CSBR: RAPID: NATURAL HISTORY: Securing the safety of critical Great Lakes alcohol preserved specimens

中密歇根大学(CMU)被授予支持文化和自然历史博物馆(MCNH)的奖项，该博物馆拥有一批保存在酒精中的鱼类、爬行动物和两栖动物标本的研究收藏，这对校园构成了重大而紧迫的安全风险。这些收藏品目前被存放在一栋建筑内的一间前教室里，这座建筑没有被评为存放易燃物质，也没有灭火系统和行业标准的易燃储藏柜。这些标本在五大湖生态区域及其周围地区进行的研究具有重要意义，特别是在支持理解和减轻环境威胁方面。这个重要的生态系统包含了美国90%的淡水，对该地区有巨大而直接的经济、健康和福祉影响，因此有必要对其进行保护。这些藏品的研究和教学价值使MCNH在校园内确定了具有灭火功能的专用空间，在那里他们可以放置适当的易燃安全柜，在保持最高专业博物馆标准的同时，降低火灾或爆炸风险。这项奖励将允许MCNH在一年内购买设备并雇用人员打包、移动、重新安置在橱柜中，并重新清点收藏品。MCNH是一个实验室博物馆，支持密歇根州最古老的实用博物馆培训计划。该项目还将支持CMU博物馆研究项目的学生在解决安全危险问题方面获得现实生活经验，并了解存储在酒精中的自然历史收藏品的安全处理做法。该奖项将允许中密歇根大学(CMU)的文化与自然历史博物馆(MCNH)通过消除对校园的易燃威胁来保存关键的乙醇保存标本，同时保持安全。这些收藏品记录了劳伦斯五大湖(包括本地物种和入侵物种)的鱼类学和爬行动物学历史，并由目前的研究人员使用和开发，包括与芝加哥大学五大湖研究所(IGLR)合作的研究人员。该项目的完成还将使MCNH能够恢复接受鱼类、爬行动物和两栖动物标本捐赠，目前出于安全考虑，这一捐赠受到阻碍。该项目将通过允许MCNH通过iDigBio(idigBio.org)和全球生物多样性信息基金(GBIF)门户网站保持在线存在，进一步增加对MCNH收藏的获取，从而增加对MCNH收藏的获取。MCNH最终将把这些收藏品存放在一个连续的空间里，然而，由于目前这种努力的成本高得令人望而却步，该项目解决了一个紧迫的问题，即将易燃储藏柜中的收藏品分散到一系列控制区，同时仍允许在公认的博物馆标准内对标本进行安全和物理控制。该项目将为CMU博物馆研究项目的学生提供宝贵的经验，并使这些标本更容易用于未来的研究、教学、教育规划和展览。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

An award is made to Central Michigan University (CMU) to support the Museum of Cultural and Natural History (MCNH), which holds a research collection of fish, reptile, and amphibian specimens stored in alcohol, posing a significant and urgent safety risk for the campus. These collections are currently housed in a former classroom in a building not rated to hold flammable substances and lacks a fire suppression system and industry standard flammable storage cabinets. These specimens are of research significance conducted in and around the Great Lakes Ecoregion, particularly in support of understanding and mitigating environmental threats. This vital ecosystem, which contains ninety percent of the fresh water in the United States, has large and direct economic, health, and well-being impacts on the region, necessitating its protection. The research and teaching value of the collection has led MCNH to identify dedicated space on campus with fire suppression where they can place proper flammable safety cabinets that will mitigate fire or explosion risks while maintaining the highest professional museum standards. This award will allow MCNH to acquire equipment and hire personnel to pack, move, rehouse in cabinets, and re-inventory the collection during the course of one year. MCNH is a laboratory museum supporting Michigan's oldest practical museum training program. This project will also support CMU's Museum Studies Program students to gain real-life experience in resolving safety hazard issues and to understand safe handling practices for natural history collections stored in alcohol. This award will allow The Museum of Cultural and Natural History (MCNH) at Central Michigan University (CMU) to save critical ethanol-preserved specimens by eliminating a flammability threat to campus while maintaining safety and security. These collections document the ichthyological and herpetological history of the Laurentian Great Lakes (both native and invasive species) and are used and developed by current researchers, including those working with CMU's Institute for Great Lakes Research (IGLR). Completion of this project will also enable MCNH to resume accepting fish, reptile, and amphibian specimen donations, which is currently impeded due to safety concerns. The project will further increase access to these collections for research by allowing MCNH to maintain an online presence through the iDigBio (idigbio.org) and Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) web portals, increasing access to MCNH collections. The MCNH will eventually house these collections in one contiguous space, however due to the currently prohibitive cost of such an endeavor, this project addresses an immediate concern by dispersing the collections in flammable storage cabinets to a series of control areas while still allowing security and physical control of the specimens within accepted museum standards. This project will prove invaluable experience for CMU's Museum Studies Program students, as well as making these specimens more accessible for future research, teaching, educational programming, and exhibits.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.