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Faster than a Speeding Ostrich?
Think you could outrun a big "slow" T-Rex? Think again! Have a Velociraptor on your tail? Don't run, hide! Scientists have discovered that the Tyrannosaurus Rex could reach speeds up to 18 miles per hour while the Velociraptor could clock 24! Even the top human sprinters can't run much faster than 25 miles per hour. Scientists study the speed of dinosaurs to learn more about how they became extinct 65 million years ago. It is important, they say, because in the dog-eat-dog world of dinosaurs, speed sometimes meant the difference between life and death. For predators, being quick meant catching their next meal. For prey, being quicker meant escaping the jaws of death.
Researchers at the University of Manchester in England tested the top running speed of five carnivorous dinosaurs -- from the tiny 6.6-pound Compsognathus to the heavy-duty 6-ton T-Rex. They entered data on the dinosaurs' bones and muscles into a supercomputer. Scientists say the results showed maximum dinosaur speeds and that information can help us understand threats to today's species. The scientists also included data on two-legged animals living on earth now. Turns out that tiny Compsognathus, reached speeds of almost 40 miles per hour. That is five miles per hour more than the fastest modern-day two-legged animal -- the ostrich.
I'm Adelbert and that's what happened in Science this week!
Do you know your dinosaurs? Play my match game and see if you can match the dinosaurs with their pictures.
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