This is a video of “freelance paleoartist and science communicator” Tyler Stone explaining how dinosaurs were able to grow so insanely huge. SPOILER: Nothing to do with the earth’s gravity or oxygen supply. It involves the dinosaurs’ air sacs (still present in modern birds), which allowed them to remain relatively light while breathing much more efficiently than mammals do. They were also able to grow much faster in their youth thanks to these efficiencies, with some species regularly growing MULTIPLE POUNDS per day. Me? I can grow about 12 pounds over a heavy-eating weekend. So, yeah, be sure to explain this to your family around the dinner table. I’m talking about my impressive eating habits — nobody cares about dinosaurs anymore but children and it breaks my heart.

Keep going for the video, as well as a follow-up in case you were wondering why we dinosaur-sized birds aren’t terrorizing earth right now.

@tylerstoneart Replying to @Brandon Davidson TL;DR: they were built different #greenscreen #fyp #foryoupage #dinosaur #birds #paleontology #evolution #anatomy #prehistoric #science #sciencetok ♬ original sound – Tyler Stone

@tylerstoneart Replying to @Strawberry TL;DR evolution is complicated #fyp #foryoupage #dinosaur #birds #evolution #paleontology #science #sciencetok ♬ original sound – Tyler Stone