Many of us harbor a deep fascination with the creatures of yore. Informed by Hollywood and Saturday morning cartoons, we picture them as giant monsters lumbering through the forests, gobbling up medium-sized beasts, and terrorizing gaggles of smaller ones. But does that image hold up in light of the latest research?

Paul Sereno is a world-renowned paleontologist at the University of Chicago, a National Geographic explorer-in-residence, and the cofounder of Project Exploration, a Chicago-based organization that seeks to make science accessible to the public–especially minority youth and girls–through direct, personalized experiences with scientists.

Sereno kicks off the Festival’s Hyde Park Day with an illustrated discussion of the latest findings in his field, in a program appropriate for both children and adults.

For more information or to purchase tickets, please visit http://chicagohumanities.org/events/2013/animal/paul-sereno-dinosaurs or call (312) 494-9509.