Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation
A Research Division of Carnegie Mellon University

Hunt Institute Archives Text Discovery Platform

Search a large and growing portion of our online collections, including handwritten documents.
PROTOTYPE

This prototype uses state-of-the-art artificial intelligence, including a vision-language model (VLM) capable of reading handwritten documents as well as typed and printed text, to create searchable transcriptions of digitized materials in the Hunt Institute Archives. This makes it possible to search the textual contents of individual pages, including material that may not be described in the archival catalog.

Use Keyword search for specific words, names, dates, scientific names, or phrases. Try Semantic search (experimental) to describe a topic, question, or kind of material when you do not know the exact wording used in the documents.

About the AI-generated transcriptions

The transcriptions are generated automatically from page images and may contain errors, especially with difficult handwriting, unusual names, multiple languages, image-quality problems, or complex layouts. They are intended primarily as a discovery aid rather than authoritative transcriptions.

Each result provides the generated transcription and links to the original digitized material and associated archival description so that readings can be checked against the source. The transcription workflow uses AI models run locally by the Hunt Institute.

About Keyword and Semantic search

Keyword search is the default and matches the wording in the transcriptions. Results contain all your terms. Use quotes for an exact phrase. Substring matching is supported, so aceae can find plant-family names ending in -aceae.

Semantic search (experimental) is useful when you know what kind of material you are looking for but do not know the words used in the documents. It ranks transcribed passages by similarity of meaning, so relevant results may not contain the exact words in your query.

Semantic queries can be broad research topics, descriptions of activities or relationships, or natural-language questions. For example:

plant collecting and fieldwork in South America medicinal, culinary, or other traditional uses of plants chromosomes and plant classification early herbals and botanical illustrations botanical institutions exchanging plants, seeds, and specimens microscopy and photomicrography in botanical research How did botanists and gardeners introduce plants from one region to another? grafting, budding, and propagation of tropical fruit crops

Semantic search is not a chatbot: a question is used as a search query, and the system returns archival passages that appear conceptually related to it rather than generating an answer or summary. Short descriptions and ordinary research questions generally work better than lists of disconnected keywords. Quotation marks have no special meaning in Semantic mode. Cross-language matching may work in some cases, but it should not be treated as translation.

Keyword and Semantic search are complementary. Keyword search lets you require particular wording; Semantic search can surface differently worded passages about the same subject. Depending on the research question, trying both can reveal different useful material.

Open a result: use the prominent page-and-transcription link to see the metadata, PDF, and full transcription. Keyword-search terms are highlighted in the transcription.

Archives Collections Database (ArchivesSpace): the Collection, Item/Folder, and Digital Object links open the corresponding archival records. Collection-level dates describe the collection as a whole, not necessarily the specific item or page.

If a PDF does not load: on the detail page, use the Digital Object link, click “Go to file” in ArchivesSpace, and navigate to the page number shown here.

Current limitations
  • Automated transcriptions can contain missing or incorrect text or unintended repetition. Difficult handwriting, image quality, unusual layouts, and multiple languages can reduce accuracy. Always consult the original page image when an exact reading matters.
  • Semantic search remains experimental. Its rankings are an additional discovery aid, not a complete or definitive set of relevant results, and highly ranked pages can sometimes be only broadly related.
  • This is an active prototype. Search coverage, transcriptions, functionality, and the interface may continue to change as additional archival material is processed and the system is improved.

← Back to results

Page 2 · DO #4853 · 231_Rogers_Bx7FF24_r

Collection
David James Rogers (1918–2007) papers
Item/Folder
FAO - Seed Lab DATA, 1974
Digital Object
DO #4853, page 2
Collection-level dates
1948–1977
Open PDF at page 2 ↗

Page transcription

DESCRIPTION OF THE SEED LABORATORY ACTIVITIES
================================================

The work of the Seed Laboratory fell into three main activities:

1. requests for seeds
2. requests for information
3. preparation and transmission of seeds

1. REQUESTS FOR SEEDS

Seeds are requested by member countries, institutions, field experts, plant breeders, and individual specialists, which can at times be supplied directly from the stock held in the Seed Room.
(requests are received via letters, word of mouth, in house staff through memos and Seed Laboratory visitors - usually field experts).

If no stock is available the following action is taken:

Request to supply seed or planting material is made to seed merchants, nurseries, botanic gardens and agricultural experiment stations.
(through letters or purchase requisitions).

2. REQUESTS FOR INFORMATION

The Seed Laboratory receives numerous requests for information of seed sources from special Fund projects, field experts, from different divisions in Headquarters including Purchasing Branch, Member Countries, plant breeding stations, specialists, etc. The information supplied by the Seed Room is based on previous experience and extracted from data retained for this purpose.

Approximately 800 catalogues of different seed merchants, 400 Index semina from botanic gardens are kept for reference, in addition to a large supply of literature and pamphlets, and plant registers of cultivated varieties from various countries.

Data are recorded from publications, periodicals and abstracts to provide up-to-date information on any crop. On the basis of this information and bibliographical research, catalogues are prepared on the sources of certain group of crops. So far catalogues on tropical pastures - grasses and legumes, and oil crops have been prepared.

3. PREPARATION AND TRANSMISSION OF SEEDS

The Seed Room is called upon to prepare and transmit seeds and planting material on behalf of field projects, collecting missions, and adaptation or evaluation nurseries, which comprise the following activities:

(a) Each year seed is received in bulk for the preparation of collections to be sent to experimental stations for trials. For example, this year the Seed Room has prepared and despatched some 30,000 samples of wheat, barley, maize and sorghum on behalf of 16 different collections;