Proposes scientific theory of the subject matter of library and information science and how it can be organized in terms of the function of documents and their basic use. A hierarchy of classes of documents is described including one, several, or all of the following: information, creativity, understanding, and explanation. (Author/EM)

Examines the literature on the myth of "hard science-soft science" as a means of defining scientific specialties and classifying science literature, and discusses some shortcomings of scholarship in library and information science. Use of Toulmin's categorization of sciences to organize the literature and provide access for scientists is…

Reviews the research and commentary on individuals' questions and specific reference queries that characterize two general approaches in librarianship and other disciplines: question itself as phenomenon of questioner's behavior, linguistic performance, or cognitive state; interaction between question and answer focusing on appropriateness of…