Major features or components of the central museum would be:
Preservation: to include both research collections as well as exhibit and educational collections. Scientifically recognized repositories; properly housed in an environment which will best preserve the specimens; properly catalogued, labeled, and entered into an electronic relational database. Collections will include such diverse comp
onents as rocks, minerals, fossils, archaeological artifacts, zoological specimens, and herbarium-type collections. for researchers and preparators (see below). Research: primarily on Kentucky specimens and Kentucky localities. Will need research areas contiguous with each collection type, including proper equipment, a few wet labs with hoods, photographic centers and dark room, research library, computer terminals. Will also need access to loading dock and preparatory areas (described below). Exhibit construction
A. Should be large area for construction of museum and traveling exhibits. Also need loading dock, hoist devices, full shop, drafting facilities (computer aided), dirty preparatory area, spray paint and epoxy areas (fumes), dermestid room(?). Exhibitry and Educational Facilities
A. Permanent exhibits to include archaeology/anthropology, botany, geology/geophysics, paleontology, zoology; special exhibits on ecology (autoecology, synecology, paleoecology), and the progression of life (evolution). Future exhibits, after expansion, might include astronomy, climatology/meteorology, oceanography, planetary geology, and other specialties. Style of exhibits would be both 1. interactive, live, and 2. static, classic museum exhibits
B. Large area set aside for temporary exhibits (such as Dinamation)
C. Various sizes of meeting rooms, suitable for multiple sessions (e.g. annual meeting site for Kentucky Academy of Science)
D. Children's area and computer games concerning natural sciences
F. Interactive collections area(?)
G. Studio for preparation of videos and television shows(?)
H. Contingency for observatory, aquarium, spider room, bat cave, etc.(?).
