Improving the Storage Conditions and Beginning Digitization of the Paleozoic Stratigraphic Fossil Collections at the Paleontological Research Institution

改善古生物研究所古生代地层化石藏品的储存条件并开始数字化

• 批准号: 2127427
• 负责人: Gregory Dietl
• 金额: $ 37.73万
• 依托单位: Paleontological Research Institute
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2021-09-15 至 2024-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2127427&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Improving; Storage; Conditions; Beginning; Digitization

This project will upgrade the physical storage and begin the long-term process of digitizing the Paleozoic stratigraphic fossil collections at the Paleontological Research Institution, which are currently in danger of physical deterioriation and data loss due to inadequate storage and lack of digitization. The Carl Brett and Gordon Baird Devonian collection will be upgraded to the highest curatorial standards and its associated data digitized and made more widely known and available online to the research community and general public. This collection documents the unique invertebrate fossil record of the Devonian, ~418 to 358 million years ago, of the northeastern United States, particularly New York, which is widely regarded as one of the most stratigraphically complete in the world. The project will greatly increase the accessibility and discoverability of these collections for studying a variety of important paleobiological topics, including: 1) community-level stasis and change, 2) niche evolution in response to major sea-level/ climatic change and invasion of new species, 3) morphological stasis, and 4) environmental change and evolution/ extinction of marine biotas. The project has two broader impact components: 1) construction of an online field guide to common New York fossils, and 2) development of a series of educational videos. These complementary resources will highlight both the geologic context and diversity of invertebrate fossils in the Brett and Baird Devonian collection.To ensure that the considerable research and educational value of the Brett and Baird Devonian collection is realized, this project will 1) upgrade the physical storage of the ~4,000 invertebrate fossil assemblage samples in the collection by moving them to a newly renovated climate-controlled facility, and 2) encourage use of the collection by digitizing and sharing records publicly online via data aggregators, such as the System for Earth Sample Registration and iDigBio. The project will also provide value-added geo-referenced data to the estimated 2,500 localities in the collection. Beyond improving the storage conditions and accessibility of the collection, this project will build on the Paleontological Research Institution’s strong history in developing free, online educational resources about paleontology and the fossil record. Specific outreach activities include creating a collection of five short (3-5 minute) videos with closed captioning for the public that will highlight the Brett and Baird Devonian collection. This series will be called “From the Field to the Cloud” and will detail the journey of an individual fossil as it travels through the steps from first discovery, to curation, to its final online representation in a publicly accessible online database. A new Devonian Atlas of Ancient Life will also be developed featuring at least 200 commonly encountered species from the Devonian fossil record of New York to help everyone from avocational collectors to museum professionals identify and learn more about fossils from the state.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

该项目将升级物理存储，并开始对古生物研究所古生代地层化石收藏进行数字化的长期过程，这些化石目前由于存储不足和缺乏数字化而面临物理损坏和数据丢失的危险。和戈登贝尔德泥盆纪收藏将升级到最高的馆藏标准，其相关数据将被数字化，并在网上为研究界和公众提供更广泛的信息。该收藏记录了独特的无脊椎动物化石记录。约 418 至 3.58 亿年前的泥盆纪，位于美国东北部，特别是纽约，它被广泛认为是世界上地层最完整的地区之一，该项目将大大增加这些藏品的研究可及性和可发现性。各种重要的古生物学主题，包括：1）群落水平的停滞和变化，2）响应主要海平面/气候变化和新物种入侵的生态位演化，3）形态停滞，以及 4) 环境变化和海洋生物群的演化/灭绝 该项目有两个更广泛的影响组成部分：1) 构建纽约常见化石的在线实地指南，以及 2) 制作一系列互补的教育视频。资源将突出布雷特和贝尔德泥盆纪收藏中无脊椎动物化石的地质背景和多样性。为了确保实现布雷特和贝尔德泥盆纪收藏的巨大研究和教育价值，该项目将 1) 升级无脊椎动物化石的物理存储通过将收藏中的约 4,000 个无脊椎动物化石组合样本转移到新装修的气候控制设施中，2) 通过数据聚合器（例如地球样本登记系统和iDigBio。该项目还将为馆藏中的约 2,500 个地点提供增值地理参考数据。该项目将建立在古生物学研究所在开发有关古生物学和化石记录的免费在线教育资源方面的悠久历史的基础上，具体的外展活动包括为公众制作五个带隐藏式字幕的短视频集。重点介绍布雷特和贝尔德的泥盆纪系列，该系列将被称为“从野外到云端”，将详细介绍单个化石从首次发现到管理，再到最终在网上展示的整个过程。在线公开访问还将开发一个新的泥盆纪古代生命地图集，其中包含纽约泥盆纪化石记录中的至少 200 个常见物种，以帮助从业余收藏家到博物馆专业人员的每个人识别和了解更多有关该州化石的信息。反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。