Impact of Sauropod Dinosaurs on Lagoonal Substrates in the Broome Sandstone (Lower Cretaceous), Western Australia

Existing knowledge of the tracks left by sauropod dinosaurs (loosely ‘brontosaurs’) is essentially two-dimensional, derived mainly from footprints exposed on bedding planes, but examples in the Broome Sandstone (Early Cretaceous) of Western Australia provide a complementary three-dimensional picture showing the extent to which walking sauropods could deform the ground beneath their feet. The patterns of deformation created by sauropods traversing thinly-stratified lagoonal deposits of the Broome Sandstone are unprecedented in their extent and structural complexity. The stacks of transmitted reliefs (underprints or ghost prints) beneath individual footfalls are nested into a hierarchy of deeper and more inclusive basins and troughs which eventually attain the size of minor tectonic features. Ultimately the sauropod track-makers deformed the substrate to such an extent that they remodelled the topography of the landscape they inhabited. Such patterns of substrate deformation are revealed by investigating fragmentary and eroded footprints, not by the conventional search for pristine footprints on intact bedding planes. For that reason it is not known whether similar patterns of substrate deformation might occur at sauropod track-sites elsewhere in the world

Bystander antiracism on behalf of Muslim Australians: The role of ethnocentrism and conformity

Racism and discrimination against Muslim minorities is becoming increasingly prevalent in Australia and much of the Western world. The present study investigated whether ethnocentrism and conformity, which have long been associated with racism, are also significant correlates of willingness to engage in bystander antiracism on behalf of Muslim Australians. Participants were 154 non-Muslim Australians (50.6% female), aged between 18-85 years (M = 48 years). Participants were recruited from around Australia to complete an anonymous online survey via Qualtrics. Measures were a bystander question (regarding a hypothetical scenario), social conformity and ethnocentrism scales, and demographic information (age; education; gender; political preference). Correlations indicated that participants high in ethnocentrism and conformity and low in formal education were significantly less likely to take bystander action. However, a hierarchical regression equation revealed ethnocentrism to be the only significant predictor of bystander antiracism with 18% of the variance explained overall. Our study adds to the current literature by exploring, for the first time, the combined role of ethnocentrism and conformity in willingness to engage in bystander antiracism. This, we hope, can assist antiracism practitioners with their interventions; encouraging bystander action is one way of creating a more equitable Australia