Enhancement of the Natural History Collections at the University of North Carolina Wilmington

北卡罗来纳大学威尔明顿分校自然历史馆藏的增强

• 批准号: 0847171
• 负责人: Steven Emslie
• 金额: $ 31.46万
• 依托单位: University of North Carolina at Wilmington
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2009
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2009-09-01 至 2012-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0847171&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Enhancement; Natural; History; Collections; University

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).This funding will support improvements in the infrastructure and accessibility of the extensive natural history collections at the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW) in conjunction with their movement into a newly renovated storage facility on campus. A new computer program developed through NSF funding called Specify will be used to create a computerized database of specimens and specimen images that will not only assist in undergraduate and graduate teaching and research programs, but will also provide broad online access to the collections to the greater scientific community. This access will not only increase scientific awareness of the UNCW collections, but online imagery will limit damage to specimens by reducing the need for external loans, shipping, and handling. The management plan will be structured in a way so that natural history collections of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and plants, totaling over 70,000 specimens, will be transitioned to electronic format while serving as an applied learning opportunity for undergraduate students. An Assistant Curator will be hired for two years to help oversee this project with the faculty curators at UNCW and to develop protocols for databasing and geo-referencing the collections now and in the future. The broader impacts of this proposal will include benefits to the general public, K-12 education, and the scientific community. Online access to the collections will provide public information on the taxonomy, ecology, evolution, and conservation of plant and animal species primarily associated with habitats in North Carolina and the Southeast. This information is especially useful for the many endemic species associated with Southeastern habitats that reside in the UNCW collections (plants and vertebrates). This program will provide valuable information to K-12 teachers, students and the broader community, allowing maximum public outreach and development of natural history interests in the younger generation. The overall goal is to increase classroom visitation and awareness of the rich natural history in North Carolina. Faculty curators will visit at least three public schools per year that are comprised primarily of under-represented groups to present research and information on natural history in the Carolinas. An interactive web site will also be developed for use by these and other classrooms to help stimulate interest in the natural sciences. Moreover, scientific experts at local, national, and global levels, as well as State and Federal agencies, will have access to these collections resulting in enhanced communications and collaborations with faculty curators. UNCW students also will benefit, especially undergraduates, with courses directed towards applied learning and taxonomic knowledge. Students will gain additional experience by assisting with cataloguing and databasing the collections as part of this program. Students successfully trained in this manner will be hired part-time to continue assisting with the goals set forth in this proposal thereby gaining additional applied learning experiences. Three Master's students will also be included in this process during summer months. The entire project will impact at least eight undergraduate and three graduate students per year, plus dozens to hundreds of local school children, particularly in under-represented groups.

该奖项是根据2009年美国复苏和再投资法案（公法111-5）资助的。这笔资金将用于改善北卡罗来纳大学威尔明顿分校（UNCW）大量自然历史藏品的基础设施和可达性，并将其转移到校园内新装修的存储设施中。由美国国家科学基金会资助开发的一个名为“指定”的新计算机程序将用于创建一个计算机化的标本和标本图像数据库，这不仅有助于本科生和研究生的教学和研究计划，而且还将为更大的科学界提供广泛的在线访问馆藏。这种访问不仅会提高人们对联合国野生动物基金会藏品的科学认识，而且在线图像还会减少对外部贷款、运输和处理的需求，从而限制对标本的损害。管理计划是，将哺乳动物、鸟类、爬行动物、两栖动物、鱼类、植物等7万多件自然标本转换为电子形式，同时为本科生提供应用学习机会。一名助理馆长将被雇用两年，与UNCW的教师馆长一起监督这个项目，并为现在和将来的馆藏建立数据库和地理参考制定协议。该提案的广泛影响将包括对公众、K-12教育和科学界的好处。这些藏品的在线访问将提供有关植物和动物物种的分类、生态学、进化和保护的公共信息，这些物种主要与北卡罗来纳州和东南部的栖息地有关。这一信息对许多与联合国野生动物保护中心收集的东南生境有关的特有物种（植物和脊椎动物）特别有用。该项目将为K-12的教师、学生和更广泛的社区提供有价值的信息，最大限度地扩大公众宣传，并培养年轻一代的自然历史兴趣。总体目标是提高课堂参观率和对北卡罗来纳州丰富自然历史的认识。教师策展人每年将访问至少三所公立学校，这些学校主要由代表性不足的群体组成，以展示卡罗来纳州自然历史的研究和信息。还将开发一个互动网站，供这些教室和其他教室使用，以帮助激发学生对自然科学的兴趣。此外，地方、国家和全球各级的科学专家，以及州和联邦机构，将有机会访问这些收藏，从而加强与教师策展人的沟通和合作。UNCW的学生，特别是本科生，也将受益于针对应用学习和分类学知识的课程。作为该计划的一部分，学生将通过协助编目和数据库收集获得额外的经验。以这种方式成功培训的学生将被聘为兼职，继续协助实现本提案中规定的目标，从而获得额外的应用学习经验。三个硕士生也将包括在这个过程中，在夏季的几个月。整个项目每年将影响至少8名本科生和3名研究生，以及数十至数百名当地学童，特别是在代表性不足的群体中。