put together and how missing elements are re-created, replicas cast, and all the parts assembled into a towering replica, all with the aid of scanners and design software. The CGI effects are particularly well employed to fill out the modern reconstruction with anatomical features, to re-create dinosaur eggs hatching and to send herds of the gigantic dinosaurs lumbering through Cretaceous landscapes. Though this episode concludes without mentioning the recent unveiling of the model at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, young viewers can't help but share the renowned narrator's excitement as he walks over a fossil nesting ground, watches scientists at work in the field and in the lab, and looks up at the towering skeleton in awe.