Scientific research

Education is just one of the "two fundamental missions" of AMNH, Raxworthy said. The other is scientific research and exploration. It is the museum's ongoing research projects that provide the foundation for its educational programs.

"The museum is very active in scientific research in global scale," he said.

AMNH now has 200 scientists, including more than 40 curators, in its five scientific research divisions: anthropology, invertebrate zoology, paleontology, physical sciences and vertebrate zoology.

These scientists are engaged in a broad agenda of research. They investigate the origins and evolution of life on Earth, the world's myriad species, the rich variety of human culture, and the complex processes that have formed and continue to shape planet Earth and the universe beyond it.

The museum also has quite a large number of visiting scientists who come to stay for a period of six months to a year or longer and many post-doctoral researchers and graduate students are conducting scientific researches at the museum.

According to AMNH, one of its primary sources of scientific knowledge has been its thousands of expeditions since 1887 which have sent scientists and explorers to many countries and the furthest reaches of the world.

Every year, the museum conducts about 100 scientific field expeditions, according to Alicia Stevens, Senior Advisor for International Business Development of AMNH, which involve archeological excavation, conservation and biological studies in locations like Chile, China, Cuba, Madagascar, Mongolia, New Guinea and Viet Nam.

Collections and exhibitions

AMNH has over 30 million items in its exhibition collection, including specimens and cultural artifacts.

Those items have been collected in various ways, said Raxworthy. Some of the early collections were made by private donations, some were collected through AMNH's international archeological explorations and some were bought from smaller museums that had to sell their collections after they stopped functioning.

Only 2 percent of AMNH's gigantic collection is currently on view to the public, while the others remain an invaluable resource for museum scientists and their colleagues worldwide. The public may get its first glance at the hidden treasures soon though, according to museum organizers with a project to create a digital catalog of selections from the entire collection.

Exhibitions are the most visible and direct way to showcase the museum's collections and the work of the museum's scientists, Raxworthy said. There are now 45 permanent exhibition halls at AMNH, 15 of which were opened within the past decade.

In addition to the permanent installations, the museum also presents some special exhibitions that have included everything from live animals to ancient treasures. A recent show at AMNH that attracted many visitors this winter was the Butterfly Conservatory, filled with live, tropical butterflies.

Collaboration

Many of the exhibitions at AMNH are done in collaboration with other institutions, so when the exhibition finishes, the exhibits go back to each of the collaborating institutions, Reichl said.

The museum has been actively involved in collaboration not only with other museums in the United States, but counterparts in other countries. China is one of AMNH's most desired destinations because of its long and rich history.

"We've been focusing very hard on China for the last couple of years," said Raxworthy, who expressed the museum's eagerness to cooperate with China in a broader and deeper range.

AMNH already has a long history of collaborating with China. It has hosted post-doctoral students from Peking University for decades and has also sent a large number of scientific expeditions to many regions in China, such as Yunnan Province and Tibet Autonomous Region.

One of the partnerships that AMNH has recently launched with China is a space show, called Cosmic Collisions, which was created in collaboration with the Shanghai Science and Technology Museum and other institutions.

According to Raxworthy, the two museums are also talking about collaborating on future projects. The AMNH was excited to hear that Shanghai is planning to open a brand new natural history museum, he said. Though still in early discussions, Raxworthy said he hoped the AMNH would be able to assist its counterpart in Shanghai with the development.

Raxworthy said there are some other areas in which he anticipated a potential for future collaborations with China. These areas include environmental issues, biodiversity, conservation and the use of natural resources.

(Reporting from New York)