biology

Nanningosaurus

Nanningosaurus is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Nanningosaurus rather than just read about it. In short: Nanningosaurus is a genus of hadrosauromorph dinosaur from the upper Late Cretaceous of the Nalong Basin, Guangxi, China. The type and only species is Nanningosaurus dashiensis, named and described by Mo Jinyou, Zhao Zhongru, Wamg Wei, and Xu Xing in 2007.

Key takeaways

Nanningosaurus belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Nanningosaurus to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Nanningosaurus from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Nanningosaurus is a genus of hadrosauromorph dinosaur from the upper Late Cretaceous of the Nalong Basin, Guangxi, China. The type and only species is Nanningosaurus dashiensis, named and described by Mo Jinyou, Zhao Zhongru, Wamg Wei, and Xu Xing in 2007. The generic name refers to the city of Nanning, located close to the excavation site. The specific name is derived from the Pinyin da-shi ("great stone"), the name of the village where the discovery was made. Nanningosaurus is based on the holotype, NHMG8142, an incomplete skeleton including skull, arm, leg, and pelvis remains found in 1991, together with the holotype of Qingxiusaurus. The discoveries were in 1998 reported in the scientific literature. The paratype is NHJM8143, a right maxilla. In 2010, Gregory S. Paul estimated the body length of Nanningosaurus at 7.5 metres (25 ft) and its weight at 2.5 tonnes (2.5 long tons; 2.8 short tons). No autapomorphies were given but a unique combination of diagnostic characteristics includes a high and sharp ascending branch of the maxilla, a short rear branch of the maxilla, relatively few tooth positions (twenty-seven in the maxilla), a transversely wide lower quadrate with a weak paraquadratic notch, a gracile upper arm, and an ischium that at the lower end of its rear edge curves towards its expanded tip. Mo et al. (2007), who described the specimen, performed a phylogenetic analysis that suggests Nanningosaurus was a basal lambeosaurine, although they stressed the support for this was tentative. This animal was the first hadrosauroid named from southern China.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Nanningosaurus

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Nanningosaurus claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Nanningosaurus before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Nanningosaurus ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Nanningosaurus

In research: Nanningosaurus appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Nanningosaurus in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Nanningosaurus is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Dinosaur genera, Dinosaurs of China, Fossil taxa described in 2007, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Nanningosaurus outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Nanningosaurus in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Nanningosaurus means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Nanningosaurus out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Nanningosaurus in simple terms?

Why does Nanningosaurus matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Nanningosaurus?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Nanningosaurus.