paleonet Decline of Paleontology (additional info.)

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Hi all,

Dr. Schultze has supplied me with additional information regarding the Berlin issue, hoping that it will help to further understand his concerns (see below). I have also received a sample letter from him, and I will be sending it separately after this one.

>>> "Schultze, H.P." <H-P.Schultze@MUSEUM.HU-Berlin.de> 05/17/02 03:03AM >>>
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Consequences of the suggested changes in the Museum fuer Naturkunde, Berlin:

1. After German law it is impossible to fire people in permanent positions. That means that
the permanent curator positions in paleontology will exist as long as the present person
occupies it. The 5-6 year positions could be changed at the end of the term of the
person, who occupies the position presently. In jepardy are the professor positions in
Paleozoology (head of the department) and Paleobotany and additional not occupied
positions. In that way the separate department of paleontology ceases to exist. I cannot
forsee how soon that will affect the service to the scientific community (study of the
collections; the curator for fossil mammals will retire in 4 1/2 years).

2. The position of professor of paleozoology (head of the department) will be replaced by a professor
of systematist & biogeographer (with molecular aspects). That is a zoologist in addition to the
systematic zoologist already existing in the museum. Of course he will/has to try to get a research
group together out of the existing positions. You have to understand that it means that
paleontology as entity will disappear and the bridge function between mineralogy and
systematic zoology is gone.

3. There will be no teaching in paleontology at the Humboldt University, it will be not
possible to have graduate students (two of the curators have the "habilitation", so that they
could have graduate students as long as they are here) nor to do the "habilitation" so that
one is able to apply for professor positions.

4. My main concern is the despective characterisation of paleontology. That could be used
all over Germany to hitchhike paleontology position for another field like in our case a
systematist and biogeographer (I have not found out for whom the position is premolded -
the systematic zoologist in the museum thinks that he knows).

5. In the Expert Commission, there was no paleontologist (there was no money to bring Crompton
to Berlin, so that he refused to comment on the report), but an art historian of the Humboldt University.
He is interested in the spectacular paleontological exhibit pieces of the Museum to display them in a
new university museum to be established in the discussed reconstruction of the Berlin castle.

In result, there will be no change for the Department of Systematic Zoology, because the
present director will stay on for the next 20+ years and his contract including the whole
department are legally binding. In the meantime a second zoology department will form, if
the department of paleontology is replaced by a department of systematics and
biogeography as suggested. Paleontology will be gone at the Museum of Natural History.

I find the situation very dangerous, because my term ends September 30, 2002, it has been
extended for one year. Thereafter my people are without protection, and in the future the
large collections without adequate care.

I hope that you now understand how dangerous the situation is at present. Three other
departments of paleontology are at the verge to be closed waiting only the retirement of the
last permanently employed person.

H.-P. Schultze

____________________________
Kenshu Shimada, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Environmental Science Program
and Department of Biological Sciences
DePaul University
2325 N. Clifton Avenue
Chicago, IL 60614, USA
AND
Research Associate
Sternberg Museum of Natural History
Fort Hays State University
Hays, KS 67601, USA