Press

ALBANY – New York State Museum geologists, historians and curators will share their knowledge and research on a wide variety of topics in a series of fall lunchtime lectures – “Brain Food for the Curious – Collections of the State Museum”.

All lectures are free and will be held on selected Wednesdays from 12:10 to 12:50 p.m. in the Huxley Theater. Lecture topics and dates are:

• September 7 – “The 10th Anniversary: Ten Years of Documentation and Collecting.” The State Museum has been in the forefront of efforts to document and preserve artifacts from the Sept. 11 attacks and their aftermath. Its collection is the largest and most comprehensive in the world. The effort has been among the Museum’s most daunting experiences. Curator of History Craig Williams reviews that effort and reflects on the challenges still being faced
• September 14 – “The Keene Valley Landslide: Geologic Hazards in the High Peaks.” On May 4, 2011, the largest landslide in New York state history occurred one mile northwest of the hamlet of Keene Valley, at Porter Mountain in the high peaks region of the Adirondacks. Approximately 82 acres of land and five homes are presently affected, one of which is totally destroyed. State Museum geologist Dr. Andrew Kozlowski will explain how he monitors and evaluates this geologic hazard and the implications for future landslides in the Adirondacks.
• October 5 – “Lewis Henry Morgan’s Iroquois Survey and Collection: A New York and Anthropological First.” In 1847, the New York State Regents agreed to fund a forward-looking collection and survey in Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) communities proposed by pioneer anthropologist Lewis Henry Morgan, then a young Rochester lawyer. Curator of Ethnography and Ethnology Dr. Betty Duggan focuses on the trendsetting nature of Morgan’s Iroquois-collaborative fieldwork (1848–1850) and the continuing legacy of this stunning collection of objects and supporting fieldwork records (1848–1850), which resulted in the world’s first published ethnography, or study of a culture (1851).

• October 12 – “New York Mastodons.” Mastodons are one of the most abundant Ice Age fossils found in New York state. Many examples are now on display in museums around the world. Dr. Robert S. Feranec, curator of vertebrate paleontology, discusses mastodons and some famous New York discoveries, including Peale’s Mastodon, the Warren Mastodon, and the State Museum’s own Cohoes Mastodon.
• October 19 – “Treasures in the New York State Museum African American History Collection.”

Senior Historian Dr. Jennifer Lemak discusses this small but growing collection that covers over 200 years of New York state history. The collection includes items relating to slavery, the Civil War, Marcus Garvey’s Universal Negro Improvement Association, the New Negro movement, the Great Migration, World War II, and the Civil Rights movement.

• October 26 – “How to Collect Whales.” Collecting whales is not an easy thing to do. This lecture and show-and-tell reveals how these leviathan creatures go from being washed up on a beach to becoming part of the State Museum’s mammal collection. Dr. Roland Kays, the State Museum’s curator of mammals, and Joseph Bopp, the State Museum’s mammal collections manager, also present recent scientific discoveries in studying whale specimens.
• November 2 – “The Minerals Story: From Field to Collections.” Dr. Marian Lupulescu, curator of geology, will share the secret stories of discovery of a 343-pound “giant” spinel, “gieseckite,” “hudsonite,” amazonite, blue phlogopite, and more. He will explain the journey of minerals from the field location to the State Museum’s mineral collection.
• November 16 – “The NYSM (New York State Museum) Bird Collection: 175 Years of Specimen-based Ornithology.” Dr. Jeremy Kirchman, the State Museum’s curator of birds, will provide a behind-the-scenes overview of the ornithology research collection, which comprises nearly 20,000 skins, skeletons, taxidermy mounts, whole fluid-preserved specimens, and frozen tissue samples. The collection has enabled several generations of scientists to study the ecology and evolution of birds, and is used today to address questions concerning global climate change and the genetics of bird populations.
• November 30 –“Remembering the People of Willard.” During the 1995 closure of Willard Psychiatric Center, nearly 400 suitcases and trunks were discovered, belonging to individuals who were admitted to this state hospital in the early and mid-20th century. Curator of History Craig Williams will provide the context to the suitcase story and discuss some of those whose lives are reflected by these remarkable artifacts.

The State Museum is a program of the New York State Education Department’s Office of Cultural Education. The oldest and largest state museum in the nation, the Museum is located on Madison Avenue in Albany. It is open Monday through Saturday from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. except on Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day. Admission is free. Further information can be obtained by calling (518) 474-5877 or visiting the museum website at www.nysm.nysed.gov.