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Collection Development and Materials Selection Policy
Pure Sciences (500-599) The science and math collection is designed to meet the needs of both the student (junior high through beginning college level) and the inquiring non-student. Included are both popularizations of technical subjects, and more detailed or specialized treatments. The library also has a sizeable collection of science fair project books (along with project indexes in Reference). Influencing Factors As in most public libraries, the 500s are one of the smallest areas of the collection. The only basis for this small size appears to be tradition. The continuing explosion of knowledge in the sciences warrants a substantially larger collection. Further justification for expansion comes from the fact that, despite it's size, as a whole the 500s circulate as much as the rest of the collection, and some areas circulate two or more times the collection average. In addition to the standard selection tools, Science Books and Films and publishers' catalogs are used for selection. Since the standard sources devote significantly less space to pure sciences than to most other subjects, it is often necessary to purchase from publishers' catalogs based only on need and the reputation of the publisher. Rarely should more than one copy of a title be purchased. The 500s contain subjects in which information is quickly dated or even proven wrong (physics, astronomy, etc.), as well as subjects where information is nearly timeless (mathematics). Therefore, weeding must be aggressive in the more time-sensitive areas to ensure the availability of accurate, up-to-date information, while in other areas retention can be based more on condition and level of use. For the more time-sensitive subjects, anything over 2-3 years old should be closely examined for accuracy. Extensive weeding of out-dated materials has reduced the collection by as much as 50% in some subjects. Purchasing must therefore be adequate to restore the collection to its previous size, and significantly beyond that level, should a decision be made to expand the scope of the science collection. While popular titles should continue to form a major portion of the collection, any expansion beyond the previous level should be directed primarily towards more technical works. |
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