And we know that they would have had to use their necks for all sorts of things to maybe, if they were catching prey on land, to try to strike down and catch prey and then lift prey up. And so you would have the neural canal going through the middle, kind of like a tube within a tube.īut we know that these animals were in some cases, really, really big. So for a long time, we’ve kind of reconstructed their necks in a fairly simplistic fashion as these long tubes. The neck bones are really slender and long, at least some of them are. NIZAR IBRAHIM: Yeah, these animals have long necks. I understand that’s really interesting from a mechanical engineering point of view. IRA FLATOW: And tell us what you found especially about the neck bone. And so what we were trying to do in our work is look at the internal structure of the bones of these Azhdarchid pterosaurs. NIZAR IBRAHIM: No, they are kind of distantly related to dinosaurs but they are not dinosaurs. IRA FLATOW: Is a pterosaur classified as a dinosaur? Working on these pterosaurs really is like working on extraterrestrials from outer space. Some of them would have been as tall as a giraffe when standing on the ground. ![]() So just think a giant stork hunting things on land. They have long necks, really long skulls, big wings, and Azhdarchid pterosaurs also looked like they were pretty competent walking around on land. And figuring out how these creatures work is really challenging. They have a really unique anatomy and some of them, in particular, the Azhdarchid pterosaurs reached gigantic sizes with wingspans of 10 meters or more so well over 30 feet. Pterosaurs are flying reptiles so they’re not bats or birds. There’s nothing alive today that really looks anything like a pterosaur. NIZAR IBRAHIM: Well, it’s really difficult to describe these creatures because they’re kind of like dragons from deep time. IRA FLATOW: Did I get that description right or could you be a little more specific? NIZAR IBRAHIM: Thanks so much for having me, Ira. Nizar Ibrahim is a paleontologist and anatomist, University of Portsmouth in Portsmouth, England. My next guest is one of the authors on that study. Their results were published in the journal iScience. Imagine a pelican-like creature with the neck of a giraffe and a 40-foot wingspan.Ī group of scientists wanted to know more about the internal structure of the pterosaur’s ridiculously long neck. One of those was a flying reptile called Azhdarchid pterosaur. It was probably out of control because there were all sorts of creatures flying through the air with different body shapes and sizes. Ntilikina is at 1.10, which is not far from the largest of any All-Star in recent memory: Kawhi Leonard (1.12).įor comparison, his wingspan is greater than what LeBron James, Paul George and Blake Griffin recorded when they entered the league though all are notably taller.Ī point guard trying to land a rebound when matched up against Ntilikina would be an absolute nightmare.IRA FLATOW: During the age of dinosaurs, there was no air traffic control. The average arms-to-height ratio for an NBA player is 1.06-to-1. In fact, the average NBA center has a wing span of approximately 7-foot-1. He was learning to use his prodigious wingspan, measured at around seven feet, to disturb opposing players, eliminating passing angles and making them think twice about shooting.ĭraft Express indicates the average wingspan of a point guard is around nine inches shorter than what Ntilikina recorded. Ntilikina is working to use his wingspan to his advantage ( via New York Times): Would make him 10 inches longer than Dennis Smith, 7 longer than Fox. Told by exec scouting Ntilikina his wingspan is 7'1".
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