Valerie Varnuska is a longtime resident of the Westbury, New York, area who regularly explores natural destinations in the local region. Attracted to diverse disciplines in the sciences, Valerie Varnuska considers paleontology one of her major areas of interest. A recent Southern Methodist University research project involving paleontologists, as well as biomedical and mechanical engineers, uncovered the way in which dinosaur skeletons were able to supported larger loads than mammals. Given their massive size, the largest dinosaurs experienced major gravitational loads on their skeletons. One unique aspect of dinosaurs was the composition of their trabecula, a spongy bone. In contrast to birds and mammals, the trabecular bone did not increase in thickness as dinosaur species evolved larger. Instead, the spongy bone’s density increased. This represented a weight-saving adaptation that accommodated the massive skeletal structures of large species such as hadrosaurs. CT scans combined with engineering failure theories have explained this phenomenon, and a greater understanding of trabecular architecture mechanics has provided insights into lightweight and dense structure design.

1. A Unique Bone Structure Supported Large Dinosaur Frames
Valerie Varnuska

2. Introduction
Valerie Varnuska is a longtime resident of the Westbury, New York, area who regularly
explores natural destinations in the local region. Attracted to diverse disciplines in the
sciences, Valerie Varnuska considers paleontology one of her major areas of interest.

3. A recent Southern Methodist University research project involving paleontologists, as well
as biomedical and mechanical engineers, uncovered the way in which dinosaur skeletons
were able to supported larger loads than mammals.

4. Given their massive size, the largest dinosaurs experienced major gravitational loads on
their skeletons. One unique aspect of dinosaurs was the composition of their trabecula, a
spongy bone. In contrast to birds and mammals, the trabecular bone did not increase in
thickness as dinosaur species evolved larger. Instead, the spongy bone’s density
increased.

5. This represented a weight-saving adaptation that accommodated the massive skeletal structures of
large species such as hadrosaurs. CT scans combined with engineering failure theories have
explained this phenomenon, and a greater understanding of trabecular architecture mechanics has
provided insights into lightweight and dense structure design.