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Science 11 June 1976:
Vol. 192. no. 4244, pp. 1123 - 1125
DOI: 10.1126/science.192.4244.1123
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Articles

Plates of the Dinosaur Stegosaurus: Forced Convection Heat Loss Fins?

JAMES O. FARLOW 1, CARL V. THOMPSON 2, and DANIEL E. ROSNER 3

1 Division of Vertebrate Paleontology, Peabody Museum of Natural History, and Department of Geology and Geophysics, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520
2 Department of Engineering and Applied Science, Yale University
3 Chemical Engineering Section, Department of Engineering and Applied Science, Yale University

It is suggested that the plates along the arched back and tail of Stegosaurus served an important thermoregulatory function as forced convection "fins." Wind tunnel experiments on finned models, internal heat conduction calculations, and direct observations of the morphology and internal structure of stegosaur plates support this hypothesis, demonstrating the comparative effectiveness of the plates as heat dissipaters, controllable through input blood flow rate, temperature, and body orientation (with respect to wind).

Submitted on December 3, 1975
Revised on February 19, 1976


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