MicroCT scanner

The Sustainable Archaeology facility at the University of Western Ontario is seeking bids from vendors for a micro computed tomography scanner for the Ancient Images Laboratory. A microCT scanner is required for the non-destructive examination, 2D cross section and 3D volumetric reconstruction of archaeological artifacts and organic remains. Examples of applications include the examination of trabecular architecture in vertebrae, the distribution of enamel, cementum and dentin in teeth, the material composition and mineral inclusions of ceramics and the characterization of source morphology and inclusions in stone tools. The Request for Proposals (RFP) has been published on the WEsternBUYs website,UWORFPAL-01106 and MERX. The Senior Buyer contact for this proposal is Andrew Lazarito - alazarit @ uwo.ca. Proposals close at noon EDT on 15 April 2011. NOTE: the deadline for the posting has been extended to 29 April 2011.

Pouring the floor

 

Yesterday the snow had all but disappeared. But winter returned this morning, just in time for the cement flooring to arrive.  Here you see a cement truck feeding concrete into a pumper truck. The pumper is equipped with a long, flexible arm that directs the concrete into the facility where it is being poured onto the floor and leveled by the workmen inside. The floors will be poured for the entire facility - repository and lab space - but this is only the first pour for the repository. Once it has cured, the metal tracks will be laid for the mobile shelving and a second pour will set them in place.

Imagining Digital Imaging

 

It doesn't look as though much has changed on the outside of the building in the past couple of weeks, but there are some big changes afoot inside. This is the last look you'll have at a dirt floor in what will be the Digital Imaging laboratory. The ground is being thawed - with a little help from both Mother Nature and some heaters - in preparation for the concrete floor that will be poured next week.

Ontario Archaeological Collections

 

Not all archaeological collections are display-worthy. The vast majority of artifacts look like these items - broken, disassociated pieces of pottery, stone, bone, metal and glass. Archaeologists find tremendous interpretive value in this material. The Sustainable Archaeology facilities will provide centralized storage for thousands of archaeological collections from southern Ontario. The data from these collections will be digitized and entered into a database that will be available over the web - enabling access and facilitating research on an exciting new scale within the Province.