This E-mail list is open for anyone who is interested in technical insights. Made available by Bill Amaral, through Harvard University.
 

This is the Vertebrate Paleontology Preparators’ mailing list. This is a list devoted to the exchange of information, questions, opinions, etc. about preparation of vertebrate fossils. No subject, related to preparation is off-limits.
 

This list grew out of an informal mailing list dedicated to the creation of a FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) on preparation, this still remains a goal of this new list.
 

The List Rules are simple and few. No obscenity, pornography, salacious comments, etc. No personal attacks. If you don’t agree with someone’s statement, feel free to disagree but be civil about it. If we get to the “beating a dead-horse” stage on some discussion, and I get five complaints about it, or requests that we desist, I will request that those interested parties take the discussion off-line. On this list each person agrees to post in a respectful and sincere manner. We seek to enlighten each other. Debate is encouraged for honing our knowledge and thinking skills, for truth-seeking, and for clarifying our perspectives. However, flames or personal attacks will not be tolerated.
 

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Welcome to the PREPLIST!

 

A forum for presentations on current issues in paleontological preparation, ranging from field and lab techniques to specimen curation, molding, casting, and exhibition design.

To ALL authors of papers and posters:
Please consider making your presentation(s) available online (submit). 

2012 Preparator's Session [Abstracts]

• Feathering dinosaurs

Tyler Keillor, University of Chicago, Chicago IL

• From discovery to public outreach: a new visitor orientated fossil quarry and fossil preparation lab opens at the Ben Reifel visitor center at Badlands National Park

Ellen Stark, Rachel Benton, and Mindy Householder, Badland National Park, Interior, SD, Clint Boyd and Darrin Pagnac, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, Rapid City, SD

• Introducing C.O.D.I. (The Comprehensive Olduvai Database Initiative): An electronic repository of terrestrial vertebrate fossils from the Plio-Pleistocene of Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania

Leslea Hlusko, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, and Jackson K Njau, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN

• Improving curation and conservation standards at the Vertebrate Paleontology Laboratory through interdisciplinary collaboration

James C Sagebiel and Matthew Brown, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX

• Methodology and results of a comprehensive specimen conservation condition survey of an active bone bed and storage collection at the Mammoth Site of Hot Springs, SD

Paul Storch, Museum Science Consultants, Saint Paul, MN, William J Wilkins, Olga Potapova, and Larry Agenbroad, Mammoth Site of Hot Springs, SD, Inc., Hot Springs, SD

• Digital development and mounting of an Alamosurus skeleton for the Perot Museum of Nature and Science

Peter May, Matt Fair, Brett Crawford, Amelia May, and Mike Macleod, Research Casting International, Trenton, ON, Canada

• Combining mechanical preparation and X-Ray computed tomography techniques to visualize obscured morphology in a basal sauropodomorph dinosaur

Adam D. Marsh, Matthew A. Brown, Matthew W. Colbert, and Timothy B. Rowe, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX

• The use of high-resolution Xray CT to interpret matrix variability and guide fossil preparation

Matthew W. Colbert and Matthew A. Brown, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX

• Using a glycerol-water solution to control relative humidity in a closed environment

Jeffrey Supplee and Brian Compton, East Tennessee State University, Johnson City, TN

• Comparing impression materials for dental microwear analysis in a small fossil mammal

Victoria Sadowska, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada, Ian Morrison, Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, ON, Canada, and Mary T. Silcox, University of Toronto, Scarborough, ON, Canada

• Techniques and materials for microfossil preparation: maximizing success and minimizing stress

Gregory Brown, University of Nebraska State Museum, Lincoln, NE 

• Mapping and lab preparation of a Cretaceous (Cenomanian) turtle from the Woodbine Formation of north Texas: the unusual challenge of the flying turtle project

Patrick Kline, Margie Kline, and Derek J Main, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX

• Lost and found: the challenges, opportunities and significance of a fossil rhinoceros specimen found during a storage cleaning event

Matthew W. Weiler, Karew K. Shumaker, and Joseph H. Hartman, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, ND

• The collaboration of institutions, agencies, and volunteers for a ‘painless’ excavation of a large glyptotherium from the Late Blancan of the San Simon Valley in southeastern Arizona

Gavin McCullough, and Tim Walters, Arizona Museum of Natural History, Mesa, AZ, David D. Gillette, Museum of Northern Arizona, Flagstaff, AZ, Richard White, International Wildlife Museum, Tucson, AZ, Larry Thrasher, Bureau of Land Management, Safford, AZ

• State-of-the-art digital data collection of paleontological resources: comparing methods of capture and quantifying results of 3D point cloud data

Brent Breithaupt, DOI-Bureau of Land Management, Cheyenne, WY, Neffra A. Matthews, and Tommy A. Noble, DOI-Bureau of Land Management, Denver, CO

• Vertebrate paleontological preparation core competencies and training curriculum: results from the 2012 Austin workshop

Matthew Brown, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, Amy Davidson, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY, Marilyn Fox, Yale Peabody Museum, New Haven, CT, Steven Jabo, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Washington, DC, and Matt Smith, Petrified Forest National Park, Petrified Forest, AZ, United States

 

 

2012 Poster session [Abstracts] 

• National Park Service vertebrate collections at the Smithsonian: collaboration to support science and stewardship

Samantha Lesser, Geological Society of America, Rochester, NY, Vincent Santucci, National Park Service, Washington, DC, Thomas Jorstad, Smithsonian Institute, Washington, DC 

• The bacterial flora of repository fossils: sources, survival and removal

Randolph G. De La Garza Patrick J. Lewis, and Todd P. Primm, Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, TX 

• Control of hazardous particulate exposure during fossil preparation through the use of local exhaust systems

Steven Jabo, Peter A. Kroehler, Kathryn A. Makos, and David M. Peters, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC

• A stylus sharpening instrument for fossil preparation

Kazumi Wada, Tadahiro Ikeda, and Haruo Saegusa, Museum of Nature and Human Activities, Sand, Hyogo, Japan, and Akiko Shinya, The Field Museum, Chicago, IL

2011 Preparator's Session [Abstracts]

• New application for medium and small scale 3D photogrammetry in vertebrate paleontology

Donald Esker, The Mammoth Site of Hot Springs, South Dakota, Hot Springs, SD, USA

• Photogrammetric ichnology:state-of-the-art digital data analysis of paleontological resources in North America, Europe, Asia, and Africa

Brent Breithaupt, BLM Wyoming State Office, Cheyenne, WY, USA; Neffra Matthews, BLM National Operations Center, Denver, CO, USA

• Close-range photogrammetry of partial re-excavation of the Laetoli hominin footprints, in Northern Tanzania

Neffra Matthews, and Tommy Noble, Bureau of Land Management, National Operations Center, Denver, CO, USA; Charles Musiba, University of Colorado Denver, Denver, CO, USA; Jackson Washa, National Museum of Tanzania, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania; Brent Breithaupt, Bureau of Land Management, WYSO, Cheyenne, WY, USA

• Fossils from the Early Permian Bromacker quarry locality, central Germany

Amy Henrici, and David Berman, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Thomas Martens, Museum der Natur Gotha, Gotha, Germany; Stuart Sumida, California State University, San Bernardino, CA, USA

• Collection, preparation, and mounting of two a large, original Gryposaur skeletons from the Kaiparowits Formation of Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument, for the new Utah Museum of Natural History, Salt Lake City

Mike Getty, and Eric Lund, Utah Museum of Natural History, Salt Lake City, UT, USA

• Preparation of an active in-situ dig site

William Wilkins, The Mammoth Site of Hot Springs, SD, Hot Springs, SD, USA

• Drying and stabilization wet Pleistocene megafauna material from Snowmass Colorado

Carol Lucking, Heather Finlayson, Bryan Small, and Meghan Mcfarlane, Denver Museum of Nature and Science, Denver, CO, USA; Daniel Fisher, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

• Lessons learned from 'Dead Sheep 148', or the fine art of dealing with big plaster jackets

Jean-Pierre Cavigelli, Tate Geological Museum, Casper College, Casper, WY, USA

• The preparation of YPM 57103, a case study

Brain Roach, and Marilyn Fox FOX, Yale Peabody Museum, New Haven, CT, USA; Bhart-Anjan Bhullar, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA

• A high-resolution X-ray computed tomographic scanning for preparation: logistics and limitations

Ana Balcarcel, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY, USA

• A using neutron radiography to quantify consolidant penetration in fossil bone

Anne Schulpe, Natuurhistorisch Museum Maastricht, Maastricht, Netherlands; Remmert Schouten, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom; Lango Metten and Alan van de Dande, Institute for Energy, JRC EU, Petten, Netherlands; Aad Bontenbal, Aad, retired, Petten, Netherlands

• Improving the science of paleontology through effective communication in the laboratory

Matthew Brown, University of Texas, Austin, Texas, USA

• Deformation in silicone molds and its effect on the accuracy of casts

Kenneth Bader, Petrified Forest National Park, Petrified Forest, AZ, USA

• Seismic mitigation for paleontological display specimens

Matthew Smith, National Park Service, Holbrook, AZ, USA; Elizabeth Nunan, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY, USA

• Visual and real: unis 3D scanning, modeling, and printing in reconstructing a juvenile Apatosaurus skeleton

Kyle Davies, Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, Norman, OK, USA; Binil Starly, University of Oklahoma, Center for Shape Engineering and Advanced Manufacturing, Norman, OK, USA

• A tutorial on time-lapse photography for online dissemination of paleontological science: fossil preparation, skeletal mounting, and flesh model restoration as examples

Erin Fitzgerald, Paul Sereno, and Tyler Keillor, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

 

2011 Poster Session [Abstracts]

• The effective uses of polyester quilt batting for constructing plaster jackets

Tom Linn, Ed Welsh, and Jason Carr, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, Rapid City, SD, USA

• A test of three solvent-based consolidants for field use in the rain

Jennifer Cavin, John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, Kimberly, OR, USA

• Fleshing out a fossil find

Tylor Keillor, and Paul Sareno, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

• The making of the Age of Mammals: a behind the scenes look at exhibition preparation and display

Venessa Rhue, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA, USA

• The cooper center: a novel partner ship for the management of paleontological resources

Meredith Rivin, California State University, Fullerton, Fullerton, CA, USA

• Nebraska’s Highway Paleontology Program: 50 years of life in the past lane

Shane Tucker, University of Nebraska State Museum, Lincoln, NE, USA

2010 Preparator's Session 

• Bonebed to the basement:collection procedures at the mammoth site of hot springs, South Dakota

Orga Potapova, Larry Agenbroad, and William Wilkins, Mamoth Site of Hot Springs, SD, Inc., Hot Springs, SD

• Mapping and recording the excavation of a mid-cretaceous crocodile (Archosauria: Goniopholidae) at an urban dig utilizing a cartesian mapping system

Roger Fry, University of Texas - Arlington, Arlington, TX and Derek Main, University of Texas - Dallas, Richardson, TX

• Long Term Documentation of the Conata pinic ground site (Big Pig Dig) Badland National Park, South Dakota

Rachel Benton, Badlands National Park, Interior, SD, Matthew Weiler, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, ND, and Wayne Thompson, South Dakota School of Mines & Technology, Rapid City, SD

• CSI Kimberly: Fossil crime scene investigation prior to the establishment of the paleontological resources protection act

Matthew Smith, Petrified Forest National Park, Petrified Forest, AZ

• Bone bandages: a conservationally-sound repair technique for broken bones having limited contact surface area

Gregory Brown, University of Nebraska State Museum, Lincoln, NE

• A use of rigid, semi-rigid and transparent cradles for preparation and long term storage of delicate specimens

Akiko Shinya, The Field Museum, Chicago, IL

• Continued improvements in the use of archival materials for the padded plaster jacket storage method: what we have learned in twenty years

Willam Keyer, Contractor for Smithsonian, Arlington, VA, Peter Kroehler, and Steven Jabo, Smithsonian, Washington, DC

• Addressing a critical need within the collections at Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument: refined and improved tehchniques and materials for the production of multi-size, clam shell specimen cradles

Thomas Nelsen, Jennifer Grasso, Kenneth Haulton, Philip Gensler, Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument, Hagerman, ID

• CT imaging of fossil-bearing calcified clastic sediments from the Malapa site, South-Africa-Advances in descovery, identification and preparation of fossil hominins and fauna

Kristian Carlson, Jackie Smilg, Bonita de Klerk, Celeste Yates, and Lee Berger, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa

• How to mold and cast a mummy dinosaur

Arthur Andersen, Virtual surfaces Inc., Mt Prospect, IL, Joseph Lichko, Cubic Vision Inc., Deerfield, IL, Martin Jones, Ford Motor Co., Livonia, MI, Peter Larson, Black Hills Inst of Geological Research, Hill City, SD

• Range of movement in a noasaurid forelimb: in situ data and joint reconstruction

Tyler Keillor, Paul Sereno, and Robert Masek,  University of Chicago, IL

• A simple microvertebrate molding and casting technique: a 20-year retrospective

Kyle Davies and Richard Cifelli, Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, Norman, OK; Brian Davis and Cynthia Gordon, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK

• Preparation of mico-features of Eocene Green River Specimens: methods and materials

Constance Van Beek, The Field Museum, Chicago, IL

• Creation of a large scale interpretive trackway display

Tyler Shaw and Lindsey Nydegger, Peace Region Palaeontology Research Centre, Tumbler Ridge , BC, Canada

• Racing against disaster: the demolition, rehabilitation and reconstruction of the quarry visitor center, Carnegie Quarry, Dinosaur National Monument

Daniel Chure, Dinosaur National Monument, Jense, UT

• Designing the modern preparation lab:integrating new technologies

Matthew Brown and Timothy Rowe, University of Texas, Austin, TX

2010 Poster Session 

• Beeswax as a remedial treatment for pyrite disease

Rodrigo Pellegrini and Albert Jehle, New Jersey State Museum, Trenton, NJ; Barbara Grandstaff, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA; Shirley Albright and David Parris, New Jersey State Museum, Trenton, NJ

• Polytetrafluoethylene (plumber’s) tape, tissue and plaster bandage used as a support for fossil preparation

Amy Davidson, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY

• Using different molecular weights of carbowax

Marilyn Fox, Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History, New Haven, CT

• Block 124: A look into the history of a 100-year-old field jacket from the Carnegie quarry, Dinosaur National Monument, UT

Heather Finlayson, Utah Field House of Natural History State Park Museum, Vernal, UT; Thomas Temme IV, SWCA, Vernal, UT; Dale Gray, Utah Field House of Natural History State Park Museum, Vernal, UT

• Inventory and monitoring of vertebrate paleontological resources from National Park Service Areas

Vincent Santucci, National Park Service, McLean, VA; Jason Kenworthy, National Park Service, Denver, CO; Justin Tweet, National Park Service, Cottage Grove, MN; James woods, National Park Service, Denver, CO

• Benefits, challenges and solutions of collections at small programs and institutions using experience from the University of North Dakota

Joseph Hartman, Matthew Weiler, and Karew Shumaker, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, ND

• Developing a pilot paleontological resource monitoring program for the National Park service at Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Utah

Donald DeBlieux, Utah Geological Survey, Salt Lake City, UT; Vincent Santucci, National Park Service, McLean, VA; James Kirkland, Scott Madsen, and Margaret Madsen, Utah Geological Survey, Salt Lake City, UT
 

 

2009 Preparator's Session [Abstracts]

• Continual destruction of pyritized bones of neogene mammalian fossil from northeastern Thailand

Rattanaphorn Hanta, Research Institute of Petrified Wood and Mineral Resources, Muang, Thailand; Benjavun Ratansthien, Chiang Mai University, Muang, Thailand; Pratueng Jintasakul, Research Institute of Petrified Wood and Mineral Resources, Muang, Thailand; Yutaka Kunimatsu, Primate Research Institute, Kanrin, Japan

• Acid preparation of fossils using sulfamic acid, a weak organic acid, and its advantages over acetic and formic acid preparation

Carlos Padilla and Mary Parra, Fundacion Colombiana de Geobiologia, Bogota, Colombia

[PDF] 

• Fuentesalvo site (Villar Del Rio, Soria), the first accessible dinosaur tracksite to the handicapped in Spain

Sergio Rasal, Paleoymás, Zararagoza, Spain; José Barco, Paleoymás, Zaragoza, Spain; Daniel, Castilla, Paleoymás, Zaragoza, Spain; Olga López, Paleoymás, Zaragoza, Spain; Javier Rubio, Paleoymás, Zaragoza, Spain

• Applying techniques of digitalization using structured white light and modeling by sintering to replicate vertebrate fossils

Alfredo Moros, Paleoymas, Zaragoza, Spain; José Barco, José Ignacio Canudo, Gloria Cuenca-Bescós,and Victor Sauque, University of Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain

• Sketching it: using digital photos, drawings, and artist software to map a field jacket during preparation

Dennis Roth, Fort Hays State University, Hays, KS, USA

• Mitigating stress and strain while de-molding delicate specimens from the Late Cretaceous Maevarano Formation of Madagascar

Joseph Groenke, Stony Brook University Department of Anatomical Sciences, Stony Brook, NY, USA

• Virtual repair of fossil CT scan data

Mark Johnson, Zartasha Mustansar, Phillip Manning, Lee Margetts, and Paul Mummery, The University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom

• Production of multi-purpose molds for versatile, detailed replication of large-scaled fossils: the Basilosaurus isis casting project as an exemplar [PDF]

Michael Cherney, William Sanders, Philip Gingerich, and Iyad Zalmout, University of Michigan Museum of Paleontology, Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Mohamed Antar, Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency, Wadi-Al-Hitan World Heritage Site, Fayum, Egypt

 

• Fossil vertebrate reconstruction for science and the public

Erin Fitzgerald, Paul Sereno, Tyler Keillor, Carol Abraczinskas, and Robert Masek, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

• Moving vertebrate paleontology collections and preparation laboratory at the Yale Peabody Museum

Marilyn Fox, Vicki Fitzgerald, and Mary Ann Turner, Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History, New Haven, CT, USA

• Extraction of fossils from much harder, volcaniclastic matrix

Ana Balcarcel and Jack Conrad, AMNH, New York, NY, USA

• Effective micropreparation workstation setup

Lisa Herzog and Akiko Shinya The Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, USA

• Stocking the fishbowl: a program to teach new exhibit lab volunteers the basics in fossil preparation, molding, and casting

Steven Jabo, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, USA; Matthew Brown, University of Texas, Austin, TX, USA; Peter Reser, Paleo-Tech, Albuquerque, NM, USA; Michael Holland, Michael Holland Productions, Bozeman, MT, USA; Matthew Smith, Florida Museum of Natural History, Gainesville, FL, USA

• Traning and evaluation of volunteer fossil preparators in the Smithsonian fossilab program

Matthew Brown, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA; Matt Smith, Florida Museum of Natural History, Gainesville, FL, USA; Steven Jabo, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, USA

2009 Poster Session [Abstracts] 

• The technique of immersion in acid as applied to the preparation of a placoderm fish from the lower Givetian (Devonian) of Loscos (Teruel, Spain)

Peter Carls, University of Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Germany; Alfredo Moros, Rosana Oerruca, Javier Lorente, and José Barco, Paleoymás, Zaragoza, Spain

• A collection of models of Mexican Late Jurassic marine reptiles at a 1:10 scale

Hector De la Paz, and Marie- Céline Buchey, Museo del Desierto, Saltillo, Coahuila, Mexico

• The Smithsonian human origins initiative: research, exhibition, education and outreach

Richard Potts and Briana Pobier, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, USA

• Temporary gap-filling to stabilize an exploded matrix for fossil preparation: the sand and Butvar B-76 technique [PDF]

Amy Davidson, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY, USA

 

• Armature damage in a mounted specimen [PDF]

Robert Evander, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY, USA

 

• Methods of paleontological reconstruction

John Conway, Open University, London, United Kingdom

• Bringing BLM resource use permitting, research, and management together: developing an integrated paleontological database system

Lucia Kuizon, Bureau of Land Management, Washington, DC, USA; Neffra Matthews, Bureau of Land Management, Lakewood, CO, USA

2008 Preparators' Session [abstracts] 

• A small scale, low-budget, hydro-efficient screen washing method: The "Mini-screener"

Thomas Temme IV, Simon Masters, and Stephen Sandau, Intermountain Paleo-Consulting, Vernal, UT

• Delicate fossil skulls from a rich Holocene site: Which techniques worked best for preparation, display, and transportation

Erin Fitzgerald, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL

• Jacketing the desert sands

Marilyn Fox, Faysal Bibi, and Andrew Hill, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA

[PDF] 

• On the use of plastic air conditioner filter media in plaster jackets for fossil collecting

Jean-Pierre Cavigelli, Tate Geological Museum, Casper, WY

• A relational database developed at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument for the purpose of managing and standardizing preparation documentation

Matthew Smith, John Day Associates, Gainesville, FL

• Family Reunion: A composite reconstruction of the Tyrannosaurus rex holotype skull

Michael Holland, Michael Holland Production, MT

• Restoration and threedimensional assembly of a nearly complete, articulated Eocene Protocetid whale skeleton from Pakistan

William Sanders, John Graf, Iyad Salmout, Munir Ul-Haq, and Philip Gingerich, University of Michigan Museum of Paleontology, Ann Arbor, MI

[PDF] 

• An Explanation of the challenges and techniques for the extraction and transfer of large wall plaques

Brett Crawford, Matt Fair, and Kevin Krudwig, Research Casting International, Trenton, ON, Canada

• A new "Streamlined cradle making operation" for maximum protection of fossils while allowing for easy access for research needs

Thomas Nelsen, Utah Field House of Natural History State Park Museum, Vernal, UT; Scott Madsen, Utah Geological Survey, Salt Lake City, UT; Dale Gary, Utah Friends of Paleontology / Utah Field House of Natural History State Park Museum, Vernal, UT, USA

• Learning the basics: A look at an adaptable lab based fossil preparation teaching experience

Matthew Brown, William Parker, Petrified Forest National Park, Petrified Forest, AZ; Stuart Sumida, California State University, San Bernardino, CA

2008 Poster Session [Abstracts]

• Ensuring success for all in exhibitions and informal science programs

Linda Deck, Bradbury Science Museum, Los Alamos, NM

• The Methods and data collection in fossil bone preparation process: Turning scrap material into premium scientific, educational, and exhibit resources

Olga Potapova, The Mammoth Site of Hot Springs, Inc., Hot Springs, SD

• The trials and tribulations of excavation: Techniques for removing large, heavy field jackets

Steven Sroka and Heather Finlayson, Utah Field House of Natural History State Park Museum, Vernal, UT

• Challenges of a national park paleontological quarry: The Big Pig Dig

Ellen Starck, South Dakota School of Mines & Technology, Rapid City, SD; Matthew Weiler, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, ND; Eric Hoffnagle, Danielle Olinger, and Amanda Dopheide, South Dakota School of Mines & Technology, Rapid City, SD

• Removing fossil ribs: the thread technique

Amy Davidson, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY
[PDF]

• Quantifying the benefits of a heavy liquid (sodium polytungstate) separation technique on microvertebrate fossil recovery

Jonathan Mitchell, Andrew Heckert, Appalachian State University, Boone, NC; Vince Shneider, North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, NC, USA

 

2007 Preparators' Session 

• From Salvage operation to in situ preservation: Techniques used in conservation at the Mammoth Site of Hot Springs, South Dakota

Kristine Thompson, Larry Agenbroad, Olga Potapova, The Mammoth Site of Hot Springs, SD, Inc., Hot Springs, SD; Sharon Holte, SD School of Mines and Technology, Rapid City, SD

• Unstable matrix: Examples of field and lab techniques for fossils in a wet, organic-rich clay from the Late Miocene Gray fossil site in Northeast Tennessee

Jeffrey Supplee, East Tennessee State University, Johnson City, TN

• Discovery, recovery and preparation of bones collected under salt water in caves from Mallorca (Balearic Islands, Spain)

Pere Bover, American Museum of Natural History; Francesc Gracia, Grup Nord de Mallorca, Pollença, Spain; Marina Crespi, Dept Identitat cultural-Seccio Arqueologia/Consell de Mallorca, Palma de Mallorca, Spain; Bernat Clamor, Grup Norder Mallorca, Pollença, Spain

• Preparing to prepare your fossil vertebrates: Set-ups to maximize speed and control

Amy Davidson, American Museum of Natural History, NY

• Digital preparation for the analog preparator

Joseph Groenke, Andrew Farke, Justin Georgi, Story Brook University, Stony Brook, NY

• Air abrasive 101 [PDF]

Jean-Pierre Cavigelli, Tate Museum, Casper, WY

• Fully automated sorting of micro-fossils from sediment using laser-stimulated fluorescence

Thomas Kaye, Burke Museum, Seattle, WA

• Laser scanning & 3D reconstruction as a tool for preparation and archival documentation

Kent Newman, Dale Winkler, Mike Polcyn, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX

• Vertebrate microfossil storage, the basics, and a new technique [PDF]

Matthew Smith, Kimberly, OR

• Who wants the white meat? Preparation, restoration, molding, and casting of an exceptionally preserved Tyrannosaurus rex cranium using a newly-developed apparatus

Allen Shaw, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Pittsburgh, PA

• The preparation, molding, casting, and disarticulation of Poposaurus gracilis, YMP58100

Marilyn Fox, Vicki Fitzgerald, Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History, New Haven, CT

• Especially durable prototypes of fossil specimens and replicas for use in public programming

Linda Deck, Idaho Museum of Natural History, Pocatello, ID; Robert Schlader, Nicholas Clement, Idaho virtualization Laboratory, Pocatello, ID; William Gibbs, College of Technology, Pocatello, ID; Ralph Chapman, Idaho Virtualization Laboratory, Pocatello, ID

• Duplication, three-dimensional reconstruction, and mounting of the skeletons of three Triassic tetrapods using epoxy-resin and acrylic glass

Henrik Stoehr, Museum für Naturkunde, Hunboldt-Universität, Berlin, Germany

• Dawn of the dinosaurs: Design, construction, and installation of a Triassic paleontology exhibit hall

Matthew Brown, William Parker, T. Williams, Karen Dorn, Petrified Forest National Park, Petrified Forest, AZ

• The restoration and reconstruction of multiple ornithischian dinosaur skeletons at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History: Techniques, supplies, problems, and resolutions

Lauren Stevens, Allan Shaw, Daniel Pickering, Norman Wuerthele, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Pittsburgh, PA

• Basic principles of conservation and their application to paleontological collections: Preparation and collection care with purpose

Gregory Brown, University of Nebraska State Museum, Lincoln, NE
 

2007 poster session

• Fossil preparation techniques for small Permian tetrapods from Richard Spur, Oklahoma

Scott Williams, Michael Henderson, Burpee Museum of Natural History, Rockford, IL; William May, Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, Norman, OK; Robert Reisz, University of Toronto, Mississauga, ON, Canada

• Mega movers: Enormous field jackets

Harold Hanks, Marmarth Research Foundation, Marmarth, ND; John Hoganson, Brett Woodward, North Dakota Geological Survey, Bismarck, ND

• Methods for labeling silicone molds

Jeff Person, Charles Baker, Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, Norman, OK
[PDF]

• A methodology for removing fossils from the Koanaka Hills deposit

James Cureton, Patrick Lewis, Monte Thies, Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, TX

• Dissolvable support jacket for preparation of thin arthrodire and shark specimens from the Upper Devonian Cleveland and Bedford shales utilizing carbowax 4000

Gary Jackson, Cleveland Museum of Natural History, OH
[PDF]

• A multi-media solution to complex molding and casting of internal and external surfaces of a fossil Homo erectus cranium from Java

Amber Heard, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI; John Graf, William Sanders, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI

[PDF]

• Reproductive health and safety for female employees working in vertebrate paleontology laboratories

Vicki Fitzgerald, Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History, New Haven, CT; Mason Milam, Cincinnati Museum Center, Cincinnati, OH

• Pyrite oxidation: Review and prevention practices

Akiko Shinya, Lisa Bergwall, The Field Museum, Chicago, IL

[PDF]

• Silicone caulk molds: A 25 year retrospective

Kyle Davies, Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, Norman, OK

• Reconstructing a new Mesozoic crocodile skull using basic techniques, advanced technology, and artistic finesse

Tyler Keillor, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL

• Continuity and reanimation of a fossil preparation laboratory: A report from Florida

Jane Mason, Art Poyer, Richard Hulbert, Florida Museum of Natural History, Gainesville, FL

• High-resolution virtualization of dinosaur footprints and rock art in the field using a low-cost, high-resolution laser-scanner

Robert Schlader, Idaho Virtualization Laboratory, Pocatello, ID; Brent Breithaupt, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY; Nicholas Clement, Ralph Chapman, Christian Petersen, Idaho Virtualization Laboratory, Pocatello, ID

• "Fly through the ground" subsurface tomography of dinosaur quarries using a combination of lidar and photogrammetry

Nels Peterson, Museum of the Rockies, Bozeman, MT

• There's a whole lotta shakin' goin' on- paleontological resource management implications for 3-D geophysical exploration: Case study from the Wind River Basin, Fremont county, Wyoming

Ben Shoup, Arcadis U.S., Inc., Buffalo, WY

• Archimedes' gift: X-ray fluorescence imaging, a new paleontological tool for soft tissue analysis and a test for fossilization process hypotheses

Robert Morton, Ken Huntley, Children of the Middle Waters Institute, Bartlesville, OK; Nick Morton, Missouri Western State University, Bartlesville, OK; Peter Larson, Black Hills Institute, Hill City, SD; Uwe Bergmann, Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, Menlo Park, CA

• Creating a searchable geographic information systems (GIS) database of fossil localities and specimens: An example from the Eocene of southwestern Wyoming

John Van Regenmorter, Robert Anemone, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI; Wendy Dirks, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom; Ron Watkins, Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Australia; William Moore, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL

• 2D and 3D retrodeformation techniques using finite element analysis with application to trilobites and Herrerasaurus

Alec Boyd, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA

• Identifying the causes of taphonomic variation in fossil bones using X-ray diffraction: A case study from Oligocene of South Dakota

Jason Moore, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom; Alan Marron, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, United Kingdom; Simon Redfern, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom

• Paleozoic and Mesozoic animal sounds

Phil Senter, Lamar State College-Orange, Orange, TX

 

2006 Preparator's symposium [Abstracts] 

• The treatment of the Hagerman petrified log

Malcom Bilz, Canadian Conservation Institute, Ottawa, ON, Canada

• A simple process for fabricating small display mounts

Matthew Brown, Constance Van Beek, James Holstein, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL

• Volunteers as force-multipliers in research and in the fossil lab

Kenneth Carpenter, Denver Museum of Nature & Science, Denver, CO

• Discovery, excavation, and preparation of the skull of a new centrosaurine ceratopsian from the Wahweap Formation of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument (GSENM), Southern Utah

Donald De Blieux, Salt Lake City, UT; James Kirkland, Utah Geological Survey, Salt Lake City, UT; Alan Titus, Bureau of Land Management, Kanab, UT

[PDF]

• Collection and use of taphonomic data from vertebrate localities: lessons from six years of paleontological inventory and excavation in Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah

Mike Getty, Mark Loewen, Utah Museum of Natural History, Salt Lake City, UT; Eric Roberts, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa

• Plastic display jackets

John Hogbin, Wyoming Dinosaur Center, Thermopolis, WY

• Reconstructing Nigersaurus taqueti

Tyler Keillor, Brookfield, IL

• The softer side of preparation: dealing with nonmineralized vertebrate tissues

Eric Lund, Utah Museum of Natural History, Salt Lake City, UT

• Techniques and materials used in dismantling, cleaning, conserving, and remounting the Museum Für Naturkunde’s dinosaur skeletons

Carla Mackie, Amelia May, Peter May, Matt Fair, Kevin Krudwig, Research Casting International, Beamsville, ON, Canada

• The thrill of the frill: wear and tear demands restoration of a Dilophosaurus wetherilli skull, UCMP 77270

Jane Mason, University of California Museum of Paleontology, Berkeley, CA

• Refined paraffin wax used to preserve 11,000-year-old camelid footprints in lakebed sediments, St. Mary Reservoir, Southern Alberta, Canada

Peter Milot, James Burns, Royal Alberta Museum, Edmonton, AB, Canada

• Building a better mousetrap: using new materials to improve processing of bulk matrix

Lloyd Sample, LSA Associates Inc., Irvine, CA

• Characterization of fossilized dinosaur bones

P. Sirois, Canadian Conservation Institute, Ottawa, ON, Canada; Elzbieta Kaminska, InfoSciTech, Orleans, ON, Canada

• Relocation of new fossil deposit at the Rancholabrean type locality, Los Angeles, California

Robin Turner, ArchaeoPaleo Resource Mgmt. Inc., Venice, CA; John Harris, Christoper Shaw, George C. Page Museum, Los Angeles, CA

• Collection and handling protocol for molecular and chemical analyses of well-preserved fossil specimens

Jennifer Wittmeyer, Mary Schweitzer, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC
 

2006 Poster Presentations [Abstracts] 

• Cyclododecane as a temporary sealer and filler in molding specimens with porous and penetrable surfaces

Gregory Brown, University of Nebraska State Museum, Lincoln, NE

• Data checks and other types of data collection strategies: two case studies at Badlands National Park

Rachel Benton, National Park Service, Interior, SD; Reko Hargrave, Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), Norman, OK

• Assembling an archival marking kit for paleontological specimens

Amy Davidson, Samantha Alderson, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY; Marilyn Fox, Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History, New Haven, CT

[PDF]

• Health hazards of the rodent-borne hantavirus. How to deal with potentially infested storage sites at the Wyoming Dinosaur Center

John Gibbel, William Wahl, Wyoming Dinosaur Center, Thermopolis, WY

• Recognition of insect traces on modern and fossil bones

Kenneth Bader, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

• A variation on the padded plaster jacket for housing vertebrate fossils

Peter Kroehler, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC

• Packing and transporting vertebrate fossil overseas

ReBecca Hunt, Augustana College, Rock Island, IL

[PDF]

• New uses of a relational database to improve the consistency and quality of fossil locality data in academic institutions and environmental consulting firms

Ian Browne, Kesler Randall, San Diego Natural History Museum, San Diego, CA

 

2005 Preparators' symposium

• Molding and Casting of In-situ Articulated Skeletons in Soft Matrix: A Case Study from the Ashfall Fossil Beds, Nebraska

Gregory Brown, University of Nebraska State Museum, Lincoln, NE

[PDF]

• A technique to create form-fitted, padded plaster jackets for conserving vertebrate fossil specimens

Steve J. Jabo, Peter A. Kroehler, and F. V. Grady, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC

[PDF]

• Museum collection management — Is it really worth digging in a National Park?

Rachel Benton, Badlands National Park; Ann Elder, Dinosaur National Monument

[PDF]

2004 Preparators' symposium 

• A review of vertebrate fossil support (and storage) systems at the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History

Marilyn Fox and Vicki Yarborough Fitzgerald, Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History, New Haven, CT

[PDF]

• An investigation of cyclododecane for molding fossil specimens

Amy Davidson and Lisa Kronthal, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY; Rachael Perkins Arenstein, Conservator in Private Practice, New York, NY
[PDF]

1998 Preparators' symposium

• A foot-controlled, chip blowing needle for micropreparation of fossil vertebrates

Amy Davidson, Amerian Museum of Natural History, New York, NY

[PDF]

Past Symposia

A list of papers presented at prior SVP Preparator's Symposia (sorted by author, title, category or year) is available below in PDF format. Additionally, select papers from this list are being reformatted and made available online (courtesy of the authors). Authors of papers and posters presented at the Preparator's Session are enthusiastically encouraged to submit their papers for peer-reviewed electronic publication on the Technical Papers web page.

• Papers by Author
• Papers by Title
• Papers by Category
• Papers by Year

Qs and As are distilled from discussions on PREPLIST and elsewhere, and more will be added, so visit this page again in the future for more!

This FAQ is the property of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology Preparators’ Committee; permission is given to disseminate the contents in whole or part provided proper attribution is given.

Q1: What is the best way to get shellac off of a specimen?
Q2: Is there a proper way to mix plaster?
Q3: I hear the word “hardener” a lot. Is there anything that actually “hardens” specimens?
Q4: How do I temper my field chisels?
Q5: What is a “mother mold”?
Q6: Please explain the different units of measurement for air pressure (PSI, PSIG, and bar).
Q7: What is CFM?
Q8: A researcher in China is setting up a preparation lab and he wants to know how big a compressor he should install.
 

Q1: What is the best way to get shellac off of a specimen?

A1: Shellac was, for many years, thought to be the best material available for consolidating fossils. It was used extensively for this purpose from the 1850s through the last decade, and is still used by some people today.
 

Shellac is at the top of the “not good” list of materials and should be avoided. However, before you decide how to remove it from all your fossils, you should first decide *if* you should remove it. It would be impractical and dangerous (to fossils and preparators) to try to remove the shellac from your entire collection. Attempting to remove any consolidant or coating from a fossil may do more damage than leaving it in place, even if the consolidant is “really bad stuff.”

Some characteristics of shellac:

1. It can cross-link to an insoluble solid over time.
2. It darkens over time.
3. It is usually more of a surface coating than a penetrating consolidant (especially on fossils collected during Prohibition!)
4. It attracts and incorporates dust at elevated room temperatures.

Some reasons to remove shellac (or any prior consolidant):

1. Noticeable deterioration. Peeling, shrinking, flaking, spalling.
2. To expose obscured features for research purposes.
3. To improve the aesthetic appearance of a displayed specimen.
4. To break the cycle of dust accumulation/incorporation on the surfaces of specimens exposed to “less than ideal” conditions (often displayed specimens).

Techniques used in removing shellac depend a great deal on the nature of the specimen. Small, fragile specimens and comminuted bone actually being held together by the shellac require considerable care. Larger, more robust material is somewhat easier to deal with safely. Remember, though, that you will only be able to remove surface coatings; shellac that has penetrated the interstices of the bone can not be removed.

Surface buildup of shellac can be removed from “sound” bone as follows:

Materials:

• Ethanol/Acetone 50/50
• Cheesecloth or gauze
• Light-weight polyethylene sheeting
• Small (< 1/2 inch blade) wood, polyethylene, Teflon, or steel tools

Method:

Apply an ethanol/acetone-moistened pad of cheesecloth to a small area of the fossil. Cover with a piece of polyethylene sheeting. Let this remain in place for about 5 minutes, then remove and examine the surface coating. The shellac should have softened enough to gently scrape (“coax” is a better word) some off. Quite often, the shellac surface will bubble up and slide off very nicely, especially on smooth, non-porous bone. Repeat the procedure as needed to soften and remove all the shellac on the surface.

Residue can be wiped off with solvent- moistened cheesecloth. You may also try applying the ethanol/acetone mixture to the bone and covering directly with p/e sheeting (no cheesecloth). The idea is to keep the surface coating of shellac exposed to the solvent, but to avoid soaking the bone (risking collapse. Obviously, the more porous or textured the bone, the less successful you will be).
 

Cross-linked shellac is insoluble in ethanol and acetone, and can not be removed this way. It has been reported that pyridine may “disrupt” cross-linked films, but we have no experience using this material. We find that removing cross-linked shellac is nearly impossible without damaging the fossil and is seldom worth the risk.
 

NOTE: Many of the materials used in the preparation and conservation of fossils pose serious health hazards. Always acquire and read the Material Safety Data Sheets for the materials you use. Do not use any hazardous materials if you lack the facilities or training required to use them safely.

 

Q2: Is there a proper way to mix plaster?

A2: The Simple Answer:
Slowly pour plaster into 1-2 inches of water until little islands of plaster form. Let sit as is for 1-2 minutes before mixing, mix to a creamy smooth consistency. After mixing is complete you’re good to go.

A2: The Detailed Answer:
The use of plaster is almost universal within the paleontological community. In the controlled confines of a laboratory more care can be given to the mixing of plaster than might occur in the field. Whether one mixes plaster in the laboratory or in the field it is useful to remember that the goal in plaster mixing is complete and even dispersion of the plaster particles in water. Examples and reasons for the proper mixing of plaster in the laboratory and under field conditions are given below.

1. Estimate how much plaster you’ll need for the job at hand. Even after years of experience many of us still end up with too much or too little.
2. Pour the water into the container.
3. In the laboratory plaster is generally slowly sifted (not dumped) into the water until eventually absorption slows and dry islands will start to form. Field conditions often dictate that a similar but cruder approach be utilized. Instructions for mixing plaster in the field often go like this: grab a good handful of plaster with two hands and let it fall out between your fingers as you move your hands around the top of the mixing container (simulating sifting). The idea is to not drop in too much at a time, and to let it spread evenly around the bottom of the container. Don’t be too fussy, but try not to drop in big blobs all at once. If you feel hard lumps in your plaster powder as you are hand sifting it, that means it has already reacted with moisture and you should discard the whole lot. Keep adding plaster until you start seeing “islands or archipelagos” appear at the surface — the islands/archipelagos mean you’ve got just about enough plaster in the mix.
   
   Whether in the laboratory or in the field at this point in the mixing process it is wise to allow the plaster to soak 2-4 minutes (until all dry islands are saturated). Soaking removes the envelope of air surrounding the plaster particles and prepares it for dispersion by mixing. Mix 2-5 minutes to obtain an even, creamy mix. Mixing disperses the saturated particles — longer mixing times result in more even dispersion and also maximum hardness when set (although mixing must stop before setting starts). Shorter mixing times result in softer plaster but also slows the setting time. Shorter mixing time can be useful in field jacketing when it may be desirable to have a longer working time for each batch. It is important to be aware that if you add additional water after the plaster has been stirred it will disrupt the crystallization and the plaster will set softer. In sculpture this is called “killing the plaster.” If the plaster has already started to set and you mix in additional water it will really kill it. This is the method used to create plaster for patching an existing plaster cast. The resulting patch remains softer than the sculpture and can be blended in better.

Extra: Some other tips for working with plaster

• Water temperature affects setting time — hot water will speed setting, cold water will slow it.

• Beware of anything which sucks water prematurely out of your plaster mixture, affecting set time and hardness. This can include any plaster from previous batches still stuck to your mixing basin, dry burlap strips (better to soak them first) or adding new plaster to old, dry plaster.

• If you’re mixing plaster for casting replicas (not plaster jackets) take care not to blend water and plaster too vigorously so as to avoid unwanted bubbles.

• The more you mix plaster the more you speed the reaction time. Except maybe with FGR 95 or other retarded plasters.

There is some very useful literature on plaster mixing available from US Gypsum Company (Industrial Gypsum Division Technical Assistance 1-800-487-4431). Bulletin No. IG503 has some recommendations for additives to accelerate and retard plaster.

 

Q3: I hear the word “hardener” a lot. Is there anything that actually “hardens” specimens?

A3: We wish there were such a thing. Sadly the term “hardener” is a common misnomer that people mistakenly use when they mean consolidant. Perhaps sometime in the future an actual hardener will be developed that will increase the strength and hardness of some of our softer fossils.
 
 

Q4: How do I temper my field chisels?

A4: Tempering chisels, and other tools, used to be an annual ritual for preparators as they readied equipment for their field season. Today carbide tipped chisels, albeit expensive, have largely replaced tempered high carbon steel chisels. Many preparation labs, in fact, have discarded the once ubiquitous forge.
 

Only high-carbon steels are temperable and can be hardened in the process called tempering. Low carbon steel will not take a temper but can be hardened by a process called case hardening, a process that finds little use in field applications. An easy test to determine if you have high carbon steel is place the steel against a power grinder and to examine the sparks produced. Generally a dull set of sparks means that you have mild steel, and a brilliant, sharply exploding spark is indicative of high carbon steel.
 

Once you have obtained suitable steel stock, procure the following; a heat source (propane torch or plumber’s gasoline blowtorch for example) and a water filled container for quenching the hot steel. The easiest but least controlled tempering method is to hold the steel rod in tongs and heat about 1/2 an inch of the end to a cherry red. Quench it immediately in the water. This may produce a tempered edge but more likely it will result in an edge that buckles or cracks.
 

A more reliable, controlled method, is to polish the steel rod then heat about one and half inches of the rod end to a dull yellow. At this point quench about three-quarters of an inch of the end of the rod for about fifteen seconds or until the heat glow from the rest of the steel disappears. Transfer the still-hot rod to an anvil (or vise) and observe, in the polished section of the rod, the color changes caused by heat conductivity. Be alert, for when a dark yellow or bronze color reaches the cutting end the entire tool must be quenched. This is the right hardness for a chisel.
 
 

Q5: What is a “mother mold”?

A5: The Simple Answer:
A “mother mold” sometimes called a “shell mold,” serves as the outer support for a mold, especially thin (skin) molds which do not have sufficient support themselves to maintain their overall shape.
 

A5: The Detailed Answer:
A “mother mold,” usually made of plaster, is a rigid support around a flexible mold that keeps it from ballooning or warping during casting. For extremely complex molds, ones that had multiple pieces, one might even have a “grandmother mold” that served to keep all the pieces together and organized, and it is even possible to have “great-grandmother molds,” etc. in rare circumstances. This usage of “mother mold” is published in (e.g., p. 254): Goodwin, Mark B. & Chaney, Dan S. 1994. “Molding & casting: techniques and materials,” pp. 235–271 in: Leiggi, P. & May, P. (eds.), Vertebrate Paleontological Techniques, Volume 1, Cambridge University Press, New York.
 
 

Q6: Please explain the different units of measurement for air pressure (PSI, PSIG, and bar).

A6: PSI = pounds per square inch; to convert to kilograms per square meter (kg/sq. m.) multiply by 703.1; to convert to kilograms per square centimeter (kg/sq. cm) multiply by 0.07031.
 

PSIG = pounds per square inch on gauge, i.e., the PSI reading that you take directly from the gauge. Technically, since it’s resisted by normal air pressure, you need to add 14.7 PSI at sea level to correct it to what the PSI reading against a vacuum would be. Most times when people give you a PSI reading they mean PSIG. This is for the science nerds. To convert to kg/sq. m. or kg/sq. cm use the same multipliers given above.
 

Bar = an archaic measure based on how tall of a column (i.e., “bar”) of mercury air pressure would support against gravity in a vacuum. When defined, it wasn’t done at sea level so one bar is NOT one atmosphere, though it is close (multiply by 0.9869 to convert to atmospheres). To convert bars to PSI, multiply by 14.50; to convert bars to kg/sq. m, multiply by 1020; to convert bars to kg/sq. cm multiply by 1.020.
 
 

Q7: What is CFM?

A7: CFM = cubic feet per minute, a rate of flow. To convert to cubic centimeters per second multiply by 472.0; to convert to liters per second multiply by 0.4720.
 
 

Q8: A researcher in China is setting up a preparation lab and he wants to know how big a compressor he should install.
The following is a list of his tools and specifications:

• Aero or Aero-type marking pen — 1.5 to 2 CFM, 90 PSI
• Chicago Pneumatic or CP type air scribe— 2.5 CFM, 90 PSI
• Dotco Pencil Grinder — 7 CFM, 90 PSI
• 2 Paleotools Microjacks — less than 1 CFM, 100-110 PSI
• He wants to be able to run two tools at once.

A8: All compressors should have, at a minimum, their CFM and PSI indicated in their specs. If they don’t have this, then they should not be purchased. Though higher horsepower generally produces more CFM, the “horsepower” of the compressor is not really the determining factor in selecting a compressor; the actual CFM and PSI requirements of the tools used are. If a compressor just lists horsepower in its specs, and not CFM and PSI … pass it by.
 

If he runs two tools at a time, the maximum air-flow needed would be about 9.5 CFM and the pressure >100 PSI. Note that compressors often have *maximum* PSI referenced in their specs. Be careful. Compressors with tanks have pressure switches that tell the compressor when to run to replenish the tank air reservoir. Typically for a 135 max PSI compressor, the compressor will turn on when the tank pressure reaches 90 PSI and turn off when the pressure reaches 135 PSI. This would be insufficient for a tool that requires 100+ PSI to run well (#3 microjack for example). Look for PSI *ranges* for the compressor, not just the max PSI.

In general, you’ll find that tank sizes on compressors are related to CFM and PSI ratings. Higher CFM compressors will have larger tanks.
 

Duty cycle is also important. If you are working steadily at or near the maximum CFM and PSI capacity of the compressor, the compressor will have to run longer and more often. This will decrease the life of the compressor.

If you are working substantially below the maximum CFM at a given PSI, the compressor will run for shorter periods and less frequently, meaning longer compressor life.
 

For compressors of similar CFM and PSI ratings, larger tanks will reduce the duty cycle and prolong compressor life. (but remember, a large tank will NOT make up for a low CFM/PSI compressor)
 

Of the tools listed, the grinder requires high CFM, medium pressure; the microjacks require low CFM, high PSI. Therefore I’d suggest a compressor that produces at least 10 CFM at 90-100 PSI with an ON pressure switch not below 110 PSI (for example, pressure range between 110 and 145 PSI).

 

Peer-reviewed, online publications of technical papers concerning fossil preparations and field techniques

Technical paper #1
The Creation of a Micro-scribe for Small Material
Tim Fedak. 2000

Technical paper #2
The RONDAN Jacket Support Clamp and Jacket Transport Sled
Ronald E. Peterson, N.V. “Dan” D’Andrea, and Andrew B. Heckert. 2001  

Submission Guidelines

Papers represent the views of the author(s), and do not necessarily represent any concensus among preparators/conservators. We anticipate that there will be topics that are relatively controversial, that is, there may be differences of opinion regarding the validity or applicability of a technique or material. In order to further discussion, we will include a commentary page with each paper, so that we may all learn from discussion of new ideas.

Please review the following guidelines for submission. If you have questions please e-mail them to Marilyn Fox.

1. Papers should be well-written, in correct English. They should be written for preparators, but in such a way as to be intelligible to nonpreparators.Papers should be non-commercially oriented. As preparators, we use specific products — please feel free to mention brands and, especially, suppliers. However, this is not a commercial site; papers should not be written solely to promote a product. Publishing on these pages in no way implies the approval of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology of any specific technique or material, additionally, every attempt should be made to remain within the guidelines of the Society.
2. Format in Word or PDF files.

• Title
• Author(s)
• Institution(s)
• Abstract
• Text
• References
• Appendices — e.g., suppliers of specific tools or materials.
• Illustrations, figures, and pictures with captions are highly encouraged. Insert graphics with caption into your file. (need help?)

 

Reports from the past recipients are available (2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012) .

 

This grant is intended to further the field of vertebrate paleontology through the advancement of preparation.

Submission Guidelines

• Use the electronic online submission system for the Preparators' Grant and most other SVP awards. See "What to Submit" for the link.
• Do NOT e-mail, fax or mail nomination materials to the committee chair. Any materials sent by e-mail, fax or mail will NOT be reviewed.
• Current membership in the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology is required to apply for the Preparators' Grant.
• The Preparators' Grant Committee gives preference to proposals for training apprenticeships and workshops — primarily travel expenses to learn or teach preparation. However, the committee will consider any proposal which furthers the field of vertebrate paleontology through the advancement of preparation.
• Applicants are encouraged to contact a committee member before submitting their proposal.

What to Submit online:

1. Curriculum vitae information including preparation training and experience
2. Additional project personnel information (if appropriate): name(s), address(es), institution(s), phone and fax number(s), e-mail address(es) and CV(s)
3. Project description including goals, objectives, relevant logistics and timetable for the project. This will need to be a three-page, double-spaced document that will be uploaded into the online award submission system.

NOTE: If application is for preparator training, then please include, briefly, how the training will be passed on to others.

4. Budget information: travel expenses, living expenses, supplies and additional expenses. Please include information about any additional support for the project (matching funds, lab space, supplies, etc.)
5. At least one (1), but no more than three (3) letters of support

• Each letter of support must bear the full contact information of the person providing the letter (name, institution, phone and e-mail address).

NOTE: If application is for preparation training, a letter of support from the trainer and one from the trainer's supervisor must be provided.

Prize

The amount of the grant will be determined based on the project proposal, but will not exceed $3,000 USD.

Submission Period

Award Submissions for the 2013 Conference are now being accepted and will remain open until April 22nd, 12:00 pm (noon) eastern.

See the Hix's Preparator's Award Page for more details and the link to apply!

Contact

Any questions regarding the award may be directed to Preparators' Grant Committee Chair Kyle Davies.

Kyle Davies
Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History
2401 Chautaugua Ave.
Norman, OK 73072
E-mail: ankylo@ou.edu

 

 

A variety of PDFs for preparators are listed below. Contributions are made by SVP members.
View and download Preparators' symposia & session, technical papers, past talks and posters, how-to guides, FAQs, and other references.   

Reference for preparators

• Maximizing situational conservation and minimizing visual ambiguity to reveal toothmarks on an osteoderm of Typothorax coccinarum, in typical Late Triassic Chinle Formation preservation, using cyanoacrylate and ground matrix exclusively: Peter K Reser, Paleo-Tech, Albuquerque, NM, and Scott Williams, Petrified National Forest, AZ. 2009
• Techniques for recovery and preparation of microvertebrate fossils: Richard L. Cifelli (ed.) Oklahoma Geological Survey Special Publication 96-4. 1996
  [In this PDF you will find;
  Cifeli, R. L. ; Madsen, S. K.; and Larson, E. M. 1996. Screenwashing and associated recovery techniques for the recovery of microvertebrate fossils, in Cilelli, R. L. (ed.), Techniques for recovery and preparation of microvertebrate fossils: Oklahoma Geological Survey Special Publication 96-4 P.1-24
  -and-
  Madsen, S. K. 1996. Some techniques and procedures for microvertebrate preparation, in Cifelli, R. L. (ed.), Techniques for recovery and preparation of microvertebrate fossils: Oklahoma Geological Survey Special Publication 96-4 P.25-36]
• The use of linear collapsible foam for molding fossil footprints in the field: Thomas C. Nolan, Robert L. Atkingson, and Bryan Small. 2008. Presented at the First Annual Fossil Preparation and Collections Symposium.
• Understanding cyanoacrylate adhesives and consolidants and their use in vertebrate paleontology: Anne S. Elder, Cathy Wenz, and Scott Madsen. 1998. In J. Martin, J. Hogansen, and R. Benton (eds.), Proceedings for the Fifth conference on Fossil Resources, 5:141-143.

 

Preparators' symposia & sessions

•  A review of vertebrate fossil support (and storage) systems at the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History: Marilyn Fox and Vicki Yarborough Fitzgerald, Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History, New Haven, CT. 2004
• Production of multi-purpose molds for versatile, detailed replication of large-scaled fossils: the Basilosaurus isis casting project as an exemplar: Michael Cherney, William Sanders, Philip Gingerich, and Iyad Zalmout, University of Michigan Museum of Paleontology, Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Mohamed Antar, Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency, Wadi-Al-Hitan World Heritage Site, Fayum, Egypt. 2009
• Acid preparation of fossils using sulfamic acid, a weak organic acid, and its advantages over acetic and formic acid preparation: Carlos Padilla and Mary Parra, Fundacion Colombiana de Geobiologia, Bogota, Colombia. 2009
• Armature damage in a mounted specimen: Robert Evander, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY. 2009
• Temporary gap-filling to stabilize an exploded matrix for fossil preparation: the sand and Butvar B-76 technique: Amy Davidson, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY. 2009
• Reversible filler: A fresh look at Butvar-76: Shawn Haugrud, and Brian Compton, East Tennessee Museum of Natural History, Gray, TN. 2008
• Jacketing the desert sands: Marilyn Fox, Faysal Bibi, and Andrew Hill, Yale University, New Haven, CT. 2008
• Restoration and three dimensional assembly of a nearly complete, articulated Eocele Protocetid whale skeleton from Pakistan: William Sanders, John Graf, Iyad Salmout, Munir Ul-Haq, and Philip Gingerich, University of Michigan Museum of Paleontology, Ann Arbor, MI. 2008
• Removing fossil ribs: the thread technique Amy Davidson, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY. 2008
• Air abrasive 101: Jean-Pierre Cavigelli, Tate Museum, Casper, WY. 2007
• Vertebrate microfossil storage, the basics, and a new technique: Matthew Smith, Kimberly, OR. 2007
• Methods for labeling silicone molds: Jeff Person, Charles Baker, Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, Norman, OK. 2007
• Dissolvable support jacket for preparation of thin arthrodire and shark specimens from the Upper Devonian Cleveland and Bedford shales utilizing carbowax 4000: Gary Jackson, Cleveland Museum of Natural History, OH. 2007
• A multi-media solution to complex molding and casting of internal and external surfaces of a fossil Homo erectus cranium from Java: Amber Heard, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI; John Graf, William Sanders, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI. 2007
• Pyrite oxidation: Review and prevention practices: Akiko Shinya, Lisa Bergwall, The Field Museum, Chicago, IL. 2007
• Discovery, excavation, and preparation of the skull of a new centrosaurine ceratopsian from the Wahweap Formation of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument (GSENM), Southern Utah: Donald De Blieux, Salt Lake City, UT; James Kirkland, Utah Geological Survey, Salt Lake City, UT; Alan Titus, Bureau of Land Management, Kanab, UT. 2006
• Assembling an archival marking kit for paleontological specimens: Amy Davidson, Samantha Alderson, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY; Marilyn Fox, Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History, New Haven, CT. 2006
• Packing and transporting vertebrate fossil overseas: ReBecca Hunt, Augustana College, Rock Island, IL. 2006
• Molding and Casting of In-situ Articulated Skeletons in Soft Matrix: A Case Study from the Ashfall Fossil Beds, Nebraska: Gregory Brown, University of Nebraska State Museum, Lincoln, NE. 2005
• A technique to create form-fitted, padded plaster jackets for conserving vertebrate fossil specimens: Steve J. Jabo, Peter A. Kroehler, and F. V. Grady, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC. 2005
• Museum collection management -- Is it really worth digging in a National Park?: Rachel Benton, Badlands National Park; Ann Elder, Dinosaur National Monument. 2005
• An investigation of cyclododecane for molding fossil specimens: Amy Davidson and Lisa Kronthal, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY; Rachael Perkins Arenstein, Conservator in Private Practice, New York, NY. 2004
• A foot-controlled, chip blowing needle for micropreparation of fossil vertebrates: Amy Davidson, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY. 1998
• List of all papers by Author
• List of all papers by Title
• List of all papers by Category
• List of all papers by Year

Technical papershttp://vertpaleo.org/Education---Resources/Prepara

• #1: The Creation of a Micro-scribe for Small Material: Tim Feda, Fundy Geological Museum, Parrsboro, Nova Scotia. 2000
• #2: The RONDAN Jacket Support Clamp and Jacket Transport Sled: Ronald E. Peterson and N.V. “Dan” D’Andrea, New Mexico Museum of Natural History; Andrew B. Heckert, Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences, University of New Mexico. 2001

How-to guide

Casting with epoxy resin using a desiccator chamber, vacuum pump and pressure chamber: Ian Morrison, Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Canada. 2007

FAQs

Material & Methods FAQs: Current FAQs in PDF file.