1. Presented To: Australian Herpetological Society October 1999 www.curator.org 1 The Virtual Museum of Natural History & International CURATOR Project Daniel Diessner and Robert George Sprackland CURATOR.ORG AS AN A CCESS P OINT FOR G LOBAL B IODIVERSITY AND T AXONOMY D ATA

2. The Virtual Museum of Natural History & International Curator Project A Non-Profit / Charitable Endeavor Authors: Dr. R. G. Sprackland Daniel Diessner October 1999 www.curator.org 2 Presentation Overview  The Virtual Museum of Natural History  The International Curator Project  Short Term Goals  The Herpetology Community  Longer Term Vision  Want To Help?

3. The Virtual Museum of Natural History & International Curator Project A Non-Profit / Charitable Endeavor Authors: Dr. R. G. Sprackland Daniel Diessner October 1999 www.curator.org 3 The Virtual Museum of Natural History (VMNH) VMNH On-Line Access Schools & Research Technical Experts World Wide Libraries & Publications International Curator Project (Species Data) Zoos, Aquariums & Museums

4. The Virtual Museum of Natural History & International Curator Project A Non-Profit / Charitable Endeavor Authors: Dr. R. G. Sprackland Daniel Diessner October 1999 www.curator.org 4 The Virtual Museum of Natural History (VMNH)

5. The Virtual Museum of Natural History & International Curator Project A Non-Profit / Charitable Endeavor Authors: Dr. R. G. Sprackland Daniel Diessner October 1999 www.curator.org 5 International Curator Project Work Out a Taxonomic Structure Collect & Provide Species Details Publish Notices of New Species Work Together To:

6. The Virtual Museum of Natural History & International Curator Project A Non-Profit / Charitable Endeavor Authors: Dr. R. G. Sprackland Daniel Diessner October 1999 www.curator.org 6 International Curator Project

7. The Virtual Museum of Natural History & International Curator Project A Non-Profit / Charitable Endeavor Authors: Dr. R. G. Sprackland Daniel Diessner October 1999 www.curator.org 7 Short Term Goals  Taxonomic Structure and Detailed Data for Herpetology and Ichthyology  Define needs  implementation requirements  Technical Expert Resource Pool  Links (Museums, Zoos & Aquariums, Schools, Libraries & Research Teams)  Expedition Reports  Locate Resources to make it all happen!! –People, Technology, $$$$$$

8. The Virtual Museum of Natural History & International Curator Project A Non-Profit / Charitable Endeavor Authors: Dr. R. G. Sprackland Daniel Diessner October 1999 www.curator.org 8 The Herpetology Community & CURATOR.ORG PhotosIllustrations Varanous acanthurus Photo by Dr. R. G. Sprackland  We want Natural History Information for sharing  Reprints of new papers and advance notice of new books  Reproductive information  Habitat information and status  Commercial breeders  Availability of specimens in zoos and museums Urolophus maculatus Drawn by Diana Carlson-Sherbo

9. The Virtual Museum of Natural History & International Curator Project A Non-Profit / Charitable Endeavor Authors: Dr. R. G. Sprackland Daniel Diessner October 1999 www.curator.org 9 Longer Term Vision  CURATOR.ORG as the Premier Access Point for Global Biodiversity and Taxonomy Data  Taxonomic Data for ALL Species  On Line Forums & Bio-Chat Lines  “Netmeeting” Conference Coverage  Curator.org Data Base Implementation –SQL, XML, XSL, Spec DTD for TML (Taxonomic Markup Language), JAVA Apps

10. The Virtual Museum of Natural History & International Curator Project A Non-Profit / Charitable Endeavor Authors: Dr. R. G. Sprackland Daniel Diessner October 1999 www.curator.org 10 Want To Help?  Contribute to the Knowledge Pool –Herpetological Expert Contacts (e-mail) –Local Resources: Environment & Activities –Contributing Authors: Descriptions, photos, diagrams, range data, etc.. –Implementation Support: DTD, TML, Web Design, XML, SQL, JAVA, etc…