What does the name ‘PEMdata’ refer to?
PEMdata was created to be the place where data from the PEM family of dataloggers can be viewed and analyzed. PEM® is short for ‘Preservation Environment Monitor,’ a battery-powered electronic device that measures temperature and humidity and stores the data for later upload into a computer. (Such a device is often referred to as a ‘datalogger.’) The Image Permanence Institute, with funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities, designed the PEM datalogger in the late 1990s specifically for use in museums and libraries. In 2008, IPI introduced the second generation PEM, called the PEM2®, with many new features. The PEM2 is less expensive, smaller, and easier to use than the original PEM. The PEM2 data files are downloaded through a USB port as plain, ASCII text. No software is required to use and upload data from the PEM2, just a computer (Mac or PC) with web access. This is essential to the PEM2’s design because it facilitates storage and analysis of environmental data on the
