a net lender nationally and internationally, loaning 

 many more objects than it borrows. In the past five 

 years, the Museum has hosted professional visits by 

 4,904 scientists (Exhibit 2, page 11). In addition, the 

 Biological Research Resources Program of the National 

 Science Foundation (NSF) recognizes Field Museum as a 

 major scientific resource. Field Museum ranked fourth 

 in the nation with NSF dollar awards in recent years, 

 with collection grants totaling more than $2.8 million, 

 or 8.1 percent of the NSF budget for systematic collec- 

 tions (Exhibits 3, 4, page 11). Scholars at universities 

 and other museums — the primary users of museum 

 collections — constitute the grant proposal review 

 community. 



The quality of a collection is a function of its depth, 

 the amount and quality of the data base associated with 

 the objects, the accessibility of the objects and the data 

 base, the conservation of the objects, and their storage 

 environment. By these criteria, Field Museum's collec- 

 tions are of world stature. Our staff has provided national 

 leadership in collection preservation and management. 

 We were among the first to use computers and data base 

 software for collection management; we have estab- 

 lished modern conservation facilities for anthropolog- 

 ical material; and we have increased and upgraded 

 collection storage space. 



Moving into the Museum's second century, we must 

 continue to strengthen our leadership in collection 

 preservation and management. Caring for specimens 

 and related data bases is a significant challenge essential 

 to maintaining the Museum's collection strength. In 

 addition, we must make the collections as accessible for 

 scholarly research and educational use as possible. Just as 

 important, we must add selectively to our collections in 

 areas of particular strength, taking into account not only 

 our own long-term institutional collection objectives 

 but national and regional objectives as well. 



To meet these challenges we plan to: 



* Work with peer research institutions, government 

 agencies, and the national scientific community to 

 develop a plan for national and regional centers of 

 collection excellence in natural science and anthropol- 

 ogy. The focus of these centers will guide us in adding to 

 Field Museum's collections. 



* Add selectively to collections in Field Museum's clear- 

 ly established areas of strength through fieldwork, 



purchases, and gifts in kind. 



* Provide adequate staffing for conservation and man- 

 agement of the collections. 



* Provide modern computer and research equipment 

 and adequate storage facilities for collection conserva- 

 tion, management, and research. 



* Maintain and add selectively to our library — one of 

 the premier natural science and anthropological libraries 

 in the Western Hemisphere. 



Position Research Programs in Mainstream 



Natural science and anthropological collection-based 

 research is fundamental to the life, environmental, and 

 social sciences as well as to the arts and humanities. In 

 addition to its contribution to pure science, basic collec- 

 tions research helps lay the foundation for advances in 

 agriculture, medicine, environmental control, and nat- 

 ural resource development. 



Field Museum staff and research associates engage 

 in fundamental research in anthropology, geology, and 

 biology. The Museum is a basic research institution in its 

 own right and a vital participant in graduate and under- 

 graduate education in Chicago and the nation. Our 

 research is primarily collection-oriented and observa- 



Anthropologist John Terrell studies why the people of the Pacific 

 islands are so diverse in biology, customs, and language. William 

 Burlingham photo. 



