tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028565150475419281.post5264920347340588662..comments2024-01-23T15:18:52.111-05:00Comments on Trichopterology: Entomological Museums: Little progress in 60 years.Kaihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15709111344826156855noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028565150475419281.post-87816357259064524992012-02-13T12:24:52.780-05:002012-02-13T12:24:52.780-05:00Morgan-
I wasn't aware that the Smithsonian h...Morgan-<br /><br />I wasn't aware that the Smithsonian had "mothballed" entire groups. Are they even accessible? How about the types? If I were to go to Washington, would I be able to investigate, say, Sciaroidea? Please let me know where I can learn more about this!<br /><br />I really am worried about this tendency to see the new technology as the be-all, end-all for systematics and biology in general. It may be that people are pining for the tricorder they saw Captain Kirk use in their youth. Eventually the problem solving limits of the technology will be made clear, but I hope we will not have done away with our natural history collections before that point! <br /><br />My question is, what do I need to do to convince the public of the importance of natural history collections? How can I make Ross's vision of the function of entomological museums come to reality?Kaihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15709111344826156855noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028565150475419281.post-83204243648202535102012-02-13T10:50:03.364-05:002012-02-13T10:50:03.364-05:00This is both very good and exceedingly sad at the ...This is both very good and exceedingly sad at the same time Kai! I'd say that times are much worse today than they were 60 years ago, with even the Smithsonian being forced to mothball entire groups (more so than normal), without the budget to curate or provide specimen loans from those groups! I've hoped that funding agencies and governments will wake up and realize the damage they are doing to our understanding of the natural world by not funding natural history collections, but they continue to be distracted by shiny new molecular toys and pipe-dream promises! Looks like we have plenty more work to do to convince them and the public otherwise!Morgan Jacksonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04693193551329558541noreply@blogger.com