Anthropologists create field notes or research records, correspondence with colleagues, administrative files, and reference files. Reference files are usually copies of the work of another person or another organization and do not have permanent value. On the other hand, photographs of an excavation in progress or an ethnographer's field diary are irreplaceable. Look around your home and office and determine which of your records are unique or significant. Good supplies are usually not much more expensive than inferior materials, but you need to know what is appropriate for each kind of record.
Ordinary paper contains lignins from wood pulp used in manufacturing, as well as other chemicals.
The acids not only break down paper fibers over time, they also migrate from one piece of paper to another. Acid-free paper and boxes provide a better environment and minimize deterioration from acid. For important documents created on inferior paper, information can be easily preserved by photocopying onto acid-free paper. Acid-free copy and laser papers can now be purchased in office supply stores. Photographic prints are paper treated with chemicals, while photographic film consists of a base and emulsion layers processed with chemicals.