Renovation and Computerization of the Diatom Herbarium at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia

已授予费城自然科学院(ANSP)翻修ANSP硅藻植物标本馆并提供其资源的在线访问。这个标本馆是北美最大的，也是世界第二大的硅藻标本馆，硅藻是在生物圈中起关键作用的微小藻类-S碳和硅循环，是重要的环境指标。标本馆收藏了大约210,000张硅藻幻灯片，30,000个样本和5000种硅藻物种。该项目将使世界各地的研究人员很容易进入标本馆：最新的标本数据库和模式标本的图像将在网上提供，25,000个标本的数据将被数字化，几个重要的收藏品将被纳入标本馆。大约5,000个样本将被重新安置在新的橱柜中。更好地利用ANSP硅藻标本馆的资源将支持硅藻的分类、系统学、生物地理学和生态学的研究，并提高公众对环境变化和生物多样性保护的意识。参与该项目的馆长助理和学生将接受收藏管理和硅藻分类学方面的培训。硅藻植物标本馆网站将服务于教育目的，并将作为一个关于硅藻和水生系统生态学的信息来源，对生物学学生、教师和普通公众有用。

An award has been made to the Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia (ANSP) to renovate ANSP Diatom Herbarium and to provide on-line access to its resources. This Herbarium is the largest in North America and second largest in the World collection of diatoms, microscopic algae that play key role in biosphere?s carbon and silica cycles and are important environmental indicators. The Herbarium houses approximately 210,000 diatom slides, 30,000 samples, and 5000 types of diatom species. This project will make the Herbarium easily accessible to researchers worldwide: the updated Herbarium database and images of type specimens will be available on-line, data for 25,000 samples will be digitized, and several important collections will be incorporated into Herbarium. Approximately 5,000 samples will be re-housed in new cabinets.Better access to the resources of the ANSP Diatom Herbarium will support research in taxonomy, systematics, biogeography, and ecology of diatoms and increase public awareness of environmental change and biodiversity conservation. Curatorial assistants and students involved in this project will be trained in collection management and diatom taxonomy. Diatom Herbarium website will serve educational purposes and will be useful for biology students, teachers, and general public as an information source on diatoms and ecology of aquatic systems.