Abstract Detail

Developmental and Structural Section

Wheeler, E.A. [2], Simpson, T.D. [3], Rodgers, S.L. [3], Gasson, P.E. [1], Brown, K.R. [3], Bartlett, J.A. [4], Baas, P. [5].

InsideWood: An internet-accessible wood anatomy database..

InsideWood is a new, extensive, Internet-accessible wood anatomy reference, research, and teaching tool. This collaborative effort integrates information from wood anatomy databases for modern and fossil woods compiled at North Carolina State University and the wood uses database of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, U.K., with guidance from N.C. State’s D.H. Hill Library. Modern woods are described using the IAWA (International Association of Wood Anatomists) List of Features Suitable for Hardwood Identification, and the fossil woods by a subset of these features. As of March 2004 there were over 5800 records for modern woods and over 1200 records for fossil woods. The primary objective of the InsideWood web site is to provide an interface to search the database by IAWA feature number, keyword, or browse by family or genus. Another objective of the site is to serve as a repository for photomicrographs of wood structure, particularly previously unpublished images. A virtual reference collection of microscope slides now includes 6,200 digital images from the wood collections of the National Herbarium of The Netherlands, some 1200 scans of existing 35 mm photographs, and 500 original digital photographs. Metadata for the image collections, which are related to species descriptions, include photographer and institutional affiliation, wood collection number, technical information on the image. The robust relational data structure allows easy access and expansion, and agrees with current protocols for digital libraries and information science. The InsideWood web site will have value in 1) helping with wood identification, 2) providing data that can be incorporated into phylogenetic studies, and 3) serving as a resource for any course that teaches about the internal structure of woody plants.

1 - Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 3AB, UK
2 - N.C. State University, Wood & Paper Science, Raleigh, North Carolina, 27695-8005, U.S.A.
3 - N.C. State University, D.H. Hill Library, Raleigh, North Carolina, 27695-7111, U.S.A.
4 - N.C. State University, MEAS, Raleigh, North Carolina, 27695-8208, U.S.A.
5 - Nationaal Herbarium Nederland, P.O. Box 9514, 2300 RA, Leiden, , The Netherlands

Keywords:
wood anatomy
teaching
fossil
database.

Presentation Type: Poster
Session: 32-22
Location: Special Event Center (Cliff Lodge)
Date: Tuesday, August 3rd, 2004
Time: 12:30 PM
Abstract ID:392