Raw's private collection note

[Giulio Cuccodoro]

>      I fully agree with you Anita, Private collection is one of the worst
>things in Science. The Collections must be public and free, without an
>owner.
>     As a researcher that work for a public collection, I have to say that
>it is a disgusting idea, if it is not a definite decision, please
>reconsider it.
>      We have to encourage the researchers and the collectors to keep your
>specimens in Institutional Collections, to make it available forever.
>
>
>Yours,
>
>Dr. LuÌs C. Muniz
>FIOCRUZ
>Helminthological Collection
>Rio de Janeiro
>BRASIL
>
>
>> Are we moving back in time?  Encouraging private collections undermines
>everything we have tried to accomplish in terms of specimen preservation
>for teaching, research, and future endeavors!  Museums are the recognized
>format for specimen preservation with the experience, access to object
>conservation research, an environmental controls that cannot be achieved in
>private collections.  Why would anyone encourage private collections!
>>
>>
>> ________________________
>> Anita F. Cholewa, Ph.D.
>> Curator of Temperate Plants
>> Bell Museum of Natural History
>> University of Minnesota
>> 1445 Gortner Ave
>> St Paul MN (USA)
>> http://www.cbs.umn.edu/herbarium/vascularplantpage.htm


Lets drop the mask. Even if you may very dislike it, I'm confident that a
significant number of institutional curators/researchers of this list
having dayly access to a sizable institutional research collection have and
will carry on with their own private research collection.
Not because their institution is 100 miles away from their home (like for
James), or want to build something valuable for their heirds, or
whatsoever. No. How many of us spend most if not all our office hours doing
paper works,curratorial duties, 'compulsory research', computerization,
taking care of visiting colleagues, organizing exhibitions, teaching, etc.
In turn, it happens that the rare hevenly moments we can dedicated ourself
to our own research projects are in the evenings, nights, week-ends and
hollidays. If you have a family and want to keep it, these moments are
usually spent at home. And then it may look somewhat anachronic,
disgusting, or even pervert, but when you wake up accidentally at 3 a.m.
with an irrepressible pulsion to check again a matrix line, it is sooooo
convenient to have your research collection at hand, just like a 'basic'
private researcher...

-------------------------------------------------------------------
Giulio Cuccodoro                Voice   +41(0)22 418 63 90
Entomologie
Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle   http://www.ville-ge.ch/musinfo/mhng/
C.P. 6434                       Phone   +41(0)22 418 63 00
CH-1211 Genève 6, Switzerland Fax     +41(0)22 418 63 01

Colis/parcel :
Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle, Rte de Malagnou 1, CH-1208 Genève

-------------------------------------------------------------------
The opinions expressed in this email are those of the sender, and not
necessarily those of the Natural History Museum of Geneva.