NIST to use crowdsourcing to help identify Historical Artifacts

NIST is the federal agency that sets technical standards, and along the way has acquired a treasure trove of documents and photos of scientific instruments and other devices.  However, it's having trouble identifying some of them, like this one, currently labeled "Metal Instrument in a Wood Case."

The agency hopes that crowdsourcing - the use of volunteers on the net to collaboratively work towards specific goals, will help the agency find and take advantage of the expertise of outside experts. 

In a real sense, it's another sign that folks are beginning to see, and make use of, the innovative forms of communication offered by the digital network.

Source: "NIST Crowdsources Historical Artifact Identification," Information Week
To visit the NIST Digital Archives, go here.