Episode 28 – PAST TIME reviews Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom!

First Iteration

I (Adam) am both proud and nervous to say that this is an atypical Past Time episode, as we’re not talking about a new discovery nor a real scientific topic; it is a recap/review of Jurassic World 2. However, I think it is worth addressing whether or not particular elements of new movies, television, or books adhere to modern science. Dr. Elizabeth Jones taught us that science fiction can have a major impact on scientific advances, as Jurassic Park helped give rise to modern techniques that revealed all sorts of molecules in ancient fossil remains. Although it is far less…science-y…than the original Jurassic Park, Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom may one day have an impact on future paleontologists.

This also presented a great opportunity to get some scientific queries from a non-scientist. My partner for this episode is Tommy Dembeck, an old friend from my days as an undergraduate at McDaniel College with whom I discuss sci-fi endlessly. He is also endlessly curious. Of all the laypeople I know who have never worked in a university or museum setting, Tommy has the best questions about biology and prehistory. I would love to have him back for a future episode…there are always shark movies to talk about! I’ve uploaded the full audio of our discussion to this blog post if you want to hear more of our Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom thoughts in two parts!

http://www.pasttime.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/JurassicWorld_Tommy_Part1.mp3

http://www.pasttime.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/JurassicWorld_Tommy_Part2.mp3

FURTHER READING

Check out our previous episodes on…

“Genes and Jurassic Park“, in which Matt discusses his thoughts about the movie and genetic engineering.

…and “New History of Ancient DNA,” which features an interview from Dr. Elizabeth Jones about the history of molecular paleontology and the impacts of science fiction!

Visit the Jurassic World website for updates on the movies, games, and other media (for better or for worse). Adam really likes that Jurassic World Alive mobile game…it’s not great, but it actually has Concavenator!