Digitization PEN: Digitizing the University of Iowa Museum of Natural History's Historic Invertebrate Collections through the InvertNet TCN

爱荷华大学自然历史博物馆获得了一个奖项，将其与现有的InvertNet专题收藏网络连接起来，将博物馆动物学研究收藏的大约28000个昆虫和小龙虾标本数字化。捕获2D和3D图像并将不可替代的数据数字化将确保数据的长期保存，并使科学家、教育工作者、学生和公众可以在线访问收集到的信息。博物馆藏品对现代生物学研究至关重要，历史标本对研究环境和土地利用变化的影响尤为必要。然而，这些标本的脆弱性和收集的分散位置使它们在研究中使用困难和效率低下。数字化图像和数据使标本信息更加可见和可访问，增加了新研究和公众理解的潜力。为了配合数字化，博物馆将把公共教育与InvertNet研究结合起来，为教育工作者创造一个以中西部无脊椎动物为主题的“旅行树干”，更新现有的节肢动物展览，包括InvertNet项目的内容，并开发一个旅行展览，供该地区的学校、自然中心、博物馆和其他团体借用。该奖项是国家生物馆藏数字化资源的一部分，通过推进生物馆藏数字化计划，该奖项产生的所有数据将通过国家资源（iDigBio.org）提供。

An award is made to the University of Iowa Museum of Natural History to connect it to the existing InvertNet Thematic Collections Network by digitizing approximately 28,000 insect and crayfish specimens from the museum's zoological research collections. Capturing 2D and 3D images and digitizing irreplaceable data will ensure long-term data preservation and make collection information accessible online to scientists, educators, students, and the public. Museum collections are crucial to modern biological research, and historic specimens are especially necessary in studying the effects of environmental and land use change. However, the fragility of these specimens and the scattered location of collections can make using them in research difficult and inefficient. Digitizing images and data makes specimen information more visible and accessible, increasing the potential for new research and public understanding.In concert with digitization, the museum will integrate public education with InvertNet research by creating a "traveling trunk" for educators on the theme of invertebrates in the Midwest, updating an existing exhibit on arthropods to include content from the InvertNet project, and developing a traveling exhibit that can be borrowed by schools, nature centers, museums, and other groups in the region. This award is made as part of the National Resource for Digitization of Biological Collections through the Advancing Digitization of Biological Collections program and all data resulting from this award will be available through the national resource (iDigBio.org).