Publishing the Dictionary of Scientific BiographyScribner, Charles
1981 Reference Services Review
doi: 10.1108/eb048703
The Dictionary of Scientific Biography, the Landmark reference work featured in this issue of RSR, is treated from two perspectives. Charles Scribner, Jr. describes the genesis of the DSB and provides some anecdotal and philosophical background about the deliberations and difficulties that culminated in this important reference resource. Sheldon T. Miller reviews the DSB and comments that it is hard to remember how historians of science managed before its publication. We present two views of the DSB which should provide its users with a broader understanding of how it was developed and how it can be used. Kathleen Heim
Dictionary of Scientific BiographyMiller, Sheldon T.
1981 Reference Services Review
doi: 10.1108/eb048704
The appearance of volume 16 of the Dictionary of Scientific Biography DSB, the index, marks an important milestone in the life of the major reference tool in the history of science. Since the appearance of volume one in 1970, the DSB has become an indispensable tool for anyone seeking information about the lives and work of the scientists of the past. With over 6,000 sets sold it represents a major addition to the genre of multivolumed biographical dictionaries.
Current Survey of American History Reference SourcesBarber, Gary
1981 Reference Services Review
doi: 10.1108/eb048705
This year's survey focuses on reference works published in 1980. The two exceptions, reviewed in Part Two, were deemed too important to omit Women's History Sources A Guide to Archives and Manuscript Collections in the United States, and Index to the Papers of the Continental Congress, 17741789, which supplements the Index to the Journals of the Continental Congress. Among the 1980 imprints are a fairly even mix of bibliographies, indexes, biographical compilations and encyclopedic dictionaries. The Harvard Encyclopedia of American Ethnic Groups is an especially outstanding work published in 1980.
The Social Sciences Index A Review of Recent ChangesHerold, Jean; Messick, Frederic
1981 Reference Services Review
doi: 10.1108/eb048707
The various indexes published by the H.W. Wilson Company are now helping a fourth generation of library users to find articles in hundreds of periodicals and journals. One Wilson index in particular, the Social Sciences Index SSI, has undergone major revamping in recent years. It was originally called the International Index 19071965. In April, 1965 it became the Social Sciences and Humanities Index then in April, 1974 it split to form separate indexes for each area, simultaneously expanding the scope of coverage of both parts.
Reference ManagementVaughn, Susan
1981 Reference Services Review
doi: 10.1108/eb048708
Union Catalog A Checklist and Union Catalog of Holdings of Major Library Catalogs in METRO Libraries. 10.00, 15.00 is invoice is required. Mimeographed. METRO Miscellaneous Publications No. 27. Editor George Thompson. New York New York Metropolitan Reference and Research Agency, 1980. METRO, 33 W. 42d St., New York, NY 10036. 65p.
Health Information for the LaymanPringle, Daphne; Wiseman, Karin
1981 Reference Services Review
doi: 10.1108/eb048709
Librarians in all varieties of institutions, as well as public and academic libraries, are being asked for information on disease and health. We are becoming acutely aware of the general public's growing demand for health information. In fact, according to the American Hospital Association's A Patient's Bill of Rights, a hospital patient has the right to be informed in terms he or she can easily understand about his or her illness. This Bill of Rights reflects the general growth of the consumer movement in America today. It pervades all aspects of modern life, including the health field.
Library Orientation and Instruction 1980Rader, Hannelore B.
1981 Reference Services Review
doi: 10.1108/eb048710
The following annotated bibliography of materials on orienting users to the library and on instructing them in the use of reference and other resources covers publications from 1980. Several items from 1979 were included because information about them had not been available in time for the 1980 listing. Some entries were not annotated because the compiler was unable to secure a copy of the item.
Government publicationsZink, Steven
1981 Reference Services Review
doi: 10.1108/eb048711
The federal government is frequently described as being the greatest information producer in volume, if nothing else in the world. Yet, the fact is often ignored that the federal government, as an entity, is one of the world's greatest information consumers. Its concerns are great and farreaching many societal problems are on the cutting edge of research, and all possible forces are brought to bear in addressing them. It is not surprising that the federal government frequently finds a large body of literature which must be synthesized and be made available for immediate use in a convenient form. To meet these needs, the U.S. government has developed indices to the scholarly and research literature in fields with which it is intimately involved labor, wildlife, environment, energy, and so forth. Perhaps the best known products of these efforts are the Bibliography of Agriculture and Index Medicus.