An explanation of the federal government's Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) and how it relates to commercial business publications commonly used as tools by the reference librarian. (JAB)

It is proposed that the conversational language used in interactive retrieval systems should become standard, at least as far as the technical terms and symbols used by the user are concerned. If that effort is successful, a standards efforts in the area of a code of practice or recommended methods for operation could be developed. (Author)

The need for a system that would indicate the interrelationships of materials on a specific topic and provide quick access to multimedia materials for students is discussed. (JAB)

This paper discusses patent information retrieval from online files in terms of types of questions, file contents, coverage, timeliness, and other file variations. CLAIMS, Derwent, WPI, APIPAT and Chemical Abstracts Service are described. (KP)

Citing examples, this article asserts that the Bureau of Indian Affairs restricts access to historical records and that its personnel in the Records Research Office are not trained as historians or archivists but as clerk typists. (JC)

Describes search tactics useful for online searching and how to use them, and identifies the points in a search at which they are most useful. An extended example shows how all the tactics may be used in an online search. (EM)

Presents an annotated list of 17 references dealing with various topics related to telecommunications and online systems. (JN)

Presents third installment of directory published in four parts in June and August issues of "Database" and July and September "Online." Description, company, compatibility, type of laserdisk, search and retrieval software, interface with magnetic media, conditions of usage, price, and status information are given for 11 products. Company names…

Explores scientific inquiry as philosophical and behavioral model for online search specialist and information retrieval process. Nature of scientific research is described and online analogs to research concepts of variable, hypothesis formulation and testing, operational definition, validity, reliability, assumption, and cyclical nature of…

The logic of different types of weighting are discussed, and experiments testing weighting schemes of these types are described. The results show that one type of weighting leads to material performance improvements in quite different collection environments. (22 references) (Author)

A new method of indexing functional groups in organic compounds is described, utilizing the Cahn-Ingold-Prelog sequence rule. Functional carbon atoms are first classified by functionality, a measure of the oxidation state, then ordered by means of a modified sequence rule. Substructure searching and other applications are discussed. (30…

An explanation of the regulation of forms, reports, correspondence, files, and records centers as required for the systematic control of active and inactive records. (JB)

A prototype of an interactive, conversational mass spectral search system, developed at the National Institutes of Health, has been tested since September 1971 and is now being used by more than 200 scientists in the U.S. and Canada, and will soon be used by the international mass spectrometry community. (17 references) (SJ)

Abstracts of a document have been generally considered a valuable aid to the reader in quickly determining the relevance of a document. A test of this hypothesis in three military laboratories was not supported. (71 references) (Author/SJ)

Through utilization of a subroutine which provides statistical information on relative usage of keywords, a conventional scientific and technical information (STINFO) retrieval system answers questions usually associated with a management information system. (1 reference) (Author/SJ)