Professor Elizabeth Weiss is at the beginning of a long-term project that will hopefully result in an autopsy collection housed at San Jose State University. Currently, there are eight US autopsy collections that provide information on age, sex, ethnicity, and sometimes occupation and medical history. Five of the eight collections have ceased growing. These collections are large and valuable for research, but their most recent remains are from 1969. Since the 1960s, lifestyle and health have changed drastically in the US. The other three collections are from states less diverse than California. Diverse collections are important because of ethnic differences in bone health. The US is growing increasingly more diverse. Understanding bone health is least invasively and most effectively done through studying skeletal remains that reflect the living populations who will benefit from the knowledge produced through research. This project is in its initial phase. Dr. Weiss is investigating the benefits of a California autopsy collection and researching the steps necessary to start accepting donations. To generate interest, inform others, and find collaborators, she plans to present data on the importance of a new autopsy collection at the the Center for Healthy Aging in Multicultural Populations first annual conference and at the American Anthropological Association annual conference.