| Abstract Detail
Historical Section Russell, Rusty [1], Van Camp, Anne [2], Sheffield, Carolyn [1]. The Field Book Project. The Field Book Project is a collaborative project for improving access to primary source materials related to biodiversity research. Led by the US National Herbarium and Smithsonian Institution Archives, this project is developing a Field Book Registry based on existing standards and community input. In this presentation, we will introduce the project in terms of envisioned benefits for the botanical community, current implementation status, and future goals. Field books are the original documents that describe the events and circumstances leading up to and including the collection and description of biological specimens. The Smithsonian houses thousands of these unpublished journals, notes, and images related to field research, most falling into the category of hidden collections, or collections for which little or no documentation exists. Funding for this project comes from the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) and is restricted to describing, cataloging and providing access to the item records. We will present on the status of achieving these immediate goals as well as our longer term goals of extending functionality and expanding the scope of the Registry. Longer term goals focus on making field books accessible via a public-facing, online Field Book Registry that will serve as an international toolkit for management of biodiversity field books. In this second phase of the project other organizations will be able to contribute their field book content. This collaborative effort is being defined with partner institutions including Harvard University Herbaria and Archives, Peabody Museum (Harvard), New York Botanical Garden, Academy of Natural Sciences, Missouri Botanical Garden, and California Academy of Sciences. Page level digitization and delivery is another long term objective. Working with the Biodiversity Heritage Library (BHL) we are assessing possible strategies for accomplishing this monumental task. Broader Impacts:
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Related Links:
The Field Book Project Home Page
The Field Book Project Blog
1 - Smithsonian Institution, United States National Herbarium, MRC-166, Botany, P.O. Box 37012, Washington, DC, 20013-7012, USA
2 - Smithsonian Institution, SI Archives, Capitol Gallery #3000, 600 Maryland Ave., SW, Washington, DC, 20024-2520, USA
Keywords:
field book
collectors
collections
biodiversity.
Presentation Type: Oral Paper:Papers for Sections
Session: 20
Location: Waterman Room/Chase Park Plaza
Date: Monday, July 11th, 2011
Time: 3:00 PM
Number: 20006
Abstract ID:185 |
