Collection Development for Geosciences
I. Special Considerations for Collection Development
The various "hats" of Librarianship
- It is difficult or impossible to completely seprate the various aspects of Librarianship: Collection Devlopment, Reference, Instruction, Cataloging, etc. They all inter-relate.
Special Considerations for the Sciences
- Higher cost for journals and monographs
- High inflation, especially for journals
- Journals split ( and increase in cost) e.g. AGU's Journal of Geophysical Research (JGR).
- E-journal backfiles: Check the quality of illustrations (photos) before purchasing.
- Joseph, L.E., 2006, Image and figure quality; A study of Elsevier's Earth and Planetary Sciences electronic journal back file package: Library Collections, Acquisitions, and Technical Services v. 30, n. 3-4 (September-December), p. 162-168 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.lcats.2006.12.002>
- Erdman, J.M., 2006, Image quality in electronic journals; A case study of Elsevier geology titles: Library Collections, Acquisitions, and Technical Services, v. 30, n. 3-4 (September-December), p. 169-178 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.lcats.2006.08.002>
- Joseph, L.E. 2012; Improving the quality of online journals; Follow-up study of Elsevier’s backfiles image rescanning project. Library Collections, Acquisitions, and Technical Services (6 pages) http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.lcats.2011.08.001
- InterLibrary Loan: poor reproduction of photos, color, symbols, micrographs, although this is becoming less of a problem.
Special Considerations for Geology
Geology is interdisciplinary:
- Biology (Paleontology; Environmental)
- Anthropology (Physical Anthro/Paleontology; Archaeology/Geoarchaeology; Stratigraphy; Dating Methods)
- Environmental (Geochemistry; Hydrogeology, Hydrology)
- Climate Change (Paleontology; Palynology; Isotope Research; Atmospheric Science; Many others)
- Soil Science & Agriculture (Stratigraphy & Sedimentology; Paleopedology)
- Engineering (Petroleum Geology; Petroleum Engineering; Mining; Many others)
- Astronomy (Planetary Geology; Impacts, Meteorites, Volcanology)
- Physics (Geophysics; Rock Mechanics; other)
- Chemistry (Geochemistry)
- Geography (Physical Geography; Geomorphology)
- Others
A lot of material is not covered by the approval plan:
- Society & Association Publications (memoirs, special papers; transactions): Geological Society of America, American Association of Petroleum Geologists, Geological Society of London, American Geophysical Union and many others.
- Gray literature (field trip guidebooks, open file reports, workshops, company documents/proprietary, data sets, etc.)
- Foreign Publishers (with added exchange rate costs)
- Government publications:
- Much USGS material was formerly free through the depository program.
- The Gov Docs dept at UIUC is no longer selecting for the Geology Lib.; We are getting USGS material through Law Library.
- Government cut-backs; closure of government agencies & departments. USGS Library problems; also, problems with EPA materials.
- May be fewer publications
- May have to purchase them
- A lot of publications are going online; do we go ahead and purchase print when electronic is available? Interior site closed down twice by courts due to law suits (electronic unstable) . What about archiving electronic materials, given the problems with shut-downs? (Should libraries make print copies?)
- The USGS has made major advances in online publications in the last few years. Visit the USGS Publications Warehouse: http://infotrek.er.usgs.gov/pubs/
- State surveys are in trouble financially. ISGS has discontinued the Gifts & Exchanges Program. We will now need to purchase the material that once came free of charge.
- State survey electronic publications are not stable, e.g. field trip guidebooks from ISGS no longer online; URLs have changed (problem for GeoRef), etc.
Maps
- Print (special storage considerations; heavy; space; location)
- Digital (Migrate formats? GIS? Hardware/software/help for users? Training for staff? Printers/Plotters?). More and more maps are becoming available online in digital format from state and federal surveys. USGS: http://ngmdb.usgs.gov/
- Cataloging: Maps require special skills.
Problems during budget crises:
- Monographs: If you don't purchase an item during the first year, it may not be available later (out of print). Although, this is changing with "print on demand" services.
- Journals: It is difficult to fill in gaps & subscriptions are rarely reinstated when the budget improves.
- In other words: It is very difficult to recover from a constrained budget.
- Approval plans get cut during budget crises, putting further pressure on subject area budgets. Multidisciplinary books fall through the cracks even more than usual.
Relative size of university and department affects budget:
- In many ways, the fate of a unit library is tied to the fate of the department (remember that when interviewing for a job)
- Allocation/Reallocation formulas, etc., are affected by department size.
- A department may be larger than at another university, but the relative size compared to other departments on campus may affect the budget.
Gifts and Exchanges
- Exchange programs: Formerly, many agencies and societies would trade publications. This was a good way to get material for the library. With budget cuts, many agencies and societies have discontinued their exchange programs. It is now necessary to purchase this information, if available. It is different to keep track of exchanges, resulting in gaps in series.
- Gifts: With budget cuts, gifts are more important than ever. It is wise to begin, and to build, endowments for collections. One source for gifts consists of program alumni. Some departments are reluctant to approach, or allow libraries to approach alumni because gifts to the department may be deflected to the library. Other departments will help libraries seek funding. It is wise to be sensitive to the views of the department. Some libraries may cut state funding to subjects if gifts and endowments are available to that area, reducing the advantage.
Other Collection Development Considerations:
- Changes in emphasis in teaching/research of the Geology Department should affect collection development. Departments will rarely say they will need more money for the library when adding classes or changing programs because that would be a strike against getting the change approved at the campus level.
- Weeding: Depends on university library policy & philosophy, and the availabiltity of high density shelving.
- Storage: Related to weeding. Shelf space is expensive. Many larger universities are building remote shelving facilities. Need good turn-around time for patrons requesting material. Some states are reducing the number of duplicates held in remote shelving.
- Budget Cycle:
- If you don't pay for materials ordered during the current year, you lose the money twice (Money doesn't carry over to the next year).
- Budget is tied to the State Budget, the University Budget, and the size of the department.
- E-journals
- E-Journal packages (Pros & cons)
- Cost: Central vs. Unit
- Consortia
- Backfiles (one-time purchase vs. subscription model)
- A Geology journal aggregate (GeoscienceWorld) has started. (Pros& cons)
- AAPG Datapages (Perpetual access option)
- Geological Society of London (Lyell Collection) - subscription
- American Geophysical Union Digital Library for journals - subscription
- There used to be debate about whether to cut print journals in favor of electronic (archiving, patron PR, etc). There has been a definite shift toward e-only at UIUC, at least in the sciences.
- E-books:
- Differences in Collection Development due to the institution:
- Size of budget varies
- May or may not have an approval plan
- May or may not be able to swap money between funds
- Differences between what is funded centrally (electronic indexes, electronic journals, etc.)
- May be responsible for multiple subject areas (e.g. physical sciences vs. geology only)
- Different emphases on ownership vs. access
- Smaller institutions will not be able to afford as many serials, perhaps not even all the important ones
- Some formats may be the responsibility of other librarians (e.g. Government Documents; Maps)
- ILL may differ (at some institutions, ILL is free to patrons; at others, patrons pay)
- Differences for research institutions vs. non-research institutions in regard to level collected
- Differences in price structure for research vs. non-research institutions and/or size of university or department (low price tier for non-research/smaller population)
- Differences in available statistics when considering cuts
- Space differences & availability of high density shelving facilities...affect weeding, etc.
- The combination of remote storage/shelving and electronic resources may result in pressure to downsize the print collection, and consolidate or close smaller libraries. I predict this will be an increasing trend at most large libraries.
- Digital Repositories
- For articles, documents, etc.
- For digital data
Results of Consolidating Libraries:
- Varies widely with each unique situation, even at the same institution.
- Often, much material is moved to high density shelving, if available. Amount of control by the subject librarian varies (how much material, where, what....)
- Subject librarian may be marginalized after the move, regarding decisions about the existing collection, and future decisions. It depends on the local administration, and the individual players.
II. Collection Development Tools for the Geosciences
For Monographs:
- Collection development policies
- Approval plan (some libraries don't have an approval plan)
- Vendor slips
- Catalogs (print and online)
- GSA & other society web pages
- USGS Publications Warehouse: http://infotrek.er.usgs.gov/pubs/
- Department faculty suggestions
- Gaps in the collection found from patron requests, working with classes, creating bibliographies.
- Geology listservs (Geonet) offer free material
- E-mail notices
- Book Reviews
- Web Resources:
Contins & Mono Contins
- Societies & Associations (Geological Society of America, American Association of Petroleum Geologists, Geological Society of London, etc.)
- State Surveys
- Foreign Surveys
- Foreign pubs
- Book Reviews in pubs
- Questions to ask yourself related to Standing Orders: Do we need everything in this series? How can we check regularly for new publications in the series if it is not a standing order? If it is a standing order, how can we check regularly to make sure we are getting everything (claiming)?
- Series in Geology Spreadsheet: https://sites.google.com/site/lurascollections/collections/seriesingeology1.xlsx
- Field trip guidebooks: https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/luraj/GSIS/Guidebooks/SocietyContinuingSeries
- ISSNs
Journals
- Backserv (See Geology Librarian's Resources)
- Lists of e-journals (See Geology Librarian's Resources)
- URL's on covers of journals
- Packages; Consortia; Central vs. Unit funding
- Use studies; print and electronic
Reference Material
Sources
Ward, D.C. et al., 1981, Geologic Reference Sources
Ward, D.C., and Carozzi, A.V., 1984, Geology Emerging
Hurt, C.D., 1994, Information Sources in Science and Technology
Katz, W.A., 2001, Introduction to Reference Work
Others
Abstracts, Indexes, Bibliographies
GeoRef(online); many different vendors
Many others (see)
Dictionaries & Thesauri
Neuendorf, et al., 2005, Glossary of Geology, 5th ed.: Alexandria, VA, American Geological Institute. (also available online by subscription)
Goodman, B.A., ed., 2009?, GeoRef Thesaurus, 11th ed.: Alexandria, VA, American Geological Institute
Specialized language dictionaries
Other Specialized
Specialized Encyclopedias (can be from one to many volumes). A few of the many examples:
Encyclopedia of Geochemistry
Encyclopedia of Geology
Encyclopedia of Geomagnetism and Paleomagnetism
Encyclopedia of Geomorphology
Encyclopedia of Ocean Sciences
Encyclopedia of Paleontology
Encyclopedia of Planetary Sciences
Encyclopedia of Quaternary Science
Encyclopedia of Sedimentology
Encyclopedia of Sediments and Sedimentary Rocks
Encyclopedia of Water Science
Treatise on Geochemistry
Treatise on Geophysics
Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology
Handbooks (a few examples):
Handbook of Mineralogy
Handbook of Hydrology
Handbook of Geochemistry
Handbook of Paleontology
ISGS Bulletins:
Handbook of Illinois Stratigraphy (Bulletin 95)
Pleistocene Stratigraphy (Bulletin 94)
Atlases (examples)
World Atlas of Coral Reefs
Argillaceous rock atlas
Atlas of economic mineral deposits
National Atlas
Directories (example)
Directory of Geoscience Departments
Text Books
General (e.g. Chicago Manual of Style; Online; Biographical)
Online vs. Print
Maps & GIS
Maps: Dealers, Catalogs, & Indexes
Map Librarians' Toolbox - WAML
National Geologic Map Database - USA
GeoRef
Commission for the Geological Map of the World
U.S. National Atlas
The National Map
GIS: a lot available online; CDs; agencies; scales & projections; hardware & software; training
Google Earth
Flashearth
Other
Society Memberships
III. Geoloscience Reference and Instruction
Geoscience Libraianship 101
Created 02/25/04 lej
Reorganized 6/12/2012
Updated 02/17/2015 lej