Get Sleepy: Sleep meditation and stories - A Sleepy Adventure with Dinosaurs

Starting point is 00:00:00 Welcome to Get Sleepy, where we listen, we relax and we get sleepy. My name is Thomas. Thank you for joining me as you look forward to a good night's rest. Tonight's story was written by Jessica Donne, and we'll be joining two scientists, Nora and Bat, on their maiden voyage back in time, to the age of dinosaurs. This time-traveling duo will share their account of the trip in a journal, taking turns writing about the events of each day. Tonight's episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Sometimes in life we're faced with tough choices and the path forward isn't always clear. I'm definitely an indecisive type,

Starting point is 00:01:07 which can feel rather frustrating, but the weight of big decisions has always felt lighter once I've spoken to a friend or my therapist. Whether you're dealing with decisions around career, relationships, or anything else,y helps you stay connected to what you really want while you navigate to life, acting a bit like a roadmap so you can move forward with confidence and excitement. So if you're thinking of starting therapy, I highly recommend giving better help or try. Their service is entirely online and it's designed to fit around your schedule in whatever way suits you. You just fill out a short questionnaire

Starting point is 00:01:53 and they match you with a licensed therapist. Let therapy be your map with better help. Visit betterhelp.com-get-sleepy today to get 10% off your first month. That's better help-h-e-l-p.com-get-sleepy. Now then, let's just take a moment to get nicely settled in. Make sure you're comfortable in bed or wherever you're listening. With your breathing, steady and relaxed, feel the weight of your body easing deeper into the surface. Feel those parts of your body relaxing more and more. As you appreciate and enjoy the opportunity to completely let go.

Starting point is 00:03:31 Tonight's tale is a little different from our others. We'll follow the progress of Nora and Bart via their personal journals as they do something that has never been done before. Observe the magnificent beasts of the late Cretaceous period. So in each part of this story, I will review the daily journal entry as it comes in each evening when it's uploaded to the time ship's mainframe. I just received Nora's daily log on the first day of the mission. the mission. While my computer downloads and decrypts the information, that your worries drift away as you clear your mind. If you happen to fall asleep, rest assured that the computer stores these journal entries indefinitely, so you

Starting point is 00:04:49 can come back to listen to them at any time. Now let's start with the first entry submitted by Nora. This is where our story begins. Mission, the time trip, day one, Nora. Just a couple of minutes ago, our lifelong work, the time ship, left for the first time in history. After years of research and development, Bert and I finally got our time travel ship ready for use. The vessel looks like a futuristic spaceship. It is gunmetal gray, circular in shape and has wings that curve around the sides. I'm so happy to be doing this trip with Bert.

Starting point is 00:06:34 I remember when we first met, he filled in the gaps and helped me. That's one of the things I like most about Bert, his relentless optimism and dogged persistence. And now all our hard work is paying off. This day is momentous as we are the first people to successfully launch such a mission. And back to the Cretaceous period, no less, around 19 million years ago. All our lives, we have dreamt of going back in time to the age of dinosaurs. to the age of dinosaurs. There are three periods in which the creatures roam to the earth. So we had to pick which one we most wanted to visit for our first voyage. After much deliberation and many meetings without team, we finally decided on the last period

Starting point is 00:08:10 of the Mesozoic era. It's the one after the Jurassic period, the Cretaceous. It was a difficult decision. However, when we realized that we would see more of the dinosaurs that we really wanted to see at this point in time, our minds were made up. We would have a couple of days before we had to return home. So after inputting the year and GPS coordinates, the vessel zipped through the fabric of space time. through the fabric of space-time. And in mere moments, we found ourselves back in the past.

Starting point is 00:09:16 All things considered, the trip went smoothly. briefly. And now, here we are, in the late Cretaceous period. The first thing I noticed when the ship settled on the ground was the colours. Brilliant Brilliant streaks of gold, pink and orange lit up the early evening sky. It was breathtaking. Bartondai looked out the window at a world untouched by humans. It was so green, so vibrant, and so full of life. We had landed somewhere near modern-day Montana in the western United States. Right away, we spotted some differences. Instead of fields of grass, much of the low-growing ground cover

Starting point is 00:10:40 consisted of ferns, psycats, and other similar plants, including flowering ones. There were mountains covered in forests of conifers in the distance. Several streams cut across the land, coming down from the nearby mountains. The gauges indicated that the environment outside was warm and humid, much more than what we used to, but still bearable. much more than what we're used to, but still bearable. We would be able to breathe and function normally. Before we did anything else, we set to work configuring the ship. The time ship is state of the art, outfitted with cutting edge technology. At the push

Starting point is 00:11:51 of a button, it can adjust to any environment. We enabled the outer shield, which would make the ship appear invisible. It would also emit a safe and gentle sonic frequency that animals could hear, to encourage them not to come too close. This way we could observe everything without attracting the attention of any nearby creatures. Once everything was safe and secure, we got out of our seats, left the bridge, and climbed the stairs that led up to the roof. Up there, in the middle of the ship, there's an observation dome. We both grabbed our cameras and journals eager to start sightseeing. As we took our positions, we looked out over the landscape. We could hear something big coming as the ground seemed to vibrate. That's when we saw them.

Starting point is 00:13:31 A herd of triceratops was passing by right in front of us. I counted at least ten of them. They were one of the more easily recognizable dinosaurs, and utterly magnificent, even more so in person. Each of the triceratops had two big horns on its head, positioned in front of a large bony frill that reached nearly three feet in diameter. They also had a third horn above the snout and a parrot-like beak. What was really striking was their color. I guess I was expecting them to be the color of a rhinoceros. But instead, they were a brownish hue with bright red stripes, probably toward off predators.

Starting point is 00:14:54 The name Triceratops means three horned face, which is certainly fitting. I remembered that they were a type of serratopsian, the name for a kind of beaked herbivore of this period. They looked to be about 30 feet in length and weighed at least 7 tons. Glancing over at bat, I saw that his mouth was wide open just like mine. This was the first dinosaur to ever be seen with human eyes. And it was a moment we would never forget. I took several snapshots of the grazing herbivores. Despite their enormous size, they moved quite gracefully. It was a wonder to watch.

Starting point is 00:16:14 Looking closely, I realized that other dinosaurs were moving along with the herd of tri-saritops. An adult and calisaurus with its baby came into view. They had horny beaks and leaf-shaped teeth, which were ideal for eating vegetation. Both were dull, grayish brown colour and covered with tough outer armour. The name Ancola-Saurus comes from ancient Greek and means fused lizard. With their club shaped tails swinging back and forth, they could crush anything that got in their way. The mum was as large as a military tank weighing about 5 tons, measuring 30 feet long, and reaching a height of 6 feet. Her baby was a third of her size. It was surprising how slowly they moved. This plant eating dinosaur wasn't able to move any faster than a human could walk.

Starting point is 00:17:56 About three miles an hour. The mother and child were communicating with each other. Their vocalizations were much more subtle and melodious than I expected. Dinosaurs sounds are somewhat of an unknown. So to hear these dinosaurs being so vocal was more than a little exciting. Their rumbles and grunts had an intricate complexity that astounded me. It was almost like bird song. Speaking of birds, I noticed several hairy feathered ones flitting through the air. Grabbing a pair of binoculars, I looked towards the nearby forest, interested in seeing what other kinds of animals I could find.

Starting point is 00:19:16 There were tiny, shrew-like mammals scurrying through the underbrush. I also saw several types of frogs, salamanders, and snakes. It was surreal to see them in this kind of setting. This place was a mixture of familiar and foreign, like an altered reality in a way. We waited to watch the sunset, before deciding to have dinner. After taking the stairs back down to the ship, we wandered over to the small kitchen that was across from the sleeping quarters. I really appreciated having the comforts of home on such a mission. As we sat down to enjoy steaming bowls of soup, Burton died discussed the game plan for the next few days. I couldn't wait to share our findings with the team once we made it back home. This trip was truly a once in a lifetime experience.

Starting point is 00:20:54 We were determined to make the most of it. But cleaned up the dishes after dinner, while I went to retrieve a few blankets and pillows for our Stargazing venture. He met me on the stairs, and together we climbed up to the hatch that opened up onto the roof. We were protected as long as we were on or near the ship, so there was nothing to worry about. I couldn't help but marvel at the technology that enables us to do such wonderful things.

Starting point is 00:21:51 That opened the hatch door and I followed him out. The temperature had cooled down a bit, although it was still humid outside. All around us, a chorus of calls rang out, evidence of the nocturnal creatures that were out and about. The insect soundscape was notably different from the one we were used to. I could tell that these cricket-like insects had a much greater musical range than the ones of our time. I wondered if one of the sounds we could hear was male-cated it's known as bush crickets rubbing part of their wings together to make communication sounds. We lay down on the blankets, our heads nestled on the pillows, looking up at the glittering night sky.

Starting point is 00:23:17 I couldn't find words to describe the beauty of it. There were so many stars, almost as if they had multiplied tenfold, and they sparkled like the rarest of diamonds. There wasn't a trace of pollution to affect their power or luminosity. It felt like every star that had ever existed was visible tonight. The arrangement of the stars was completely different from what we knew. I couldn't find the Big Depper because that formation had yet to line up at this point in time. There was an interesting cluster of bright stars, low on the horizon. It was amazing to think that because of the finite speed of light, as we gazed up into the night sky, we were looking into the past, while in the past. However far away these stars were from us, correlated with how

Starting point is 00:24:52 long the light of those stars had been travelling. For example, if a star is 10 light years away, the light hitting our eyes has travelled for 10 years. To put it another way, when we looked at that star tonight, we saw it as it was 10 years ago. it as it was 10 years ago. Bert and I stayed outside for another hour, soaking in the starry sky and listening to the myriad noises filtering through the air. It was such a peaceful atmosphere. We both started to get rather sleepy and decided to call it an evening. Who knew time travel could make you so tired? Who knew time travel could make you so tired? As I stood and bet began to gather up the blankets and pillows. I noticed a huge, shadowed form not too far from us. The binoculars were still hanging from my neck, so I raised them up

Starting point is 00:26:30 to my eyes to get a better look. What I saw astounded me. It was a tyrannosaurus Rex, a sleep. This was the creature that likely had the greatest bite force of all land animals to ever exist. But the enormous predator didn't look so scary lying down with its huge head resting on the ground. Nudging back with my elbow, I pointed to the slumbering giant as I handed him the binoculars. He looked through them and became so still, I'm pretty sure he stopped breathing. We'd spoken about how we dreamt of seeing this very dinosaur in a safe way. And now our wish was coming true before our very eyes. Also, we had always harbored a deep curiosity about the possible ways dinosaurs slapped. This was because there was no way to

Starting point is 00:28:10 be sure, not even from the fossil record, or at least not conclusively. But turned to me, and I could tell he was just as speechless and in awe as I was. After a few more minutes of watching the formidable predator sleep, we left the T-Rex to its dreams. I opened the hatch and climbed down into the ship as boat followed. He closed the door behind him while I set to work turning off all the lights inside, before heading to the sleeping quarters. As I climbed into bed, I was still thinking about how dinosaurs slept. We had seen a tea rex, but what about the others? I knew from fossils that had been discovered that small species probably culled up in a ball on the ground. Or perhaps it had something to do with their legs.

Starting point is 00:29:50 For two legged dinosaurs like the T-Rex, it was probably more comfortable to lie down, but maybe four legged creatures slept whilst standing up. As I drifted off to sleep, I imagined the dinosaurs all around us doing the same. Mission the time trip, day 2, bad. refreshed and ready to tackle our second day in the late Cretaceous period. I was still thinking about seeing the T-Rex last night. It wasn't at all what we were expecting. The dinosaur looked so peaceful, sleeping soundly beneath the stars. Nor I sipped the coffee I had brewed earlier, while I made us some scrambled eggs. eggs. After breakfast, we grabbed our gear and walked down to the hangar where the time buggy sat waiting for us. Since we both wanted to drive, we played rock-paper-scissors to determine the winner. Nora won with a grin and took the driver's seat as I claimed the passenger seat next to her.

Starting point is 00:31:59 The vehicle was more like an armored truck reminding me distinctly of the Ancola Soros that we had seen just yesterday. I still couldn't believe we had actually made it here. I knew that Norah felt the same, beyond elated for our livestream to have come to fruition. This trip meant the world to both of us. She flipped on the necessary switches and the vehicle rumbled to life while the hangar door opened behind us. Shifting the gear to reverse, she angled the truck out of the time ship. It was a beautiful morning. Everything was so green that it almost felt like we were in a tropical forest. When we got a few meters away from the ship, Nora pressed the button to close the hangar door.

Starting point is 00:33:32 As we drove on, the ship was soon hidden from sight. It was strange not to be able to see it. not to be able to see it. We had packed a few sandwiches for lunch, so we had the whole day to explore the lush landscape. Since she won driving privileges, my job was to log out findings in my journal and take pictures while out on our excursion. The truck moved easily through the thickest of green plants as we kept our eyes peeled for dinosaurs. Our efforts were soon rewarded as the biggest creatures on the continent came within eyesight. It was a family of gigantic, dusky blue sauropods. Titanosaurs to be exact.

Starting point is 00:34:53 They were leading a parade of dinosaurs over the land and eating from the high tree tops. The ground shook under the weight of their movement. Their extremely long necks, small heads, long tails and four thick, pillar-like legs were instantly recognizable. They had to be the most incredible creatures I had ever seen. Maybe even more than the sleeping T-Racks. I realized then that no movie or drawing did these dinosaurs justice. Tiring at a height of at least 40 feet and with a length of what had to be a hundred feet, they dominated the landscape. Their necks stretched longer than a school bus. At that moment, I had never felt so immeasurably small in comparison. These magnificent creatures were literal giants, and I couldn't believe that I was seeing them in person. Nor as speculated that the sauropods must weigh an immense 50 tons each, which I could well believe.

Starting point is 00:36:51 We got as close to them as we could, then stopped the track. They couldn't see us unless we wanted them to, and we agreed it was better not to disturb them. Watching the enormous creatures, I realized that this had to be the Alamosaurus species, as that was the only known sauropod in North Africa from this time period. As we watched, Nora and I discussed what we knew about these remarkable creatures. The name Alamosaurus means Alamo Lizard. It's believed that they migrated to North America from South America, following the joining together of the two continents by the Esmas of Panama. I snapped several photos after jotting down their descriptions and characteristics

Starting point is 00:38:13 in my journal. At first, I thought a group of triceratops were among them, but closer inspection proved to me wrong. They were serratopsians, like the triceratops, but differed slightly. Where a nasal horn should be, there was only a rounded stump, and the horns on its head were almost vertical. Each of them had a bony frill at the back of its head, just like a triceratops, but it was smaller. I pointed them out to Nora. If anyone knew what Dinosaur this was, it was her. She had that look in her eye that told me she was deep in thought. After a few moments, she nodded, explaining that they were called neocaritops. This happens to be a controversial genus.

Starting point is 00:39:48 The nedo keratops has baffled paleontologists since it was first described more than a hundred years ago in our time. That's because it is only known from a single skull. One that some researchers consider valid, while others consider it to be an already named genus. But here we saw for ourselves the truth of the matter. This was indeed its own dinosaur, not just some transitional form of the triceratops. We drove closer, eager to witness a scientific breakthrough as we confirmed the existence of the dinosaur.

Starting point is 00:40:56 I could tell how much this meant to Nora, and I made sure to take as many pictures of them as possible. Our team would be thrilled about this. After a few hours of observing the late Cretaceous Wildlife, Norris stopped the truck and we had lunch. While we were enjoying our sandwiches, a herd of Edmonta sauce passed us by. These dinosaurs were light brown with some striping. They had large hunched over backs, duck-build faces, and fleshy, rooster like combs atop their heads. It looked like they weighed around 5 tonnes and were 40 feet long.

Starting point is 00:42:08 Nor recommended that these dinosaurs are one of the most studded of all time. This is because of the exceptional specimens and bone beds that have been discovered. She said that the T-Rex was thought to hunt these dinosaurs in particular. Apparently fossil evidence shows healed wounds inflicted by the predator. It's believed that the Edmontosaurus could reach speeds of up to 28 miles per hour. That's even faster than a T-Rex. As if on cue, the herd took off, showing us just how fast they could move. I must say, those dinosaurs were speedy for their size. We polished off our food and Nora turned the truck around, heading back to the time ship. A couple of small ostrich-like feathered dinosaurs raced alongside us, although we knew they couldn't see us. They proved to be even faster than the Edmonton's.

Starting point is 00:43:58 The colourful bipedal creatures moved in synchrony. I knew that these had to be a type of theropod dinosaur, known as Ornithomimus. Their name means bird mimic, which is just what they looked like. The way they moved made me wonder if they were running to or away from something. We didn't stick around to find out. Nora accelerated the truck pulling away from the agile dinosaurs. Once we were back on the ship and the truck was secured in the hangar, Nora suggested a change of plan. I know what she's like when she sets her mind on something. She won't stop until she sees it through. It's one of her best qualities. It was such a beautiful day that we decided to take the ship up in the air to explore the

Starting point is 00:45:30 skies. We got in our seats at the front of the ship and Nora adjusted the controls to the aerial settings. As the ship rose off the ground and climbed into the air, we fastened our seatbelts. The sky was a lovely shade of bright blue, a perfect complement to the greenery below us. There were scores of butterflies fluttering through the sky, which looked similar to the ones we knew. They had to be one of the oldest known species. The ship gained more altitude, and soon we were flying unseen and undetected. A few minutes later, we broke through the clouds to find tetrasaws all around us. They were the largest flying creatures I had ever seen.

Starting point is 00:47:12 scene. Considering the time and place, these aerial titans must have been the Ketsul Kavattala species. From what I recall, they were named after an Aztec god, a feathered serpent. I could see why. Nor is eyes widened at the sight of them, gliding through the air. Each creature was as tall as a giraffe with a wingspan of more than 30 feet. These tetrasaws were grayish brown with long pointed heads, long necks, small torsos and elongated legs. They also had a small crest on their heads. As I took photos, I remembered learning that these amazing winged reptiles were the first vertebrates to fly. It was strange to know that they weren't dinosaurs at all, although they did share a common ancestor with them. Other flying reptiles and birds soared through the air, but I only had eyes for the terraces, amazed to be seeing them for the first time.

Starting point is 00:49:02 We flew from miles and miles toward the coast. There was something odd about seeing the map of the wild on the dash compared to what we were used to seeing in our day. When we got to the shore, we decided to land the ship on the beach and watch the tide roll in. It was too beautiful not to. After dinner, we called it an evening. We were both tired and needed some rest. Tomorrow we'll explore the ocean before returning home. Mission, the time trip, day 3, Nora.

Starting point is 00:50:15 Today was the last day of our mission. Bertondai woke up to another sunny morning, ready to see what the ocean had in store for us. After a quick breakfast, we climbed into our seats at the front of the ship. Bert started to flip the switches that would enable us to go deep sea exploring. We rose up in the air and flew towards the water, landing on the surface before sinking into its depths. Soon we were submerged, looking out the window as dark blue water swirled all around us. The ship was now emitting a specific frequency that would deter any underwater creature from approaching it, leaving us safe and sound to observe. As bat fiddled with the controls, I leaned forward in my seat, eager to witness something spectacular.

Starting point is 00:51:56 We passed many different kinds of fish, even a few stingrays and sharks. So far, everything looked quite similar to what we were used to, until a long-necked marine reptile swam by, swinging its head from side to side through a school of fish. It was a plesiosaur, roughly 15 feet long, with dark blue colouring. It swam by flapping its fins in the water, almost like underwater flight. But commented on how it reminded him of drawings his scene of the Loch Ness monster. He had a point. It certainly looked like a myth brought to life. The policey saw eventually swam out of view. We soon found out why as a giant snake-like mosa saw slinked past the window.

Starting point is 00:53:29 This creature was the apex predator of the deep, with a stronger bite force than the T-Rex. With a dark grey body that was easily 50 feet long, a large head and a long snout, it looked the part. The massive reptile moved with a serpentine undulation of its whole body, while using its paddle like limbs to maneuver. We watched in fascination as the Mosissor slunk through the water, alternating between slow and fast bursts of speed. All the fish and other creatures took off, no doubt to escape the jaws of this truly impressive beast. This creature was one of the most amazing success stories of not only the Cretaceous period, but of the entire Mesozoic.

Starting point is 00:55:00 That's because Mosasau's evolved from being very small, semi-aquatic lizards to the apex predators of the wild's oceans. And they did say, within a period of time, spanning less than 35 million years. Their ability to rapidly adapt to a variety of aquatic habitats and eat pretty much anything and everything worked in their favor. The Moser saw sped away in search of its prey, leaving us speechless. We enjoyed a few more hours under the water, taking pictures and notes of everything we saw. But eventually, it was time to go back home to the future. Although our trip was coming to an end, Bert and I were ecstatic. This mission proved to be more than just a success. It was life-changing. We were the very first humans to visit the late Cretaceous period. And the dinosaurs exceeded all our expectations.

Starting point is 00:56:55 Before, they seemed more like mythical creatures than anything else. Even though fossil evidence proved they did indeed exist, seeing them for ourselves was a whole other matter. And we're going to share our findings with the world. This was not only a huge step for us, but for science and humankind as well. And who knows, one day, maybe we'll have the chance to time travel again. I'm going to do a little bit of the same thing. I'm going to do a little bit of the same thing. I'm going to do a little bit of the same thing.

Starting point is 00:58:17 I'm going to do a little bit of the same thing. I'm going to do a little bit of the same thing. you ... ... you I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room.

Starting point is 00:59:58 I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. ... ... ... you you I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room.

Starting point is 01:01:54 I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. ... ... you ... … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … ... you you

Get Sleepy: Sleep meditation and stories - A Sleepy Adventure with Dinosaurs

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