A Solution for Bulk Screen Washing Indoors

Format: In Person

Level: Basic

Leader: Clint Boyd

Screen washing for microvertebrate fossils is a critical method for studying extinct faunas and reconstructing past environments. Although this work is often conducted in the field or in outdoor facilities near an institution, many organizations lack adequate outdoor space or operate in climates that limit seasonal access. These constraints necessitate effective solutions for conducting screen washing indoors at a scale sufficient to process large volumes of sediment, which is often hundreds of pounds annually.

This workshop will present an overview of the indoor screen washing system used by the North Dakota Geological Survey paleontology program. The system is designed to accommodate high-throughput processing while protecting building infrastructure, including plumbing systems. Participants will learn about system design considerations, sediment handling, and workflow strategies that support efficient, repeatable processing.

Additional topics will include selection of appropriate screen sizes, techniques for picking and sorting concentrates, and practical storage solutions for processed material.

Workshop Type: Hands-on

Maximum number of participants per session: 15

Duration of session: 1.5 hours

Number of sessions: 1

Advances in 3D Surface Scanning: A Workflow for Mobile Device Surface Scanning of Fossils and Other Museum Artifacts

Format: Hybrid

Level: Basic

Leaders: Dr. Haviv Avrahami and Isaac Pugh

High-quality 3D surface models, such as those produced using traditional photogrammetry are  essential tools for comparative anatomical research, visualization, replication (e.g., 3D printing), and data sharing. However, traditional photogrammetry setups are often expensive, immobile, computationally demanding, and require steep learning curves.  

Recent advances in mobile technology have transformed this landscape. Modern mobile-device photogrammetry can now surpass both commercial scanners and traditional photogrammetry workflows in several key areas, including accessibility, affordability, reduced equipment size and complexity, portability, user-friendliness, texture and geometry fidelity, minimum scannable specimen size, and, perhaps most notably, the speed and scalability of 3D model production.

In this workshop participants will learn how to use the mobile photogrammetry applications Abound (iPhone), Polycam, and KIRI Engine (iPhone and Android) to efficiently digitize specimens. 

Topics covered will include: 

• Materials and setup techniques that enhance scan quality
• Strategies for generating watertight models
• Approaches for scanning specimens of varying sizes and surface properties—including large, small, flat, elongated, thin, shiny, low-texture, and geometrically complex objects.
• Tools within each application for assessing scan quality, cropping models, managing image sets, and rescaling to accurate dimensions.
• Advantages and limitations of mobile photogrammetry compared to other scanning methods
• The differences between various scanning modes such as LiDAR versus Object Capture, and when each is appropriate.

Overview of 3D model export formats: identifying which preserve texture and color, which are best suited for 3D printing, and which are most stable, shareable, and optimized for long-term digital preservation. The workshop will begin with a brief introductory presentation. Participants will then observe several real-time scanning demonstrations, streamed via Zoom to a projector to show the applications in action. Following the demonstrations, participants (in small groups of up to three) will use free trial versions of the applications to practice scanning a variety of objects, with instructors circulating to offer guidance and troubleshooting.

By the end of the session, each participant will have produced at least one artifact-free, watertight 3D model.

Workshop Type: Hands-on

Maximum number of participants per session: 20

Duration of session: 1.5 hours

Number of sessions: 2

Collections Organization: A Discussion of the Biostratigraphic Method of Fossil Organization at the NDGS

Format: In Person

Level: Basic

Leader: Jeff Person

This workshop will examine the advantages and limitations of organizing fossil collections using a biostratigraphic framework. Participants will explore different variations of this approach as applied to specific collection types and institutional needs, as well as the practical challenges encountered in managing paleontological collections and strategies for addressing them.

Topics will include:

• Organizing fossil collections, including paleobotanical, invertebrate, and vertebrate materials

• Organizing recent comparative collections

• Organizing cast and mold collections

• Organizing type collections

• Organizing oversize collections

• Organizing teaching collections

Workshop type: Hands-on

Maximum number of participants per session: 20

Duration of session: 1.5 hours

Number of sessions: 2

Consolidants and Adhesives 101: Principles, Practices and Pitfalls

Format: Hybrid

Level: Basic

Leaders: Mindy Householder, Gregory Brown

Participants will get an extensive overview of the properties of adhesives and consolidants available today and how to apply those properties when choosing an appropriate adhesive or consolidant for a particular task. The workshop will include presentations and hands-on experiences.

Participants will learn:
• The difference between solution and reaction adhesives.
• An overview of the most common adhesives used in fossil preparation today.
• The physical properties of adhesives/consolidants and how to choose the right one for the job at hand.
• The agents of deterioration and preventive conservation vs remedial conservation.
• How to prepare adhesive and consolidant solutions .
• How to properly label and store adhesives and consolidants.
• How to potentially identify historic adhesives with a portable XRF.
• Some special techniques for special problems.

Workshop Type: Hands-on

Maximum number of participants per session: 20

Duration of session: 3 hours

Number of sessions: 1

Crash Course in Moldmaking, Part 1

Format: In Person

Level: Basic

Leaders: Marilyn Fox

Moldmaking is a core skill for competent fossil preparators, requiring not only manual dexterity but also strong conceptual and planning abilities. While simple one-part molds are the most straightforward and efficient to produce—and therefore the most commonly taught—successful execution still demands careful preparation and forethought.

This session will focus on creating a simple one-part mold suitable for small mammal jaws. Participants will learn techniques for consolidating specimens and filling gaps, constructing a stable base for embedding the specimen, labeling the mold on the base, building containment walls, and pouring the mold using food-safe silicone rubber.

Workshop Type: Hands-on

Maximum number of participants per session: 10

Duration of session: 1.5 hours

Number of sessions: 1

Surveying Fossils

Format: In Person

Level: Basic

Leaders: Brian Compton, Ray Mann

Participants will join Gray Fossil Site surveyors on site to learn about the use of surveying total stations, data collectors, and related software for mapping of fossils, features, and grid corners. Attendees may participate in a training exercise setting up squares and mapping fossil casts.

Workshop Type: Hands-on

Maximum number of participants per session: 20

Duration of session: 1.5 hours

Number of sessions: 4

Fossil Collections Tour

Format: In Person

Leaders: Matthew Inabinett, Shay Maden

The East Tennessee Museum of Natural History collection contains over 39,000 catalogued specimens and is primarily composed of a diverse assemblage of early Pliocene fossils from the Gray Fossil Site, with representatives of over 215 species of animals, plants, and fungi. The collection also houses Pleistocene material from excavations in Saltville, VA as well as specimens collected from a number of cave sites.

*The tours offered during the workshop day will be distinct from the one that occurs as part of the Saturday field trip, with a completely different focus and examining different specimens.

Maximum number of participants per session: 25

Duration of session: 1.5 hours

Number of sessions: 4

Zoology Collections Tour

Format: In Person

Leaders: Brian Compton, Davis Gunnin

The East Tennessee Museum of Natural History Zoology collection (ETMNHZ) at the Valleybrook campus is a modern comparative collection of over 12,000 skeletal specimens and preserved skins. The collection includes mammals, reptiles, birds, amphibians and fish. While it is an excellent resource for comparative anatomy work with related animals from the fossil record of the Gray Fossil Site, the scope of the modern collections has been kept broad to facilitate teaching of anatomy, evolution, and other related classes within the geoscience department as well as research. Like the paleo-collections housed at the museum, most of the modern specimens are housed in metal fire-proof cabinets with archival materials for long-term storage. Many of the specimens are obtained from zoos and other sources as freshly deceased animals and are processed to skeletal remains by Museum staff at the Valleybrook campus, undergoing skinning and de-fleshing before processing with bacterial maceration, maggots, or beetle larva colonies.

Maximum number of participants per session: 14

Duration of session: 1.5 hours

Number of sessions: 4