Presents results of a survey of five volumes of the "Journal of the American Society for Information Science (JASIS)," one for each decade of JASIS's existence. Discusses findings related to growth of JASIS and authorship, national versus international authorship, coauthoring of papers, author productivity, author gender, author…

Describes some of the problems in documentation work rising from the habit of detaching information from any physical support, as a prevailing notion in an electronic environment. Points to the necessity of regarding information as something closely connected with preservation. Suggests a clearer distinction in information science between…

Discussion of the professional education of information workers argues the importance of core skills development but also reaffirms the value of library history. Examines the historical dynamics of the birth of the profession, alongside the modern library, in order to gain a critical perspective on contemporary postmodern libraries. (Contains 25…

Examines the history of the information profession, beginning with Melvil Dewey's first library education program. Discusses the concept of a profession; character; authority; power; cultural authority; access to information; the utilization of information as power; public librarianship; and the organization of information. (LRW)

Identifies and defines the more commonly used terms and phrases which have been used to describe the evolving online/electronic/virtual/digital library phenomenon. Includes findings from an examination of keywords increasingly found in the literature of library and information science as well as of computer science based on a 1970-1997…

Provides a social and economic context to the information revolution and women's part in it. Speculates on how current and near-term developments in information technology can benefit women scientists from all disciplines. Discusses some of the efforts of the National Science Foundation (NSF) to increase the participation of women in computer and…

Defines the Year 2000 Problem, and discusses when and where it occurs, its scale and its solutions. Examines awareness, attitudes and responses toward the problem in general, and then more specifically among information professionals. (Author/AEF)

A metatheoretical framework is reviewed, and the qualitative/quantitative dichotomy, prevalent in library and information science (LIS), is critiqued. Standpoint epistemology, as a critique of existing power-knowledge relationships, is discussed as a research strategy that can provide a starting point for re-conceptualizing LIS research. (AEF)

Discusses the commitment of universities to developing and using knowledge for the improvement of society, highlighting efforts in library and information science. Describes service learning that includes community service; community-building initiatives by librarians; and four examples of service learning in programs of library and information…

This study used citation analysis to investigate the characteristics of library and information science (LIS) literature published in Denmark from 1957 to 1986. The information exchange between the Danish library and information profession and LIS communities in other countries is examined, and the large proportion of hidden references is…

Describes a study that sought to understand the pragmatic or operational nature of relevance by examining five individuals' pertinence behavior. Kelly's Personal Construct Theory is applied to the concept of pertinence, personal constructs concerning pertinence are examined, and implications for information science are considered. (Contains nine…

Lays down theoretical groundwork for information retrieval (IR) that involves the combined efforts of several users, and argues that the fundamental intellectual problems of IR are the production and consumption of knowledge. Highlights include collaboration in IR, examples of collaborative information systems and services, and future research…

Presents abstracts of papers for a planned session dealing with the historiography and history of information science. Highlights include probability distributions underlying the use of library materials, particularly scientific journals; the temporal and historical orientation of the rhetoric of information science; and concepts of information…

This column assesses the state of library and information studies (LIS) research. Researchers and practitioners in various LIS fields address questions related to the research front and agenda for collection development; what the field needs to advance further; whether it needs a more sophisticated conceptual or theoretical framework; operational…

Continues previous research on indirect-collective referencing (ICR) in physics literature, focusing on the level of communications and specific degree of documentedness of a communication. Explains ICR as a special kind of scientific referencing, mentioning references that are not indexed and hence not included in the Science Citation Index. (LRW)