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HIGHLIGHTS
Research
Training Program
Information
about the Research Training Program:
Application
Procedures
:
go directly to the current RTP on-line application forms
Advisor
List
Smithsonian
Center for Education and Museum Studies
To learn more about other Smithsonian internship
opportunities, and their application procedures, visit the Smithsonian's
Center for Education and Museum Studies web site: http://museumstudies.si.edu/
Smithsonian
Office of Fellowships - internships
ACADEMIC
SERVICES
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Phone:
202-357-4548
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Fax:
202-786-2563
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Write
to:
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Mary
Sangrey
NHB MRC 166, Room W411
PO Box 37012
Smithsonian
Institution
Washington, D.C. 20023-7012
U.S.A
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- OR -
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Mary
Sangrey
National Museum of Natural History
10th Street & Constitution Avenue, NW
Smithsonian
Institution
Washington, DC 20560-0166
U.S.A
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Research
& Collections
NMNH
Smithsonian
SI
Libraries
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For
general
Smithsonian Information
phone:
202-357-2700
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CRC,
SERC, and NZP
science interns
 You're
invited to a special behind-the- scenes Open House
at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History.
Thursday
26 June 2003
8:15 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
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Following
is the schedule of events for the day, but before you come you might
want to know a little more about us:
Behind-the-Scenes
at the National Museum of Natural History
Intern's Open House
Schedule of Events
*
Thursday, 26 June 2003 *
8:15 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. : NMNH
OPEN HOUSE
NMNH
interns will host Smithsonian's science interns from SERC, NZP, and
CRC for a behind-the-scenes view of NMNH research, the National Collections,
and our research facilities.
We
require advance notification of your visit. So we can plan accordingly,
a complete name list of those attending is due Thursday, 19 July
03. Intern coordinators at participating locations should e-mail
the list to Mary Sangrey at sangrey.mary@nmnh.si.edu
We
can accommodate no more than a total of 65 interns.
8:15
a.m. : ARRIVAL
Interns from CRC, NZP and SERC will convene in the Constitution
Avenue Lobby.
You
must bring your Smithsonian photo ID. If you don't have an
official Smithsonian ID, please bring a photo ID to exchange with
security for a one-day behind-the-scenes pass.
You
will be met in the lobby and be directed to the ARC.
8:30
- 9:00 a.m. : MORNING
SOCIAL - host: Elisa
Maldonado
Location: Academic Resources Center
NHB, Main Building, Ground Floor, Room 60A
Topic: Science
Across the Smithsonian, and the interns joining us this summer.
 We
will host a short social to get to know everyone and enjoy some light
morning refreshments (donuts, bagels, fruit and juice). Coffee can
be purchased across the hall in the staff cafeteria. We will be providing
pizza for lunch. If you prefer something different, you
may leave your lunch in our refrigerator and any bags you don't wish
to carry with you can be also left in the ARC. During the social you
will:
- Meet
the NMNH and RTP interns and learn a little about their summer
research.
- Select
the tours you'd like to join. Interns will present a brief overview
of the features included during their group tour. Guests will
then select one group from the morning tour options to join and
one group from the afternoon behind-the-scenes tour options of
the NMNH collections to join. No more than 12 guests per
tour group.
Following
the social we will move to the Johnson IMAX theater for a special
free showing of "Galapagos" in 3-D IMAX.
9:15
- 10:00 a.m. : FILM SCREENING
- host: Mary Sangrey
Location:
Johnson IMAX Theater
NHB, East Court
Topic:
Galapagos,
in 3D IMAX
One
time deal! See the IMAX film, Galapagos, complements of Natural History.
In this 3D film, watch the diverse tapestry of life unfold. Follow
Carole Baldwin on her first expedition to to Ecuador's Galapagos
Islands. Also included in the film is NMNH scientist, Dave Pawson.
On land, come
face-to-face with giant tortoises, marine iguanas, and unusual birds
that have evolved into splendid oddities of nature. Under water, meet
new species of marine life and explore caverns buried beneath the
sea.
10:00
- 10:45 a.m. : LECTURE
- host: Elisa Maldonado
 Location:
Anthropology Seminar Room
NHB, Main Building, Third Floor, Room #: 339
Speaker:
Dr. Carole
Baldwin Associate Curator. B.S. (1981) James Madison University,
M.S. (1986) College of Charleston, Ph.D. (1992) College of William
and Mary. (phone: 202- 633-9179 / E-mail: baldwin.carole@nmnh.si.edu).
Topic: Conversations with Scientists, including
the making of an IMAX Film - Galapagos
Join us for a
lecture by Dr. Carole Baldwin, ichthyologist, and star of the IMAX
File "Galapagos."
Learning
to effectively communicate research to general audiences is not just
a researchers' tool - it's a necessity to survival in today's scientific
community. Securing funding to pursue pure research topics is no longer
"easy" and "free of obligation." Most often major
funders for research, such as foundations and corporations, are not
experienced scientists. Explaining why the research is important,
understanding the broad scope of how the results could benefit other
science disciplines and human resources, and utilizing different media
to share scientific insights is not a goal of the future but today's
reality.
Even the National Science Foundation - the major funding agency for
curiosity-driven research in the science, mathematics, engineering
and technology fields - requires each funded investigator to provide
general audience summaries of the research supported and to elaborate
on its connectivity to other applications. Scientists of today must
be creative to succeed! To do so many scientists are turning the tables
on the traditional methods of pursuing research endeavors. Instead
of seeking funding solely for their scholarly research, they are working
with exhibit designers and media producers on made-for-the public
products such as exhibitions, films, and electronic web-based products.
By doing so they often earn all-expense paid trips to research destinations
and access to state-of-the-art equipment. The successful are sought
after, as expert advisors, instead of experts desperately seeking
funds.
The 3-D IMAX film GALAPAGOS about biodiversity of the Galapagos Islands
stars Ichthyologist and NMNH Museum Specialist Dr. Carole Baldwin.
Although at times tedious, participating in the film project provided
Carole "an all-expense paid collecting opportunity and the chance
to make collections from a submersible." During the filming she
discovered many new species of fish, especially deep-water fishes
taken from the Johnson Sea Link submersible but what compromises did
she have to accept? How did she get this opportunity?
Talk to Carole and learn her insights into conducting research as
part of made-for-the-public initiatives.
Web
Links
Following
the lecture tour groups will depart to their separate locations.
11:00
a.m.- noon : MORNING
TOUR OPTIONS
Location: Academic Resources Center
NHB, Main Building, Ground Floor, Room 60A
Topic: Morning
Tours and Workshops
Students
will select one of the morning tour options and one of the afternoon
tour options. In the morning select either entomology, mineral science,
amphibians & reptiles, fishes, or anthropology.
Pink
Group
- ENTOMOLOGY: hosted by intern Stephanie
Johnson and entomologist, Dr. John Brown.
 Over
50% of all animal species are insects. The Smithsonian NMNH has
one of the largest insect collections in the world. Research in
the NMNH Department of Entomology is primarily collection based
and systematic involving evolutionary and population biology, phylogeny,
biogeography, bio-diversity, ecology, behavior, and molecular studies
as well as basic taxonomy, comparative, morphology, and life history.
The Department of Entomology is made up of many people including
researchers from USDA, the Smithsonian, and other agencies. To learn
more visit: http://entomology.si.edu/
Blue
Group
- FISHES:
hosted by intern Mandy
Cass.  This
tour begins with a preview of some extraordinary fishes from the
"OH-MY" collection. Next, the group will move into the
collection area which mainly includes liquid preserved specimens
of fishes, including a Coelacanth (that you'll get to see!). After
the Coelacanth, the group will view counter stained specimens,
including some larval fishes and their adult counterparts.
Research
in the Division of Fishes is directed primarily toward systematic
revisions of species, genera, and families, and the interpretation
of higher classification and biogeography. The Division covers
a broad spectrum of the great diversity of fishes, generally relying
on the vast resources of the national fish collection. The fish
collection, at the National Museum of Natural History, is the
largest in the world, with approximately 540,000 lots (a lot consists
of all specimens of a species from the same time and place) and
about 3.5 million specimens. To learn more visit:
http://www.nmnh.si.edu/vert/fish.html
Purple
Group
- MINERAL SCIENCE: hosted by interns
Jennifer
Maloney, Jocelynn
Johnson, and Brittany
Meagher.  Mineral
Sciences are a part of our everyday life. Each rock and mineral
has a story to tell. Rocks form the buildings that we live in and
minerals are part of our everyday lives, from computers to our bathroom.
Precious gems, valuable minerals, and fascinating rocks can all
be seen in the Mineral Sciences Department. Research is conducted
on rocks drilled from the deep ocean, rocks erupted out of volcanoes,
minerals that form within the earth from magma or from metamorphic
conditions, and rocks that fall to earth from outer space as meteorites.
For the Mineral Sciences tour, a portion of the 130,000 specimens
in the rock and ore collection, 400,000 specimens in the gem and
mineral collection, and 24,000 specimens of the meteorite collection
will be shown for you to examine and learn what processes formed
them. To learn more visit: http://www.nmnh.si.edu/minsci/.
Orange
Group
- ANTHROPOLOGY: hosted by interns Danielle
Royer and Skye
Chang. Guided
by Dr. Dave Hunt, we'll visit
the Terry Collection,
Egyptian and Peruvian mummies, and honest-to-goodness shrunken heads.
Plus, Soap Man! Caution- unruly guests make great additions to the
collections...  The
archaeological, ethnological, and physical collections of the NMNH
Department of Anthropology include over two million specimens from
all parts of the world. The skeletal collections number among the
largest in the world and represent a variety of populations including
hundreds of specimens of known age and sex of modern populations.
If you join this tour group you'll see mummies, skeletons, and shrunken
heads...oh my! And yes, we'll even treat you to a tour of our attic
(you'll never guess what's up there). To learn more visit: http://www.nmnh.si.edu/anthro/
Yellow
Group
- Herps:
hosted by intern Raul
Diaz.  Has
T.V. brainwashed you into thinking that the Crocodile Hunter®
is the ultimate source for herpetological information? If you want
to see the light, then this is the tour for you. The group will
venture behind-the-scenes to see frogs, snakes, lizards, amphisbaenians,
and tuataras. The Smithsonian’s collection of amphibians and
reptiles is the largest in the world with over 550,000 specimens
catalogued, some specimens dating back to 1834 before the museum
had been built. The Amphibians and Reptile Division of Vertebrate
Zoology has played a very important role as a repository for type
specimens and currently contains over 11,000 catalogued, and possibly
over 20,000 once the lots (specimens grouped together when collected
from same area at the same time) are broken up into individual specimens.
Specimens are collected from all over the world and at varying time
periods, thus allowing for an assessment of biodiversity, systematic
study, and providing the opportunity to capture evolutionary changes
within and across populations.
Coordinators
Option: Program coordinators joining
the morning events may select to join a particular group (if space
is available) or tour around with an escort visiting each site for
a peek at everything.
noon
- 1:15 p.m. : LUNCH
and GROUP PHOTO
Location: Academic Resources Center
NHB, Main Building, Ground Floor, Room 60A
We'll provide Pizza! Stay in the ARC for lunch or spend the time visiting
the Museum shops utilizing your Smithsonian Intern photo ID to receive
a 20% discount on all purchases. Or, use your Smithsonian Intern
photo ID to obtain a free IMAX ticket to the 12:15 p.m. showing
of the film, Bugs! in 3D.
Bugs!
in 3D is a live-action nature drama filmed in awe inspiring, totally
immersive 3D. Shot on location in Borneo and in a purpose built house
in England, Bugs! explores the dramatic and savage lives of an Old
World preying mantis and a beautiful butterfly. Narrated by Judi Dench.
Presented by Terminix. 42 minutes
Coordinators
Option: Program coordinators may join Mary for lunch in her office
to discuss plans for next year or select any of the intern lunch options.
1:30 - 2:30 p.m. : AFTERNOON
TOUR OPTIONS
Location: Academic Resources Center
NHB, Main Building, Ground Floor, Room 60A
Topic: Afternoon
Tours and Workshops
In
the afternoon students will select one of the afternoon tour options:
paleobiology, botany, mammals, or birds.
WHITE
Group
- PALEOBIOLOGY:
hosted by intern Nancy
Price.  Research
in the NMNH Department of Paleobiology focuses on interdisciplinary
studies of the history of the earth and its biota, and their interactions
through time, including the systematics of
specific animal and plant groups, the evolutionary processes underlying
phylogenetic patterns, paleoecology, the responses of ecosystems
to abiotic and biotic change, the relationships of ecological patterns
to evolving lineages, responses of shallow-water depositional systems
to changing climates and rates of subsidence, reef dynamics, and
the history of ocean basins. Join us for a tour of the Paleobiology
collections where you can see the world's largest collection of
foraminifera, the Cambrian explosion exceptionally preserved in
specimens from the Burgess Shale of British Columbia, and of course,
DINOSAURS, DINOSAURS, DINOSAURS!!! Step right up and join us for
an hour of exploration and evolution (we're talking figuratively
and literally here folks!). To learn more visit: http://www.nmnh.si.edu/paleo/
Green
Group
- BOTANY / PLANT ANATOMY: hosted
by intern Abby
Moore.  The
Botany tour begins in the Plant Anatomy Laboratory where Stan
Yankowski will demonstrate different used to prepare histology
slides. Interns joining this tour will also have the opportunity
to try making their own slides using the rotary microtome. At
2:00 p.m., the tour continues into the herbarium to see some of
the most interesting specimens.
Including
4.6 million collections, the U.S. National Herbarium was founded
in 1848 with the first collections accessioned from the US Exploring
Expedition. Research in the NMNH Department of Botany focuses
on plant systematics in the broadest sense: taxonomy, nomenclature,
comparative anatomy and morphology, palynology, phylogeny, phytogeography,
ecology, evolutionary theory, and conservation biology. Numerous
floristic studies are under way, while others are aimed at elucidating
evolutionary development, phylogeny, and the broad questions of
classification. Both modern and fossil species of many plant groups,
including the algae, mosses, lichens, ferns, and flowering plants,
are currently being studied. To learn more visit: http://www.nmnh.si.edu/departments/botany.html
Red
Group
- MAMMALS:
hosted by intern Miguel
Fernandez and Museum Specialist Jeremy
Jacobs, you'll
journey through the mammal collections. Here you will see the smallest
mammal, specimens of primates, squirrels, bats, and other assorted
goodies plus a visit to the fluid room.  The
National Museum of Natural History houses one of the most important
collections of mammals in the world. The collection is referenced
in the scientific literature by the acronym USNM, derived from the
former name United States National Museum. With roughly 580,000
voucher specimens, it is by far the world's largest, nearly twice
the size of the next largest mammal collections. The taxonomic and
geographic scope of the USNM mammal collection spans the globe with
especially strong representation from North America, Central America,
northern South America, Africa, and southeast Asia. To learn more
visit: http://www.nmnh.si.edu/vert/mammals/mammals.html
Yellow
Group
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BIRDS: hosted by Dr. Carla Dove.
 In
the Division of Birds, research is oriented toward the evolution,
biogeography, and ecology of birds including functional anatomy,
structural adaptation, phylogeny, distribution and ecology of neotropical
birds, conservation biology of North American migrants, paleontology
and evolution of birds, and island avifaunas. The Division of Birds
houses and maintains the third largest bird collection in the world
with over 600,000 specimens. To learn more visit: http://www.nmnh.si.edu/vert/birds/birds.html
Blue
Group
- Invertebrates: hosted by interns Elisa
Maldonado
and Tristan Carland.  Have
you ever seen a worm with fangs? It is it your lifelong dream to
be surrounded by a coral reef? Are you an avid shell collector?
If so, then this is the tour for you!! The Smithsonian's Invertebrate
Zoology collection is one of the largest in the world, consisting
of over 34 million specimens, the Crustacean collection alone takes
more than 6 miles of shelving! Attractions include deep-sea worms
from the geothermal vents, giant arctic crabs, 'brain' corals ten
times the size of any human brain, cannibalistic starfish, and a
whole lot more!!
Coordinators
Option: Program coordinators joining
the afternoon events may select to join a particular group (if space
is available or tour around with an escort visiting each site for
a peek at everything.
After
the tours, groups may gather in the ARC to convene, or head directly
to Air and Space for the Ice Cream Social.
 3:00
- 4:00 p.m.
OPTIONAL AFTERNOON SOCIAL
Host:
Smithsonian Internship Council
Location:
National Air & Space Museum
Topic:
Ice
Cream Social
Come
meet interns from across the Smithsonian while enjoying Ben &
Jerry's ice cream sandwiches - FREE!
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