[Nhcoll-l] Another excellent article on the value of collections
Dean Pentcheff
pentcheff at gmail.com
Mon Jan 25 22:39:00 EST 2016
I agree with all the sentiments that have been posted (but note, I'm not
that generally an agreeable person :). Indeed, the level of sheer
nutterness on exhibit publicly is enough to make heads explode (or, at the
very least, seek drink). And indeed, we cannot give up in the face of that
attitude.
Most people simply don't care. I don't mean that in a negative way, but in
the sense that these issues just don't play a big part in the mental life
of the huge majority of people. They can't. There are lots of important
issues — really important life-or-death issues — that simply don't occupy
much of my mental life. I'm OK with that, and I focus on a few things where
I think I can push the puck forward a bit.
What I've started to think about is how to blend having a deep effect on a
very tiny number of people, as well as a true but truly minor effect on a
large number of people. Both of those targets are important (I think) in
the way museums and collections plan their messaging.
-Dean
--
Dean Pentcheff
pentcheff at gmail.com
On Mon, Jan 25, 2016 at 5:17 PM, Herbarium <wtu at u.washington.edu> wrote:
>
> I share Andrew's perspective, and I think it is important to distinguish
> between the general public and the vocal minority. Using the Audubon piece
> as an example, there are those who understand and
> support scientific collecting, those who can never be convinced of its
> value, and those whose minds are not made up but wish to learn more. High
> profile articles like the Audubon piece are great ways to inform and
> educate those who are open to it.
>
>
> ******************************************************************************
> David Giblin, Ph.D.
> Collections Manager
> University of Washington Herbarium (WTU)
> Campus Box 355325
> Seattle, WA 98195-5325
> (206) 543-1682 voice
> (206) 685-1728 fax
>
> https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.washington.edu_burkemuseum_collections_herbarium_index.php&d=AwIDaQ&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=BK33tp4peUk-ATjoUa_Ql-0A_RVTeEERAR58rleqdMA&s=IeYTYT_b3jCP6OtD_YuMILtHeZJteSmnsN6hUiBqg3Q&e=
> On Mon, 25 Jan 2016, Bentley, Andrew Charles wrote:
>
>
>> Agreed, but giving up is not an option. We need to keep hammering away
>> at the edges and hope that the message gets across at some point. Do not
>> give in to the uninformed.
>>
>>
>>
>> Andy
>>
>>
>>
>> A : A : A :
>> }<(((_°>.,.,.,.}<(((_°>.,.,.,.}<)))_°>
>> V V V
>> Andy Bentley
>> Ichthyology Collection Manager
>> University of Kansas
>> Biodiversity Institute
>>
>> Dyche Hall
>> 1345 Jayhawk Boulevard
>> Lawrence, KS, 66045-7561
>> USA
>>
>> Tel: (785) 864-3863
>> Fax: (785) 864-5335
>> Email: abentley at ku.edu
>>
>>
>> https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__ichthyology.biodiversity.ku.edu&d=AwIDaQ&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=BK33tp4peUk-ATjoUa_Ql-0A_RVTeEERAR58rleqdMA&s=c97Iu7BPhJspMkUhOHsm8WH9GjGqXL8cGCDVf6BJzhs&e=
>>
>>
>> SPNHC President
>>
>>
>> https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.spnhc.org&d=AwIDaQ&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=BK33tp4peUk-ATjoUa_Ql-0A_RVTeEERAR58rleqdMA&s=q286OzJzJfvzNSHdjfgyULD66Ldxr45x4wPGYE94l1w&e=
>>
>>
>> : :
>> A : A : A :
>> }<(((_°>.,.,.,.}<(((_°>.,.,.,.}<)))_°>
>> V V V
>>
>>
>>
>> From: Ellen Paul [mailto:ellen.paul at verizon.net]
>> Sent: Monday, January 25, 2016 12:35 PM
>> To: Bentley, Andrew Charles <abentley at ku.edu>; Barry OConnor <
>> bmoc at umich.edu>
>> Cc: nhcoll-l at mailman.yale.edu
>> Subject: Another excellent article on the value of collections
>>
>>
>>
>> I wish you were right but this has little to do with being uninformed
>> (though it is true, they are uninformed). This is purely an irrational,
>> emotional reaction and they do not wish to be informed.
>>
>> Ellen Paul
>>
>> Executive Director
>>
>> Ornithological Council
>> Providing Scientific Information about Birds
>>
>>
>> On 1/25/16 1:32 PM, Bentley, Andrew Charles wrote:
>>
>> I think the opposite is true. We should be working on them even
>> more and publishing like crazy while educating the uninformed as to
>> why we do what we do and the benefits to society as a whole while
>> also educating the scientists as to how to convey their message.
>> There was some very unfortunate language used in that piece that
>> caused the outcry that it did. If it had been worded differently I
>> doubt the same would be true and maybe those few naysayers would be
>> much the wiser now.
>>
>>
>>
>> Andy
>>
>>
>>
>> A : A : A :
>> }<(((_°>.,.,.,.}<(((_°>.,.,.,.}<)))_°>
>> V V V
>> Andy Bentley
>> Ichthyology Collection Manager
>> University of Kansas
>> Biodiversity Institute
>>
>> Dyche Hall
>> 1345 Jayhawk Boulevard
>> Lawrence, KS, 66045-7561
>> USA
>>
>> Tel: (785) 864-3863
>> Fax: (785) 864-5335
>> Email: abentley at ku.edu
>>
>>
>> https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__ichthyology.biodiversity.ku.edu&d=AwIDaQ&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=BK33tp4peUk-ATjoUa_Ql-0A_RVTeEERAR58rleqdMA&s=c97Iu7BPhJspMkUhOHsm8WH9GjGqXL8cGCDVf6BJzhs&e=
>>
>>
>> SPNHC President
>>
>>
>> https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.spnhc.org&d=AwIDaQ&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=BK33tp4peUk-ATjoUa_Ql-0A_RVTeEERAR58rleqdMA&s=q286OzJzJfvzNSHdjfgyULD66Ldxr45x4wPGYE94l1w&e=
>>
>>
>> : :
>> A : A : A :
>> }<(((_°>.,.,.,.}<(((_°>.,.,.,.}<)))_°>
>> V V V
>>
>>
>>
>> From: nhcoll-l-bounces at mailman.yale.edu [mailto:
>> nhcoll-l-bounces at mailman.yale.edu] On Behalf Of Barry OConnor
>> Sent: Monday, January 25, 2016 12:23 PM
>> To: Ellen Paul <ellen.paul at verizon.net>
>> Cc: nhcoll-l at mailman.yale.edu
>> Subject: Re: [Nhcoll-l] Another excellent article on the value of
>> collections
>>
>>
>>
>> I suppose there are two ways to deal with pretty birds: 1. don't
>> work with them; 2: publish in very obscure journals and don't
>> publicize the work. Prevailing wisdom says if you find a new bird,
>> don't kill it. - Barry
>>
>>
>>
>> On Mon, Jan 25, 2016 at 10:23 AM, Ellen Paul <ellen.paul at verizon.net>
>> wrote:
>>
>> This is a great article. Unfortunately, there is an even bigger
>> problem when it comes to vertebrates and especially cute or
>> pretty vertebrates. The reaction to the collection of a single bird
>> by Chris Filardi was appalling to say the least. You can run
>> articles like this until the end of time and people will still get
>> hysterical over the collection of cute/pretty vertebrates.
>>
>> Ellen
>>
>> Ellen Paul
>>
>> Executive Director
>>
>> Ornithological Council
>> Providing Scientific Information about Birds
>>
>>
>>
>> On 1/25/16 10:10 AM, Janet Waddington wrote:
>>
>> I’m attaching a pdf of the article in case the link doesn’t work
>> outside Canada.
>>
>> This reporter has it spot on.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.thestar.com_news_insight_2016_01_25_what-2Dcan-2Dyou-2Ddo-2Dwith-2D300000-2Ddead-2Dbees.html&d=AwIDaQ&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=BK33tp4peUk-ATjoUa_Ql-0A_RVTeEERAR58rleqdMA&s=txsXowVAXSKcqTSW1gI_jjd6w5MJ0ZWnt6zWwPMxpyA&e=
>>
>>
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>> _______________________________________________
>> NHCOLL-L is brought to you by the Society for the Preservation of
>> Natural History Collections (SPNHC), an international society whose
>> mission is to improve the preservation, conservation and management of
>> natural history collections to ensure their continuing value to
>> society. See
>> https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.spnhc.org&d=AwIDaQ&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=BK33tp4peUk-ATjoUa_Ql-0A_RVTeEERAR58rleqdMA&s=q286OzJzJfvzNSHdjfgyULD66Ldxr45x4wPGYE94l1w&e=
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>>
>> --
>>
>> -So many mites, so little time!
>>
>> Barry M. OConnor
>> Professor & Curator
>> Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
>>
>> University of Michigan phone: 734-763-4354
>> 1109 Geddes Ave. fax: 734-763-4080
>> Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1079 e-mail: bmoc at umich.edu
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
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> Natural History Collections (SPNHC), an international society whose
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> natural history collections to ensure their continuing value to
> society. See https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.spnhc.org&d=AwIFaQ&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=pON8O2SwUgkW9sp9rK28FUlsGxX-XG7HQKnhvKbEt8c&s=JqfQShuSOraDasI4-n35FCSnu1uukcYcWARQpvin-X0&e= for membership information.
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