bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Recent reference sources in women's studies
Authors: Krikos Linda A.
Published: February 2008

As the field of women's studies has grown into a mature academic discipline, the number of sources devoted to women has increased dramatically, particularly in the last decade. Many of these sources are basic, but fill gaps in the literature and refine search strategy. This article focuses on introductory level materials (listed in the bibliography) appropriate for search strategy use. Titles discussed are useful for topic selection (almanacs, annuals), background information (encyclopedias, dictionaries, handbooks), supplementary information (statistical, biographical, bibliographic sources), and access to the library catalog and periodical literature (indexes, abstracts). Sources were culled mainly from American Reference Books Annual, New Books on Women and Feminism, and the “New Reference Books in Women's Studies” section of Feminist Collections. With a few exceptions, these sources have been published since the mid‐eighties and were not discussed in Susan Searing's Introduction to Library Research in Women's Studies or Women's Studies: A Recommended Core Bibliography, 1980–1985 by Catherine Loeb, et al.
OCLC's firstsearch: A reference tool still evolving
Authors: Bénaud Claire‐Lise , Bordeianu Sever
Published: February 2008

OCLC entered the 1990s with a bold marketing move, signalling its expansion beyond the traditional library world and into the competitive end‐user market, with the introduction of FirstSearch. In the spring of 1991, sixteen libraries throughout the United States, among them the University of New Mexico General Library, became test sites for FirstSearch. After numerous changes prompted by test site users, First‐Search (né Maximum Catalog) was officially released in October 1991. It is currently available to OCLC‐member libraries and to library schools. FirstSearch, the end‐user version of OCLC's earlier release, EPIC, inaugurates end‐user access to the largest book database in the world, OCLC's Online Union Catalog or “WorldCat,” as well as selected periodical indexes. On the first day of public release, six databases were available on FirstSearch; that number increased to 23 by August 1992 (see figure 1), and OCLC is negotiating with database producers to add others to the system.
Peer coaching: Professional growth and development for instruction librarians
Authors: Levene Lee‐Allison , Frank Polly
Published: February 2008

With so many academic librarians now employed in split or multi‐task job assignments, those who teach may question how they can develop the skills they need to be challenging and innovative in the classroom. Instruction librarians may turn to their colleagues to help them cultivate their teaching skills, particularly during times when bibliographic instruction (B.I.) workshops or training sessions are not imminent. Noticing the informal coaching that exists among trusted colleagues, some libraries have given structure to this exchange through peer coaching programs.
Field guides for everyone: A guide to their diversity
Authors: Schmidt Diane
Published: February 2008

There is a great deal of interest in the environment these days, and while much of that interest focuses on saving the world, a lot of it relates to learning about nature. Field guides are among the most popular natural history guides for the general public; it sometimes seems that almost every household must have at least one lurking in a corner. There are an incredible variety of field guides available for inquiring naturalists. The well‐known Peterson, Golden, and Audubon series and the typical bird, flower, and tree guides are just the tip of the iceberg.
Searching U.S. patents: Core collection and suggestions for service
Authors: Harwell Kevin R.
Published: February 2008

Few areas of reference services seem to be as shrouded in fearful mystery as those of patent searching. For many librarians, the very word “patent” conjures up images of strange individuals with equally strange ideas. Some think of endless tedium in selecting from among incomprehensible classifications leading to huge lists of meaningless numbers. Still others are repelled by the notion that many inventors and patent searchers are seeking assistance with what may be expensive legal matters.
Blues: An assessment of scholarship, reference tools, and documentary sources
Authors: Ragains Patrick
Published: February 2008

Blues music is in the midst of its second revival in popularity in roughly thirty years. The year 1960 can be identified, with some qualification, as a reference point for the first rise in international awareness and appreciation of the blues. This first period of wide‐spread white interest in the blues continued until the early seventies, while the current revival began in the middle 1980s. During both periods a sizeable literature on the blues has appeared. This article provides a thumbnail sketch of the popularity of the blues, followed by a description of scholarly and critical literature devoted to the music. Documentary and instructional materials in audio and video formats are also discussed. Recommendations are made for library collections and a list of selected sources is included at the end of the article.
Thomas Clarkson and the Anti‐Slavery Society
Authors: Gray Richard A.
Published: February 2008

In a previous issue of Serials Review, I described the three international organizations that I then assumed were the principal ones concerned with the protection of threatened tribal peoples throughout the world. I now know that I had overlooked one very important organization that is in fact coterminous with the organized effort to eradicate slavery. Until very recently, that organization was known as the Anti‐Slavery Society for the Protection of Human Rights. Gale's Encyclopedia of Associations: International Organizations places the foundation of this society in 1839, a date that is off by fifty‐one years, inasmuch as it can be shown that the society under at least two earlier names is continuous with the society that emerged, reorganized, redefined, and renamed in 1839 and with the society that remains vigorously active today.
Campuswide access to OCLC's firstsearch: A study of use at the University of Minnesota
Authors: Moline Sandra , Cogswell James , Reich Phyllis , Robbins Kathryn , Rossman M.J.
Published: February 2008

In October 1991, the Online Computer Library Center (OCLC) introduced FirstSearch, an online reference product designed for the end‐user. Through a menu interface, which features extensive online help, more than thirty databases, covering a range of subject areas, are currently available. Among these are three unique to OCLC: WorldCat (the OCLC online union catalog), Article1st, and Contents1st. The latter two offer bibliographic citations to articles in more than 11,000 journals, primarily in the English language, in the areas of science, technology, medicine, social science, business, the humanities, and popular culture. Several authors have described the searching, printing, and pricing options available for the system.
Ecology and ethics: Is there a duty to nature?
Authors: Gray Richard A.
Published: February 2008

Plato and Aristotle would have found the modern effort to fuse ethics and ecology to be incomprehensible. Despite the fact that oikos—meaning house or household—is a Greek word, Greek science did not entertain a concept of ecology. Nor did Greek philosophy regard nature as morally considerable. Etymology aside, the word ecology in anything like its modern sense of “biospheric house” did not appear in European thought until 1873 when Ernst Heinrich Haeckel, a German biologist and philosopher, used it, with the spelling “Oekologie,” in his The History of Creation. Furthermore, the words “ecology” and “ecological” always had exclusive reference, until quite recently, to a scientific discipline and not to a branch of philosophy. As with the Classical Greek philosophers, so it was also with modern thinkers. Ethics, they held, were concerned solely with interpersonal relations. They could not, therefore, recognize a duty to nature. That we do owe a duty to nature, however, is the carefully considered conclusion of most of the environmental ethicists.
A look at U.S. government publications on terrorism, 1985–1992
Authors: Parker June D.
Published: February 2008

As the Communist influence in the world subsides, the threat of low‐intensity conflict increasingly becomes a major concern to those involved in maintaining world security and peace. The fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Soviet Union have been accompanied by shifts in alignments, the emergence of old conflicts and new tensions, and an increase in Third World agitation. These events all serve to create these low‐intensity conflicts, which may take the form of guerrilla warfare, coups d'etat, ethnic violence, terrorism, resistance movements, or insurgency. Terrorism by itself is the objective of many forms of violence prevalent in today's world, including drug‐related incidents and incidents involving street gangs, hate groups, violent activists, and separatist organizations, as well as state‐sponsored actions in places such as Central and South America, the Middle East, and Libya. Conflict within areas may create situations that have far‐reaching consequences.
Recent literature shows accelerated growth in hypermedia tools: An annotated bibliography
Authors: Gabbard Ralph
Published: February 2008

Since publication of an earlier hypertext/hyper‐media bibliography in Library Hi Tech Bibliography, two trends have experienced accelerated growth. The first is the explosion of hypermedia and hypermedia tools in both quantity and quality. Movies, pictures, and sound are now commonly linked with hypertext in ever‐more complex presentations. This trend will continue as costs begin to decrease.
Telephone directories: Alternatives to print
Authors: Boettcher Jennifer , Kingma Bruce R.
Published: February 2008

In the Spring 1992 issue of Reference Services Review, Douglas Ernest, Joan Beam, and Jennifer Monath noted that “Telephone directories have been an integral part of most public and academic libraries for nearly a century. Telephone directories represent an anomaly among library collections; known to virtually all users, they nevertheless often go unrecognized when librarians discuss reference sources.” After the break‐up of the AT&T telephone monopoly in 1984, the process of acquiring telephone directories became more difficult and expensive. Seven regional holding companies, called the “Baby Bells,” were created to provide competition for the equipment and services that were once dominated by “Ma Bell.” The regional Bell companies began to charge each other for directories; as a result, the regional telephone companies had to pass on the expense to customers. It is still common for a regional Bell to provide libraries with directories of in‐state white pages, but to charge for areas outside the state, separate yellow pages within the state, and independently published telephone directories. Telephone directories, once provided free of charge to libraries to reduce the workload of operators, are now in competition with the fee‐based service of directory assistance.
Effective library research instruction for high school students: The challenge of engineering state
Authors: Morrison Rob , Dance Betty
Published: February 2008

Engineering State is a week‐long program held at Utah State University each June. It is designed to introduce top high school students entering their senior year to the engineering field and the university experience, which includes learning to use a library. Initiated in 1990 by the civil engineering department, it expanded the following year to include additional departments within the College of Engineering. Although engineers are not typically strong library users, the civil engineering faculty felt a library component should be part of the students' Engineering State experience.
Reference implications of digital technology in a library photograph collection
Authors: Benemann William E.
Published: February 2008

Research undertaken in photograph collections presents unique challenges, both for the researcher and for the librarian or archivist attempting to provide access. Unlike a book, which most frequently has a recognizable author and/or title, a photograph is not easily described or indexed. The identity of the photographer is sometimes unknown. The names of any people shown in the images are frequently not readily available, and even the location may be ambiguous.
Beyond the desk: Enhanced reference staffing for the electronic library
Authors: Mardikian Jackie , Kesselman Martin
Published: February 2008

The changing reference environment and reference staffing have been the topic of several articles in the library literature, discussions at the American Library Association conferences and a recent conference offered twice by Library Solutions Inc. of Berkeley, California, entitled Rethinking Reference. Libraries are looking closely at the model at Brandeis University of eliminating the reference desk and replacing it with an information desk with research consultations with librarians taking place in an office. Larry Oberg urges librarians to stop thinking of the reference desk as a key reason for being a librarian. He contends that paraprofessionals can and do perform well at a reference desk, freeing librarians to concentrate on higher‐level tasks. These discussions and examples demonstrate a variety of solutions academic libraries have taken regarding the changing face of reference, and the evolving roles of reference librarians in moving towards the electronic library. The electronic library brings us new options and new opportunities and as a result librarians need to develop new ways of thinking and organizing reference services.
Introduction to extracting and mapping census data
Authors: Chiang Katherine S. , Rieger Oya Y.
Published: February 2008

The Census of Population and Housing is an important source of demographic information. Since its inception in 1790, the decennial census has been through several revisions, causing changes in its content, statistical methodology, and distribution. These alterations reflect changes in technology, society, and economy. One of the most exciting features of the 1990 census is its availability on CD‐ROM. Another important advance for the 1990 census is the creation of TIGER/Line files, which provide digital boundary maps to support the census features.
Usenet as a reference tool
Authors: Klassen Tim W.
Published: February 2008

Usenet is one of the most widely used services on the Internet. Recently, a handful of articles dealing with the mechanics and personal use of Usenet have appeared in the library literature, but little attention has focused on Usenet as a reference tool. This is unfortunate, since Usenet has the potential to serve as a valuable reference source to answer questions. With Usenet we have the ability to query the knowledge of a large well‐educated population on just about any subject from computers to popular culture. A question posted to the proper group on Usenet will often receive responses within hours. This article provides a brief introduction to Usenet and how it can be used for reference work, plus a guide to some of the issues involved with posting reference questions to Usenet. But first, I offer two examples of reference questions that I have answered using Usenet as a source.
Najib Mahfuz, Nobel prize winner: A bibliographical essay
Authors: El‐Sherbini Magda
Published: February 2008

Najib Mahfuz is the first Arab‐language author to win the Nobel Prize in literature. Born in 1911 the son of a middle‐class Jamaliyah merchant, he became the most popular novelist in Egypt and the Arab countries.
Reference services and electronic records: The impact of changing methods of communication and access
Authors: Hull Theodore J.
Published: February 2008

The Center for Electronic Records of the National Archives and Records Administration was established in 1988 as the custodial unit for the permanent electronic records of the U.S. federal government. The program for the long‐term preservation of electronic (or machine‐readable) records by the National Archives goes back to 1968, and the acting archivist of the United States has recently acknowledged the thirtieth anniversary of the first formal appraisal of electronic records. This article will highlight both the Center for Electronic Records' program and the various levels of access to information about the records in its custody.
Cultural sensitivity: Or, how to make the library a better place
Authors: Winston Mark
Published: February 2008

Reference librarians interact with a broad range of customers and are expected to provide quality service to that clientele. In addition, library collections and services should reflect the community served and meet at least a portion of the information needs of that community. As the populations that reference librarians serve change and become more and more diverse, particularly in the case of those librarians serving academic communities, it is critical that the resulting library environments be conducive to the success of the populations served. As a result, librarians are compelled to become more culturally sensitive and to ensure that the library environment is open to all of those in the target population.
Stalking and anti‐stalking legislation: A guide to the literature of a new legal concept
Authors: Welch Jeanie M.
Published: February 2008

One of the newest crimes to be put on the books is stalking, usually defined as repeatedly being in the presence of another person with the intent to cause emotional distress or bodily harm after being warned or requested not to do so. Stalking must be done over a period of time to indicate a pattern or continuity of purpose. Threats against a person or person's family may be stated or implied in stalking. Stalking victims are followed and harassed at work, at school, and at home. Stalking can also be done electronically, either using computers to send harassing e‐mail messages or by jamming telefacsimile machines with unwanted transmissions. There have been numerous high‐profile stalking cases that gained a great deal of publicity and focused attention on stalking. “Celebrity stalking” cases came to the public's attention in 1982 when actress Theresa Saldana was stabbed by a stalker. In 1989 actress Rebecca Schaeffer was shot and killed by a man who had stalked her for two years. In the 1990s the assault on skater Nancy Kerrigan, television talk shows and movies, and nonfiction works on stalking, including cases that ended with the death of the stalking victim, have focused public attention on this issue.
Literary life sciences: A guide to “good” books in biology
Authors: Choinski Elizabeth
Published: February 2008

An average person's memory of the last biology book he or she has read is likely one of a dry tome lugged back and forth to a high school or college biology class. “Good books” and “biology” are not naturally linked in people's minds. This is an unfortunate occurrence, but one that is easily remedied. For anyone with a little curiosity about biology and a penchant for good books, the following bibliography provides some guidance. All but one of the authors included are or were trained as scientists. They all have a couple of traits in common, namely a passion for their work and a desire to share this passion with anyone who will listen. It is our good fortune that they are also excellent writers.
Improved access to engineering society technical papers
Authors: Miller Jeannie P. , Stringer‐Hye Richard
Published: February 2008

The engineering programs at Texas A&M University have a longstanding reputation for excellence, and the engineering collection developed by the Sterling C. Evans Library plays a key role in supporting and maintaining that quality.
Institutional policy issues for providing public internet access
Authors: Cordell Rosanne M. , Wootton Nancy A.
Published: February 2008

Libraries of all types are in the midst of attempting to acquire the equipment and connections necessary to provide patron access to the Internet. The 1994 survey of public libraries by the National Commission on Libraries and Information Science indicates that 87.3 percent of all public libraries surveyed do not currently provide public access terminals; yet, informal surveys of library and information science literature, popular literature, and attendance at conferences and workshops indicate there is considerable interest in acquiring connections to the Internet, and many libraries are making concrete plans to do so. Still, libraries involved in the acquisition stage of Internet connectivity may have temporarily set aside consideration of policy issues relating to that access. However, the Internet is far more than merely another format, such as libraries dealt with when deciding to collect videos or CDs; the Internet is a new publishing format, communication tool, repository of information, and art form. It challenges our assumptions and policies regarding censorship, confidentiality, intellectual property, the reliability, stability, and verifiability of information—even our view of (virtual) reality! Providing public access to the Internet can affect every aspect of library policy making and demand new definitions and decisions.
Integrating bibliographic instruction into a marketing curriculum: A hands‐on workshop approach using interactive team‐teaching
Authors: Judd Vaughan C. , Tims Betty J.
Published: February 2008

Although some institutions of higher learning seem to have difficulty acknowledging it, teaching should be the single most important part of their mission; it is a college or university's reason for being. Accordingly, the primary mission of an academic library should be to support the teaching mission of the university. For example, in three college libraries with successful bibliographic instruction (BI) programs, library directors viewed the teaching role of the library as central to the purpose of the library. Teaching support from the library, and interaction between the library staff and the university's teaching faculty and students, can come in a variety of ways, one of which is BI. Bibliographic instruction is an activity that bridges the gap between academicians and librarians. Although BI can be generic or integrated (subject‐specific), the latter seems to offer greater potential for close interaction between librarians and the teaching faculty. Course‐integrated BI has been described as bibliographic instruction designed as a part of course objectives, and viewed as essential to knowledge of the subject and successful completion of the course. This article describes a series of four unique workshops that meet this definition of course‐integrated bibliographic instruction.
Integrating library instruction into the curriculum through freshman symposium
Authors: Parks Joan , Hendrix Dana
Published: February 2008

Structuring a sound freshman‐year experience has become an important retention and orientation tool on many campuses, and there are many different approaches; having a program of instruction for the incoming first‐year class is not unique at top liberal arts universities. But Southwestern University chose in 1985 to begin providing its first‐year students with a common intellectual experience that goes beyond a three‐day or even semester‐long orientation to the university or college life. Southwestern chose rather to address a different scholarly topic each fall semester and to have all first‐year students attend the same lectures, do the same assignments, and break into smaller faculty‐led groups for discussion and class meetings. Library instruction has become an integral part of the university's Freshman Symposium, with library literacy a goal of the program and coordinated library involvement in at least one common assignment each year.
Multicultural health care: A select bibliography
Authors: Stoklosa Kristin
Published: February 2008

The purpose of this bibliographic guide is to acquaint librarians with resources on health care provision for patients of various cultures. The sources in this bibliography address lingual and cultural barriers to communication between patients and health care providers. They also cover the health care needs of specific ethnic groups, the impact of cultural beliefs on health behavior and knowledge, and traditionally held health care practices.
Beatrix Potter: An annotated bibliography
Authors: Frey‐Ridgway Susan
Published: February 2008

Beatrix Potter is best remembered as the creator of the notoriously naughty bunny, Peter Rabbit. Peter and his circle of friends grace the pages of the little books, so called because they measure less than six inches tall. These children's classics have been delighting readers since The Tale of Peter Rabbit was first published in 1901. During Potter's lifetime the little books were read in the United Kingdom, America, and Canada. Foreign language translations of her work introduced her characters to children of other nations. Note the 1987 publishing event, the “new editions from the original watercolors,” which Warne used to great advantage! A flurry of books accompanied this event, by biographer Judy Taylor plus reprints (e.g., Linden). Today sales of the little books show no sign of abating. An industry of Peter Rabbit spinoff products has existed for almost as long as Peter has. Toys, games, videos, and collectibles of the Potter characters can be found on store shelves worldwide.
Post‐cold war national security policy: A survey of U.S. Government print and internet literature, 1990–1995
Authors: Chapman Bert
Published: February 2008

The conclusion of the Cold War rivalry between the United States and former Soviet Union in the late 1980s and early 1990s created new areas of opportunity and concern for U.S. national security policy. No longer menaced by the threat of nuclear war from Soviet military might, the United States emerged from the Cold War as the world's preeminent military power. Successful developments such as this often produce elation in the pronouncements of U.S. officials as a recent Clinton administration declaration demonstrates:
Teaching critical thinking: The alliance of composition studies and research instruction
Authors: Kautzman Amy M.
Published: February 2008

It is no surprise that it is difficult to teach critical thinking skills. Are students willing to question the very basis of the society in which they hope to succeed? Often not. Ironically, it seems that the two courses most able to teach students how to critically approach a topic are the two courses that receive the least amount of respect from students and faculty. These two courses, composition studies and research instruction, are often thought to be “training wheel” courses. Everyone needs to know these foundations of scholarship, but few educators are willing to give the necessary time or money to teach the acquisition of these skills.
Why roving reference: A case study in a small academic library
Authors: Kramer Eileen H.
Published: February 2008

“Human service is a fundamental concept in librarianship, and the essential role of reference librarians is to connect people with the information they want,” wrote Jennifer Mendelsohn in 1994. To further this connection, librarians have suggested looking for, and have often actively sought out, patrons before they approach the reference or information desk, yet our image of the roving reference encounter remains sketchy. This picture ranges from that of a harried, overworked professional dispensing inadequate service to a multitude of users, to a librarian effectively extending a hand to the three‐fifths to two‐thirds of all users who would not otherwise request assistance. The picture one sees depends on one's individual work preference. Such conflicting mental pictures lead to round after round of endless debate.
Touring the campus library from the World Wide Web
Authors: Anne Mosley Pixey , Xiao Daniel
Published: February 2008

Evans Library at Texas A&M University has developed and released a Virtual Library Tour available via the World Wide Web (WWW). The URL for the tour is 〈http://www.tamu.edu/library/reference/ virtual/tour00.htmlhttp://www.tamu.edu/library/reference/ virtual/tour00.html〉. The tour, designed as a remotely accessible alternative to the basic library orientation tour, provides information on library departments, services, materials, and policies. Development and implementation of this new orientation tool involved technological issues and library instructional techniques. Approximately 165 hours of professional time were required to create and release the tour. To achieve an optimum combination of effective instruction and technical expertise, the development team for the Texas A&M University Evans Library's Virtual Library Tour consisted of the coordinator of instructional services, Pixey Anne Mosley, and the automated information retrieval services (AIRS) librarian, Daniel Xiao. This article discusses the process used and lessons learned through the creation of the Virtual Library Tour.
Frequently asked questions: An effective way to store and retrieve reference information?
Authors: Stalker John C. , Murfin Marjorie E.
Published: February 2008

The purpose of this article is to describe and report on testing of a computerized program presently being developed by the authors on the World Wide Web. This program is designed to locate reference information through use of FAQs, or Frequently Asked Questions. A preliminary investigation of the adequacy of FAQs to cover a sample of questions in one subject area will be reported here.
Reference work with international students: Making the most use of the neutral question
Authors: de Souza Yvonne
Published: February 2008

In the past decade, increasing enrollment of international students at universities and colleges in North America has prompted the exploration and documentation of the issues related to library use by this group. The characteristics and difficulties faced by these students have been studied by Liu and Allen.
PHOTOSTAT RECORDING IN LIBRARY WORK
Authors: ASLIN E.J.
Published: February 2008

A meeting of the Northern Branch of Aslib, held at Warrington on 12 February, at which Mr. R. Brightman, chairman of the Branch, presided, was addressed by Mr. E. J. Aslin, of Photostat, Ltd., on ‘Photostat Recording in Library Work’. Mr. Aslin said that it was not until the early part of the twentieth century that commercial and industrial interests first began to realize the value of using photographic methods for facsimile reproductions of important documentary matter. Although at that time there were very fine cameras in use, they were, nevertheless, unsuitable for this type of rapid document copying, owing to the somewhat peculiar conditions and arrangements found to be necessary for this work. There was quite obviously a demand for a specially designed camera to handle document copying on a big scale.
AN APPROACH TO ARCHIVES
Authors: Baker E.C.
Published: February 2008

I gave a general picture in my Summary of this paper of the process whereby the permanent records of a commercial firm or business might be formed. Such an introduction appeared necessary: it marked out the area of our subject and, I believe, represents considerations on which all archivists are in agreement. It seemed convenient too, that this elementary survey should be associated with my contribution to this session. Most of its details have already appeared elsewhere, but the only part Aslib has published is contained in an article last year from W. H. Chaloner, of Manchester University. They may be well‐known to you, but you will agree that they bear repetition. At any rate, we are now in a position to devote all the limited time at our disposal to examining a few of the difficulties we meet with in handling records. This approach is, I hope, in full accord with the Conference's motif as expressed in that lively, if inelegant, phrase: ‘the tricks of the trade’.
THE REVIEWING OF SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL BOOKS: SOME FIRST PRINCIPLES FROM THE POINT OF VIEW OF THE READER
Authors: BRIGHTMAN R.
Published: February 2008

Among the few writings on the art of book reviewing that I have come across is a passage in Mr. J.B. Atkins's recent book, Incidents and Reflections. Mr. Atkins writes:
BOOK REVIEWS AND THE LIBRARIAN
Authors: Collison R.L.
Published: February 2008

Few readers have any inkling of the care with which a good librarian selects his bookstock. It is doubtful whether the average reader gives any thought to the way in which a library stock is built up, but if he does he probably imagines that it is merely an affair of going round the shelves of the nearest bookseller and selecting the books according to their appearance and titles. This, of course, is the last way in which a sound collection of books is developed, and no librarian has sufficiently large book funds to be able to ignore the accepted methods of book‐selection. These consist of a process of watching for advance notices of books which may come within the scope of his library, noting the publication date, reading and comparing reviews in reputable journals, examining the books themselves, and finally selecting those which:
INTRODUCTION
Authors: DITMAS E.M.R.
Published: February 2008

Thisissue of Aslib Proceedings is mainly devoted to papers presented at the 24th Annual Conference, held at Ashorne Hill, near Learnington Spa, Warwickshire, from 9 to 11 September, 1949. In addition, we have pleasure in printing the annual report and accounts of the British Union Catalogue of Periodicals.
3. THE LIBRARY OF THE BRITISH SHIPBUILDING RESEARCH ASSOCIATION
Authors: OWER E.
Published: February 2008

Like the other contributors to this session, I have been asked to deal with the subject under a number of sub‐headings. But before I do so, I should like to make a few general remarks.
2. LIAISON BETWEEN CORRESPONDENCE AND TECHNICAL RECORDS
Authors: PARKER E.W.
Published: February 2008

In the following notes the term ‘Correspondence’ has been broadly interpreted, to cover all the occasional and incidental sources of unpublished information which may be of service to the technical department of an organization. No attempt has been made to cover such material as laboratory notes, research reports and the like, since these fall normally within the scope of technical records, with which this session is not primarily concerned.
OFFICIAL PUBLICATIONS 1. H.M.S.O. PUBLICATIONS
Authors: COX W.
Published: February 2008

I have been asked to open this session by saying something about official publications from the Stationery Office point of view, in the hope that those of you who handle them, and are often exasperated by illogicalities and catalogue inadequacies, may realize that the reasons for these difficulties are not obscurantism on the part of the Stationery Office, but are inherent in the intractability of the material. Originally all official publications were parliamentary publications; they were solely the Bills, Acts, Reports and Papers which Parliament required for its day‐to‐day business or had prescribed by Statute that departments should present to Parliament as a record of their activities. With the growth of the functions of Government, official publications have increased enormously in number and variety, particularly those known as non‐parliamentary which arise from the executive functions of departments. Transfers and over‐lapping of functions of Government departments increase the complexity of the pattern. A very technical report, say, on the incidence of duodenal ulcers in busmen can turn up as a Ministry of Labour Report, instead of under the Ministry of Health, because it arises from a trade dispute, and over all this criss‐crossing, bedevilling any rigid classification, still stands the division between parliamentary and non‐parliamentaty, which because of some temporary political circumstance such as a threatened strike, will lift the same report from its natural group and make it a Command Paper in the parliamentary series. No wonder then, that to the librarian, Government publications are like weeds—they spring up all over the place, disregard the formal beds in which they ought to appear, and even grow on the paths of his tidy garden.
National Engineers' Week: Week of 22 February
Authors: Erdmann Charlotte
Published: February 2008

National Engineers' Week takes place annually during the week of George Washington's birthday. Washington, best known as a soldier and stateman, was also a surveyor and road builder. The National Society of Professional Engineers began this tradition in 1950 with a two‐page article in The American Engineer. The society promoted Engineers Week on a national level beginning in 1951. February and March issues of The American Engineer in 1951 discussed the early celebrations of this week. The society's history (Robbins) also gives insights about the creation of this special week. Although the National Society of Professional Engineers initiated this week, other engineering organizations became involved later. At the present time, many organizations participate in the celebration. Each year, the National Society of Professional Engineers plans a particular theme for the week.
1. THE BIBLIOGRAPHIC SYSTEM OF CLASSIFICATION (abridged)
Authors: BURGESS L.A.
Published: February 2008

I have approached my task of addressing you to‐day with more than conventional diffidence. As an association of specialist librarians, you bring to the consideration of my paper a formidable array of subject specialization. The subject of my paper, too, is a scheme of classification for libraries and all scholarly uses, which bases its principal claim to consideration on the superior quality of its scholarship. Perhaps now you begin to perceive the nature of my dilemma. I am no scholar: I am a plain and very undistinguished worker in a public library: I wouldn't know the difference between the nomenclature of the physician and that of the gardener. In short, there seems no reason why I should be here at all, beyond the very inadequate one that I have conducted an intermittent correspondence over some twenty years with the author of the scheme, Henry Evelyn Bliss, of New York, and tried to assist him with some of the minor details of the scheme. But please realize that in the primary matter of justifying the scheme I am a broken reed: you must judge the scheme from your own study of the schedules, not from my advocacy, which must necessarily be hopelessly inadequate and unfair to one of the great pioneer thinkers of our age.
INFORMATION FROM THE ADVERTISEMENT PAGES
Authors: SHIRES GEOFFREY A.
Published: February 2008

Anything up to 80 per cent of a technical journal to‐day consists of advertisements. The advertising pages are often cunningly woven among the others to increase their chance of being read, and it is a fact that many readers are as likely to be arrested by an advertisement as by a feature in the text. Abstractors, however, or information staff scanning a periodical for a purpose, may be inclined to regard this 80 per cent advertising as a bore, grudgingly admitting responsibility for trade announcements of plant, apparatus, materials, and the books and other publications listed, but giving other publicity scant attention.
1. SERVICE TO MEDICAL LIBRARIES
Authors: EDWARDS GEOFFREY R.
Published: February 2008

Mr Edwards pointed out the vast differences of services between special and other libraries and the difficulties of co‐operation. Even between special libraries working in the same field the services varied considerably, their development being influenced by the wishes of the financially supporting members and the initiative of the permanent officials. Between two special libraries there might be all the differences in activity between a mausoleum and Piccadilly Circus. Mr. Edwards could but deplore the former, and knew that those present would only wish to hear about the latter—the special library giving fair service.
INTELLIGENCE—SOME FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES
Authors: PARKE V.E.
Published: February 2008

There is no official definition of intelligence, but it may be conveniently said that ‘the function of intelligence is to find, to obtain, to assess, to store, and to make available, all information, published or not, of value to the institution concerned or to its collaborators’.
PROBLEMS OF AN INDUSTRIAL LIBRARIAN
Authors: BROWN D.G.
Published: February 2008

Perhaps the first problem is how to define an industrial librarian; and I am not satisfied that I can do so. However, I know several people who, like myself, have charge of libraries that serve the staffs of industrial concerns, and who, although formally unqualified in library science, have more or less practical experience of the art. Most of our problems arise when we try to adapt fundamental library procedure to the needs of an industrial staff; others arise out of the special activities peculiar to the firm that are most conveniently operated by the library staff. Problems of the first sort have to be considered at the earliest stage, when the library is being set up; and the more carefully and thoroughly they are considered, the more effective the final organization will be. Problems of the second sort, on the other hand, are continually arising; and to deal with them effectively the library must be organized, not rigidly, but so that the few and simple essential principles of its work may be applied with flexibility and alacrity.
THE ORGANIZATION OF WORKS VISITS
Authors: JENNINGS F.C.
Published: February 2008

The organizing and carrying through of a works visit is a practical exercise in the presentation of technical information. The first rule should be to attract and then maintain the visitors' interest. This involves estimating the background and objectives of the visitors, and directing the visit accordingly. For most visits, the manner and matter must be simplified, only a relatively few or the important points should be made.
I. AN INTRODUCTION TO THE LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SERVICES OF A PROFESSIONAL INSTITUTION
Authors: WATTS W.G.
Published: February 2008

The Library and Information department which I represent is a joint one of two professional Institutions, the Institution of Mining and Metallurgy, and the Institution of Mining Engineers. Both Institutions possess Royal Charters and were founded in the late nineteenth century, the former for the advancement of the science of economic geology, mining and extraction metallurgy of all minerals other than coal, and the latter for the advancement of the science of coal and iron ore mining and allied subjects. The Institution of Mining Engineers is slightly the older institution.
THE LITERATURE OF SPECIAL LIBRARIANSHIP
Authors: DITMAS E.M.R.
Published: February 2008

AT the very outset of this paper it is necessary to make clear that it is not an attempt to compile an exhaustive bibliography of literature relating to special librarianship. Neither space nor time permit this. In fact, the references given can only claim to be a sample of the wealth of material on the subject and this paper is submitted in the hope that it will stimulate others to more scholarly efforts. Reference numbers throughout this paper refer to items in the ‘Select list of references to the literature of special librarianship’, section 2 onwards.
EXPERIENCES AT THE EARL OF LEICESTER'S LIBRARY AT HOLKHAM
Authors: Hassall W.O.
Published: February 2008

Holkham Hall was completed in the middle of the eighteenth century, a monument of the Italianate taste of Lord Burlington and the Earl of Leicester. The magnificent sculpture, pictures, tapestry, furniture, and the library itself, are part of the general architectural scheme. This summer the state rooms have been opened to the public for one day a week.
CONFERENCE OF THE SCOTTISH BRANCH‐OPENING ADDRESS
Authors: OAKLEY C.A.
Published: February 2008

Mr Oakley reminded his audience that when he had been asked to open the conference on the date originally fixed, 14th April, 1950, it was in his capacity as head of the Board of Trade in Scotland. The remarks that he had prepared for that occasion were now out of date and he took the liberty of supposing that he had been invited to open the present conference, not in his official capacity, but as a writer of a number of technical books. It was, therefore, on a broad aspect of technical publication that he now wished to speak.
THE RECORDS OF SCOTLAND
Authors: FERGUSSON JAMES
Published: February 2008

The problems of librarianship can be summed up under two headings, preservation and accessibility.
BOOKS IN INDUSTRY
Authors: FRENCH JAMES
Published: February 2008

My subject is not so easy as the two simple words, Books and Industry, might imply. Books are voluminous, of their writing there is no end. Industry is as wide as the needs of mankind. Some demarcation and limitation of the field to be considered is essential.
THE RANGE OF GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS
Authors: BECK W.A.
Published: February 2008

A writer in the Journal of the Royal Statistical Society of the early 1920's observed ‘It has long been a matter for comment for the judicious that the British taxpayer is wholly unaware how vast a literature, interesting as well as instructive, is published by His Majesty's Stationery Office’. The wealth of best sellers during the last war, such as The Battle of Britain, has helped to widen the circulation field, but there is still a lack of knowledge of the range of the output.
GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS
Authors: GLASSCOCK W.H.
Published: February 2008

In 1786 His Majesty's Stationery Office was formed as an administrative reform to stop the waste of public money that occurred when each Government Department made its own purchases of ink, paper and other requirements. In 1950 the Stationery Office is a supply service for all Government Departments for many things unheard of or unrecognizable as ‘stationery’ in the eighteenth century, e.g. calculating machines and photographic materials. It is responsible for large factories devoted to duplicating, addressing and similar services which can conveniently be centralized. It is now the printer to Parliament and His Majesty's Government, and with minor exceptions it publishes and sells all British official publications.
THE NATIONAL CENTRAL LIBRARY
Authors: BATES R.J.
Published: February 2008

The latest published report of the Executive Committee of the National Central Library, for the year ended 28th February, 1950, records steady maintenance, and in some directions, steady increase, of the Library's services to libraries in this country and abroad. Also noted is the progress made in three new departments of the Library's activity: the Union Catalogues of Russian books and periodicals, and German war‐time books and periodicals in British libraries, and the British National Book Centre. One sign of this steady progress is the growing recognition of the work of the Library and its national importance by His Majesty's Treasury, in that they again increased their grant‐in‐aid, from £19,000 to £22,500, for the year under review. The fact that the total income of the Library for the year was £29,850 16s. 8d. emphasizes this national recognition. In making their increased grants‐in‐aid His Majesty's Treasury have expressed their view that users of the Library should also be expected to contribute to its increased costs, and as a result the Executive Committee launched an appeal, early in 1950, for increased or new contributions, to all co‐operating libraries of all types. The hope is expressed that the appeal will secure a wide and generous response which will leave no doubt in the minds of His Majesty's Treasury of the value set by the libraries of the country on the services of the National Central Library.
UNIVERSITY LIBRARY BUILDINGS: UNIVERSITY LIBRARY PLANNING
Authors: BONSER WILFRID
Published: February 2008

The paper by Miss Exley on ‘Replanning Libraries’, given at our Annual Conference this year, was intended to be on the theoretical side of the subject, while this symposium is intended to tackle the same subject on the more practical side.