Enhanced Housing, Level of Curation, and Accessibility for Two Major Invertebrate Paleontology Collections: The Paleontological Research Institution and Cornell University

9709308泰勒目前由古生物研究所（PRI）收藏的标本超过250万件；它们是美国最大、科学上最重要的无脊椎古生物学收藏品之一。然而，这些藏品已经被允许变质，多年来研究和教育界基本上无法接触到。1992年，在国家科学基金会的支持下，开始了一项重大的重组和改造工作，并在1994年之后继续进行。迄今为止，这项工作的主要成果是恢复了PRI的收藏，并将康奈尔大学（CU）的无脊椎动物化石和近代软体动物收藏转移到PRI。这些收藏的条件和可及性现在有了显著改善，使用也因此大大增加。该奖项将支持这一更新过程的下一阶段。图书馆三分之二的藏品存放在博物馆后院的临时拖车内；这些将被重新安置在新的永久存储设施中，以便使它们再次对科学界有用。PRI的类型和图形收集和微化石收集也将重新安置和策划，为计算机化做准备。在1997年春季，该研究所将建造大约4,000平方英尺的新收藏空间，作为与美国国家科学基金会在这个项目上分摊的费用。

9709308 Taylor The collections presently housed by the Paleontological Research Institution (PRI) contain more than two and a half million specimens; they are among the largest and scientifically most important invertebrate paleontology collections in the United States. These collections, however, had been allowed to deteriorate and had been essentially inaccessible to the research and educational communities for many years. In 1992, a major reorganization and renovation effort was begun that continued after 1994 with NSF support. The chief results of this effort to date have been the resuscitation of the PRI collection and the transfer to PRI of the invertebrate fossil and Recent mollusk collections of Cornell University (CU). Condition of and accessibility to these collections has now significandy improved and use accordingly has greafiy increased. This award will support the next phase of this process of renewal. Two-thirds of the CU collection is stored in temporary trailers in the back yard of the Institution; these will be rehoused in new, permanent storage facilities in order to make them useful once again to the scientific community. PRI's type and figured collection and the microfossil collection will also be rehoused and curated in preparation for computerization. During the spring of 1997, the Institution will be constructing approximately 4,000 square feet of new collections space as cost-sharing with the NSF on this project.