Academic libraries, apart from their main function, which is to provide information services to academic communities, may also perform a number of social roles in the broad meaning of the term. Accordingly, they now tend to serve as the third place offering inclusion and animation activities to academic as well as local communities (including…

Describes the library at Far Eastern State Technical University in Vladivostok (Russia) based on a visit that was part of a collaborative project with California State University, Sacramento. Highlights include staffing; problems with funding, space, and technology; library collections in the Department of World Politics and Law; and the nearby…

According to the 1969 census the population of the Soviet Union is 241 million of which 105 million persons live in the countryside. In order to provide this large population living in a vast area with the opportunity of using library books, a broad and ramified network of library institutions had to be organized which would make it possible to…

This article surveys achievements in building up the library service in the U.S.S.R. during the eighth five-year plan (1966-70) and describes the main library targets under the ninth five-year plan (1971-75). (Author)

Reports on a symposium that was held at Hofstra University (New York) in March 1996 on library systems in Russia and international cooperation. Topics include automation; the Russian National Public Library for Science and Technology; and the Russian-American Information, Library, and Analytical Center for interlibrary loan and online document…

This paper describes experiences of a reference librarian at California State University (Sacramento) who spent three weeks in Vladivostok (Russia) to assess the library and research needs of faculty and students at the Far Eastern State Technical University. After briefly describing the city of Vladivostok and its military role in the Soviet…

Provides historical background and describes the change in the role of Russian libraries from conduits for party propaganda to organizations designed to serve the needs of their users. Considers problems for library educators in providing librarians with the skills needed in the new political and technological environment of post-Communist Russia.…

Apart from being a man dedicated to changing soceity, Lenin was also the author of dozens of publications, documents and letters concerning libraries. (Author/NH)

Describes the impact of social and political reforms in Russia during the 1860s on the role of the Imperial Public Library. The discussion covers the changes in library organization and operations that reflected a willingness to adapt to changing social conditions, and the resulting perception of the library as a vital tool for progress. (80…

Emphasis is placed on the role of scientific and technical libraries in the education of Soviet workers. One of the main tasks of technical libraries is to educate workers to respect their professions, and to maintain communistic attitudes towards labor. Librarians acquaint younger workers with literature on the history of their plants with…

Examines reading habits of Estonians with studies dating back to the 1960s and discusses the impact of the printed word on culture. Focuses on changes since the Estonian's transition to the market economy: (1) reading has become casual and less frequent; (2) literary preferences have shifted; and (3) smaller home libraries have increased the need…

This book draws on an extensive literature review and personal experience to examine cross-cultural issues in the development of libraries for Arctic indigenous communities. Although the book highlights circumstances in Alaska, its geographical scope is circumpolar, including Canada, Greenland, and the former Soviet Union and present-day Russian…

The Commissioner's introduction to Volume 1 includes state school system statistics. Chapter I addresses vacation schools, playgrounds, and settlements, with discussion of poor children in major cities, playground conditions, playground social conditions, play psychology, and settlement-movement history. Subsequent chapters cover laws concerning…

Volume 2 begins with discussion of Hopkins Grammar School history, Greek language issues, and Justin S. Morrill's legislative career. Miscellaneous topics cover Indian Territory, backward children in public schools, U.S. engineering education, Christian Brothers schools founder St. Jean Baptiste de La Salle, public library development, Delft's…