Describes a system of subject indexing developed by Julius Kaiser (1868-1927) which is based on "concretes" and "processes" to govern the form of subject headings and subdivisions. Elements of amplification, guides for the subject index, and criticism of Kaiser's systematic indexing are noted. Five sources are given. (EJS)

Traces the development of "The Thesaurus of Psychological Index Terms" from its roots as a term list through six editions to a sophisticated searching and indexing tool, and describes the process for determining controlled vocabulary and forms of display. Features designed especially to assist novice users and nonpsychologists are also…

The information retrieval thesaurus emerged in operational form following a confused intellectual history as a secondary indexing aid. Prescriptive language ideas of Moore and Luhn were absent in early forms and no one attempted to reduce retrieval language as advocated earlier. DuPont retrieval thesaurus (1959) offered a model for further…

Explores the concept of information retrieval and summarizes the development of information retrieval systems. The role of relevance judgments as a systems test is discussed, principles of what information systems can and cannot be expected to achieve are presented, and areas of research interest are identified. (43 references) (CLB)

The Insurance Division of the Special Libraries Association began an index to insurance magazines, the "Insurance Periodicals Index" (IPI), in 1962. This study examines its historical development. The index was published monthly in an insurance trade journal and then cumulated into an annual edition. Part of the background for its…