Re: Not dinosaurs

[bob@intelenet.net (Bob Myers)]

> Date: Thu, 25 Jan 1996 17:59:07 -0700 (MST)
> From: JCMcL <darwincr@laplaza.taos.nm.us>
> To: Dinogeorge@aol.com
> Cc: Multiple recipients of list <dinosaur@lepomis.psych.upenn.edu>
> Subject: Re: Not dinosaurs
> Message-ID: <Pine.SGI.3.91.960125175750.17758D-100000@laplaza.taos.nm.us>
> 
> On Thu, 25 Jan 1996 Dinogeorge@aol.com wrote:
> 
> > In a message dated 96-01-25 00:33:43 EST, darwincr@laplaza.taos.nm.us 
> > (JCMcL)
> > writes:
> > 
> > >My own feeling has always been that the long sauropod tail was a cooling 
> > >radiator, BTW.  Rather than a whip, or JUST a whip.
> > 
> > Nah. Not enough surface area.
> 
> Really?  How would we find surface area of such a (roughly conical, I 
> believe) object?  Can anyone here do it?  I think it'll be pretty large, 
> though I surely lack George's certainty.

"Certainty" aside, the shape is wrong.  C'mon, John, you've taken
your "certainty" thing to an extreme.

If you want to minimize surface area, you make rounded shapes. A
conical tail is the wrong shape.  You'd want a very flattened tail if
you wanted to maximize the surface area.  That's one reason why some
people propose sails or stegosaur plates as radiators - they're flat!




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