Diplodocus (continued)

Habitat

Marsh and then Hatcher[23] assumed the animal was aquatic, because of the position of its nasal openings at the apex of the cranium. Similar aquatic behavior was commonly depicted for other large sauropods such as Brachiosaurus and Apatosaurus. The idea of an aquatic existence was later debunked, as the water pressure on the chest wall of Diplodocus was proven to have been too great for the animal to have breathed. Since the 1970s, general consensus has the sauropods as firmly terrestrial animals, browsing on trees. However, a more recent theory suggests a likely riparian habitat for Diplodocus.

Posture

The depiction of Diplodocus' posture has changed considerably over the years. For instance, a classic 1910 reconstruction by Oliver P. Hay depicts two Diplodocus with splayed lizard-like limbs on the banks of a river. Hay argued that Diplodocus had a sprawling, lizard-like gait with widely-splayed legs,[25] and was supported by Gustav Tornier. However, this hypothesis was put to rest by W. J. Holland, who demonstrated that a sprawling Diplodocus would have needed a trench to pull its belly through.[26]

Later, diplodocids were often portrayed with their necks held high up in the air, allowing them to graze from tall trees. More recently, scientists have argued that the heart would have had trouble sustaining sufficient blood pressure to oxygenate the brain. Furthermore, more recent studies have shown that the structure of the neck vertebrae would not have permitted the neck to bend far upwards As with the related genus Barosaurus, the very long neck of Diplodocus is the source of much controversy among scientists. A 1992 Columbia University study of Diplodocid neck structure indicated that the longest necks would have required a 1.6 ton heart. The study proposed that animals like these would have had rudimentary auxiliary 'hearts' in their necks, whose only purpose was to pump blood up to the next 'heart'.[3]

While the long neck has traditionally been interpreted as a feeding adaptation, a recent study[29] suggests that the oversized neck of Diplodocus and its relatives may have been primarily a sexual display, with any other feeding benefits coming second.

Diplodocus_description

One of the best known sauropods, Diplodocus was a very large long-necked quadrupedal animal, with a long, whip-like tail. Its forelimbs were slightly shorter than its hind limbs, resulting in a largely horizontal posture. The long-necked, long-tailed animal with four sturdy legs has been mechanically compared with a suspension bridge.[3] In fact, Diplodocus is the longest dinosaur known from a complete skeleton.[3] While dinosaurs such as Supersaurus were probably longer, fossil remains of these animals are only fragmentary.[4]

The skull of Diplodocus was very small, compared with the size of the animal, which could reach up to 27 metres (90 feet), of which 6 metres (20 feet) was neck.[5] Diplodocus had small, 'peg'-like teeth only at the anterior part of the jaws, which were distinctly procumbent.[6] Its braincase was small. The neck was composed of at least fifteen vertebrae and is now believed to have been generally held parallel to the ground and unable to have been elevated much past horizontal.[7] Modern mass estimates have tended to be in the 10 to 16 tonne (11–17.6 ton) range: 10 tonnes (11 tons);[8] 11.5 tonnes (12.7 tons);[9] 12.7 tonnes (14 tons);[10] and 16 tonnes (17.6 tons).[11]


Diplodocus had an extremely long tail, composed of about eighty caudal vertebrae,[12] which is almost double the number some of the earlier sauropods had in their tails (such as Shunosaurus with 43), and far more than contemporaneous macronarians had (such as Camarasaurus with 53). There has been speculation as to whether it may have had a defensive[13] or noisemaking function.[14] The tail may have served as a counterbalance for the neck. The middle part of the tail had 'double beams' (oddly-shaped bones on the underside, which gave Diplodocus its name). They may have provided support for the vertebrae, or perhaps prevented the blood vessels from being crushed if the animal's heavy tail pressed against the ground. These 'double beams' are also seen in some related dinosaurs.

Four Nights in Knaresborough

Four Nights in Knaresborough is a play written by Paul Corcoran (now known as Paul Webb) and first performed at the Tricycle Theatre, London in 1999. It recounts the aftermath of the murder of Thomas Becket by four knights making "the worst career choice in history".[1] Despite being an historical drama, the play uses modern language, including an abundance of profanity and slang.[2]

A film version of the play, scripted by Webb and titled Four Knights is to be produced by Miramax Films, directed by Paul McGuigan.


Plot

Set in 1171, Four Nights in Knaresborough opens in Canterbury Cathedral where four knights, Brito, Fitz, Morville, and Traci come to arrest Becket, the Archbishop of Canterbury. However, rather than arresting him, Becket is killed by Fitz.[5] The knights then flee to Knaresborough Castle in Yorkshire where they ensconce themselves for a year to avoid the wrath of the public and the Pope.

Over the course of four evenings, in January, March, September and December, the play portrays the gradual decline of the knights, showing their repressed desires, fears and misgivings.[2] Emphasising clashes of personalities, the play glosses over the deeper political and historical consequences of the murder.[6]

Of the four knights, Morville is the one most upset by his excommunication and isolation and argues that Becket had to die as he was opposing the progressive reforms of King Henry II. He even claims that Henry is playing a careful political game but is really on the knights' side.[5]

Brito is not an aristocrat like the other knights, but is rather a "new man" who joined the others less out of conviction than of opportunism. As the most active and the youngest of the four knights, his imprisonment is a kind of rite of passage and he grows through the play. Brito is also rampantly heterosexual and, despite a mutual attraction between himself and Traci, he chases Catherine and ultimately martyrs himself for her when she succumbs to a fatal disease circulating the village of Knaresborough.[5]

Traci is the most complex character in the play. Guilt-ridden like Morville, he is also in love with Brito. In the past he has had a relationship with the fourth knight, the aristocratic Fitz, but is now very much alone.[5]

While the knights wait out their time in the castle, Catherine keeps the villagers at bay by ensuring them that her tenants are seeking penance through a constant cycle of fasting and prayer. Ultimately, she is tried as a witch by water.

Diplodocus (continued)

Diplodocus has been a famous and much-depicted dinosaur. Much of this has probably been due to its wealth of skeletal remains and former status as the longest known dinosaur. However, the donation of many mounted skeletal casts around the world a century ago[50] did much to familarise it to people worldwide. Casts of Diplodocus skeletons are still displayed in many museums worldwide, including an unusual D. hayi in the Houston Museum of Natural Science, and D. carnegiei in the Natural History Museum in London, the Natural Science Museum in Madrid, Spain, the Senckenberg Museum in Frankfurt, Germany, the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago and, of course, the original is still on display at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh. A mounted skeleton of D. longus is at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D. C., while a mounted skeleton of D. hallorum (formerly Seismosaurus), which may be the same as D. longus, can be found at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science.

Diplodocus has been a frequent subject in dinosaur films, both factual and fictional. It was featured in the second episode of the award-winning BBC television series Walking with Dinosaurs. The episode "Time of the Titans" follows the life of a simulated Diplodocus 152 million years ago. It had cameo appearances in The Land That Time Forgot and in The Lost World (2001 version), as well as the animated film The Land Before Time VI: The Secret of Saurus Rock, the character "Doc", presumably short for Diplodocus, voiced by Kris Kristofferson, was a Diplodocus; in contrast to the "long-neck" protagonists, which were Apatosaurus. The animated feature Fantasia features many sauropods in the Rite of Spring sequence, some narrower-headed ones of which may be Diplodocus.