WHO WILL WIN?
Stegosaurus
WHAP-SPIKE
Cheetah
CHIRRUP-ZOOM
THE SETUP

Stegosaurus vs Cheetah

Stegosaurus
Stegosaurus
Cheetah
Cheetah

Pretend they meet in grassland. Dinosaurs lived long ago. Look at the facts. Then you pick.

Would they meet?

No. Stegosaurus and Cheetah did not live at the same time. This meeting is pretend.

This is pretend and based on facts. Real animals usually hide or leave.

Read the facts. Make your card. The page waits to pick.

Corner A

Stegosaurus

Stegosaurus stenops · Roof-plates up top, a tagged tail in back.

Stegosaurus
Home
Late Jurassic fern prairies of western North America · Lived in North America long ago
Food
Plants
Group
Lives in a herd
Size
Stegosaurus is huge.

Browser.

A tiny brain, a low head, and a tail that did not wait for a committee.

Slow salad tank.

  • Stegosaurus is huge and slow.
  • Low plants.
  • Morrison Formation country — Late Jurassic, about 150 million years ago.

Family: Other plated dinosaurs like Kentrosaurus.

Corner B

Cheetah

Acinonyx jubatus · The land-speed record in spots.

Cheetah
Home
African savanna · Lives in Africa
Food
Meat
Group
Lives alone
Size
Cheetah is medium.

Sprint specialist.

Huge eyes, huge field of view.

A sprinter, not a wrestler.

  • Cheetah is medium and very fast.
  • They prefer gazelles and other speedy snacks they can outrun.
  • Open plains are a racetrack.

Family: Other cats, but cheetahs are the odd cousins who joined track team.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

Stand them next to a grown-up. Who is bigger and heavier?

1.70 m

Grown-up

2.8 m

Stegosaurus to scale

Stegosaurus

0.90 m

Cheetah to scale

Cheetah

Height to scale. A grown-up is 1.7 m.

Stegosaurus3,500 kg

About the weight of a pickup truck, with plates that could top a grown-up's head.

Cheetah50 kg

About as heavy as a fifth-grader — and faster than the school bus.

Stegosaurus

2.8 m · 3,500 kg

Stegosaurus is huge. 3,500 kg.

Cheetah

0.90 m · 50 kg

Cheetah is medium. 50 kg.

Kilograms are honest. A small animal can still have a strong tool.

Who would you pick for size?

TOOLKIT!

TOOLS

Teeth, claws, horns, venom, kick — what tools do they have?

  • Weapon: Thagomizer tail spikes
  • Armor: Kite-plate rooftop
  • Senses: A tiny brain, a low head, and a tail that did not wait for a committee.

Stegosaurus · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: High-speed trip claws
  • Armor: Tearaway lightness
  • Senses: Huge eyes, huge field of view.

Cheetah · labeled field diagram

Stegosaurus200 psi bite
Cheetah400 psi bite

Stegosaurus

Thagomizer tail spikes

Tool: thagomizer tail spikes. Bite: 200 psi.

Cheetah

High-speed trip claws

Tool: high-speed trip claws. Bite: 400 psi.

A bite number is only one tool. Coils and kicks count too.

Whose tools would you trust?

ZOOM!

SPEED

Who gets there first?

Stegosaurus
12 km/h
Cheetah
110 km/h
Stegosaurus12 km/h
Cheetah110 km/h

Stegosaurus

12 km/h

Stegosaurus can go 12 km/h. That is slow.

Cheetah

110 km/h

Cheetah can go 110 km/h. That is very fast.

A fast animal can miss. A slow one only has to connect.

Who takes the speed card?

HOME MAP!

HOME

They meet in grassland. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
StegosaurusCheetahBoth

Meeting biome: grassland. Colored land is fossil range for dinosaurs and living range for zoo animals.

Stegosaurus

This is home · Lived in North America long ago

Stegosaurus lives in places like grassland.

Cheetah

This is home · Lives in Africa

Cheetah lives in places like grassland.

No. Stegosaurus and Cheetah did not live at the same time. This meeting is pretend.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Stegosaurus
Plants · Browser.
Cheetah
Meat · Sprint specialist.

Stegosaurus

Plants · Browser.

Low plants.

Cheetah

Meat · Sprint specialist.

They prefer gazelles and other speedy snacks they can outrun.

A plant eater is not 'safe.' Hippos and elephants still end arguments.

Whose hunting or defending helps more?

MOOD!

MOOD

Alone vs team. This rumble is one vs one.

Stegosaurus
Lives in a herd
Cheetah
Lives alone
Stegosaurus7 grit /10
Cheetah6 grit /10

Stegosaurus

Lives in a herd

Slow salad tank. Grit: 7/10.

Cheetah

Lives alone

A sprinter, not a wrestler. Grit: 6/10.

Pack and pride animals lose their backup in a 1-v-1.

Who is better for a solo meeting?

PING!

BRAINS

Who notices first and thinks next?

Stegosaurus
2/10
Cheetah
6/10
Stegosaurus2 brains /10
Cheetah6 brains /10

Stegosaurus

2/10

A tiny brain, a low head, and a tail that did not wait for a committee.

Cheetah

6/10

Huge eyes, huge field of view.

In the wild, brains often mean leave before it starts.

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

Stegosaurus
Stegosaurus stenops
Cheetah
Acinonyx jubatus

Stegosaurus

Stegosaurus stenops

Other plated dinosaurs like Kentrosaurus.

Cheetah

Acinonyx jubatus

Other cats, but cheetahs are the odd cousins who joined track team.

Cousins are clues, not a score.

Not a fight point. Who has the wilder family story?

WILD CARD!

SPECIAL

What special move did they evolve?

Stegosaurus
Plate Parade Whip
Cheetah
Hundred-Kilo Zoom

Stegosaurus

Plate Parade Whip

The brain was famously small.

Cheetah

Hundred-Kilo Zoom

0 to 100 km/h in about 3 seconds.

A secret move here is a real wild tool, not a video-game combo.

Whose special move would change the meeting?

YOUR SCORECARD

Your scorecard

Tap who has each fact. Then tap who you think wins.

  • SIZE & WEIGHT

  • TOOLS

  • SPEED

  • HOME

  • FOOD

  • MOOD

  • BRAINS

  • SPECIAL

Your card: Stegosaurus 0 · Cheetah 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

Keep going for the pretend meeting, then the science pick.

FWOOSH!

THEY MEET

Cheetah runs first. Stegosaurus does not race. They wait in grassland.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

KICK!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Stegosaurus is heavier. Cheetah uses high-speed trip claws. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

STOOMP!

SPECIAL MOVES

Stegosaurus tries the Plate Parade Whip. Cheetah tries the Hundred-Kilo Zoom. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Stegosaurus!

A STOMP · UNDERDOG

You skipped a final pick. The facts still stamp a champ.

On grassland, Stegosaurus wins. Stegosaurus is a lot heavier. Cheetah would still win some meetings at home.

In the wild, most animals skip a fight. We still judge who the bodies and the place would favor.

Science card: Stegosaurus 3 · Cheetah 4 · ties 1.

Your card: Stegosaurus 0 · Cheetah 0.

The last page follows the whole animal — body plus home — not one bar chart.

Send this fight

A friend can read the same facts.

Also starring · Cheetah

Rozi the cheetah. Zoom is not a metaphor.

Cincinnati Zoo · Wikimedia Commons · CC. Source

1/17 · scroll