Energy storage systems for farms will be developed using wind-generated ammonia. Novel ammonia fuel systems will be tested in a farm grain dryer and engine generator displacing fossil fuels.
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) has identified streamflow alteration as a key stressor on aquatic life, but the characteristics of streamflow alteration acting as stressors have not been identified in the MPCA Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategy (WRAPS) process. Without indices that characterize streamflow alteration, the MPCA cannot quantitatively associate metrics of aquatic life condition to streamflow alteration. The lack of quantifiable indices limits the ability of the MPCA to assess environmental streamflow needs for streams and rivers throughout Minnesota.
MNHS is developing new curricula, programs and resources to engage students in learning about Minnesota history. In FY16, a full review of online resources for the K-12 audience was completed and an action plan was put in place to update the content and design of these materials. In FY17, the Forests, Fields and the Falls website launched in a new format, making it more accessible to teachers and students using any platform or device. In addition, staff are working with Oliver Kelley Farm staff to create new curriculum on agriculture, history and STEM for K-12 teachers and students.
In FYs14 and 15, MNHS completed production of the Dred Scott Curriculum Kit and development of the Lumberjack Math Curriculum Kit.
* The Dred Scott curriculum kit uses videos and primary source activities that tell the story of slavery in Minnesota in the 19th century. The kit was produced at the end of FY14 and is currently being marketed to middle- and high-school teachers across the state.
* The Lumberjack Math Curriculum Kit uses math and primary sources to teaching about the logging industry in late-19th century Minnesota. The kit is will be produced in summer 2015.
Partner Organizations: Minnesota Aviation Hall of Fame, Minnesota Air National Guard Historical Foundation, Minnesota Aviation History and Education Center, and Northwest Airlines History Centre
AirSpace Minnesota (a coalition of independent aviation and aerospace organizations) worked to develop a formal partnership among organizations with similar missions to engage in long-range, strategic planning for coordinating future projects.
MNHS is developing new curricula, programs, and resources to engage students in learning about Minnesota history. In FY16 a full review of online resources for the K-12 audience will be completed and an action plan put in place to update content and the design of online curriculum offered to K-12 teachers and students. In addition, staff are working with the Oliver Kelley Farm to create new curricula and programs on agriculture, history, and STEM for K-12 teachers and students. Two new programs will be developed and piloted at the Oliver Kelley Farm in FY16.
To digitize and preserve items representing the ecologic history of the Driftless Area in Minnesota, create a map from 1862 data, and conduct an interpretive program.
Increasingly, people are turning to digital resources for answers to questions or as a starting point for research. MNopedia is a new digital resource for the public from the Minnesota Historical Society.
Working with the Minnesota Newspaper Association, local historical societies and newspaper publishers, the Minnesota Historical Society launched an innovative project to expand the number of contemporary newspapers available in digital form.
In the pilot phase of the project, the Society developed a methodology for digitizing, preserving and indexing newspaper content. Those processes will be tested with six newspapers and optimized in 2011.
Through this funding, the Minnesota Historical Society is advancing the work of making collections information available online. The Society is photographing 3D objects in the collections and completing corresponding descriptions that will be published online, allowing web site visitors to access an increasing volume of historical information.
Partner Organizations: Minnesota Geospatial Information Office (MNGeo), Minnesota Secretary of State, Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT), Minnesota Association of County Surveyors (MACS), U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
This project will move from a development phase to an implementation phase during which the public will begin to gain access to a greater number of Minnesota newspapers from around the state on the internet. Society staff will refine and automate the newspaper management system it developed in the first phase of the project and continue to work out access agreements with publishers and also form new partnerships with many more publishers. Staff will continue the work of harvesting and archiving webonly news sources that was begun in the first phase of the project.
The Minnesota Historical Society will continue to increase access to its collections by making historical resources available online for the general public. This year, there will be a greater focus on posting collections items relating to the U.S.--Dakota War of 1862 and the Civil War as part of the Society's wider commemoration of both events.
To digitize a collection of archival materials from the 1925 Norse-American Centennial, allowing for greater public access to these historic resources.
Increasing the public's online access to the permanent collections remains a top priority for MNHS. Since the beginning of FY17, more than 800 artifacts have been digitally photographed and cataloged, including American Indian material culture, fine art, recent acquisitions and artifacts related to current events and MNHS initiatives. The digitization of edged armaments and artifacts associated with brewing and breweries in Minnesota has now been completed.
MNHS continues actively preserving and making accessible newspapers published in the state. In FY16, MNHS concentrated efforts on the backlog of hardcopy newspapers, piloting an approach to microfilming and digitizing issues in mass quantity to reduce the physical storage burden and increase access for researchers and local historical societies. MNHS also began testing in-house digitization of current newspapers, securing equipment and developing processes and staff expertise to support this activity. Online access continues to be offered through the Minnesota Digital Newspaper Hub.
Increasing the public's online access to the Minnesota Historical Society's permanent collection remains a top priority of the Collections Department. ACHF collections assistants continued to increase public access to the MNHS collection through the digitization of over 1,300 additional records published to our online database in FY14. In FY15, over 1,500 additional records were digitized and published to the database. These items focused primarily on American Indian material culture, World War I and recent acquisitions.
In FY14-15, the newspaper team continued work on the newspaper hub, increasing functionality and improving the web interface. The test version of the newspaper hub is available on workstations at the Gale Family Library and also on the web at www.mnhs.org/newspapers. MNHS negotiated with the Department of Education to add approximately 275,000 pages of the historic Minneapolis Tribune to the hub.
MNHS continues its focus on preserving and making accessible the newspapers published in the state. Last year, the staff concentrated on acquiring digital content from publishers and building the access hub, Minnesota Newspapers Online (MNO). Work on both of these activities will continue.
Increasing the public's online access to the MNHS permanent collections remains a top priority for the Collections Department. Since the beginning of FY16 (July 1, 2015), over 1,000 artifacts have been digitally photographed and cataloged. (About a third of the artifacts have been published to our online catalog.) This included American Indian material culture (338 items) as well as recent acquisitions and artifacts associated with the Minnesota State Fair (200 items) and popular music in Minnesota (345 items).
The Historic Recognition Grant program will preserve, recognize, and promote the historic legacy of Minnesota, with a focus on commemoration of Minnesota's role in the American Civil War via creation of a digital Civil War resource to aid student instruction for sixth and seventh grade teachers is the third of three projects being administered by MNHS in cooperation with the state's Civil War Commemoration Task Force are in development
