Giganotosaurus ("giant southern lizard") is a genus of theropod dinosaur that lived in what is now Argentina, around 99.6 to 97 million years ago. It was one of the largest known terrestrial carnivores, but the exact size has been hard to determine from the incomplete remains found so far. The holotype specimen, discovered in Patagonia in 1993, is almost 70% complete, and indicates a length of 12 to 13 m (39 to 43 ft), a skull 1.53 to 1.80 m (5.0 to 5.9 ft) in length, and a weight of 4.2 to 13.8 t (4.6 to 15.2 short tons). A length of 13.2 m (43 ft) has been extrapolated from another individual's dentary bone. Some researchers believe the animal to be larger than Tyrannosaurus, generally considered the largest theropod. The skull was low, with a ridge-like crest in front of the eye. The teeth were serrated, and the front of the lower jaw was flattened. Giganotosaurus is thought to have had a homeothermic metabolism, between that of a mammal and a reptile, which would have enabled rapid growth but not fast movement. It was probably the apex predator of its ecosystem, feeding on juvenile sauropod dinosaurs.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giganotosaurus

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1676:

Virginia colonist Nathaniel Bacon and his makeshift army issued a Declaration of the People of Virginia, instigating a rebellion against the rule of Governor William Berkeley. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nathaniel_Bacon_(Virginia_colonist_and_rebel)

1811:

Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, an early leader of the Mexican War of Independence, was executed by Spanish authorities. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miguel_Hidalgo_y_Costilla

1930:

Uruguay defeated Argentina 4–2 at Estadio Centenario in Montevideo to win the first Football World Cup. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1930_FIFA_World_Cup

1950:

Four striking workers were shot dead by the Gendarmerie' in Belgium at the height of the political crisis known as the Royal Question. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Question

2012:

The largest power outage in history occurred across 22 Indian states, affecting over 620 million people, or about 9% of the world's population. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012_India_blackouts

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

swank: 1. A fashionably elegant person. 2. Ostentation; bravado. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/swank

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

We let the weirdness in.   --Kate Bush https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Kate_Bush