ACRL College & Research Libraries News

College & Research Libraries News

Fast Facts

Ann Viles

→ Internet use levels out

A recent Harris Poll found that the percentage of adults in the United States using the Internet has not changed significantly since last year. A telephone survey completed last month found that 64 percent of adults or approximately 127 million are online, an increase of only one percent over last year. The proportion of adults online increased from 9 percent in 1995 to 63 percent in 2000.

"Internet Penetration Has Leveled Out Over the Last 12 Months," Harris Poll #55, November 7, 2001. http:// www.harrisinteractive.com/harris_poll/index.asp?PID=266. Dec. 3, 2001

→ Government Printing Office

The Government Printing Office (GPO), established in 1860, sells about 12,000 different publications of government agencies, administers the depository library program in 1,400 libraries, and provides more than 70 federal publications online.

"U.S. Government Printing Office." Office of Congressional and Public Affairs, Government Printing Office. http://www.access.gpo.gov/aboutgpo/bld3.html. Dec. 3, 2001

The GPO was appropriated a total of $110.6 million for fiscal year 2002 and has more than 3,200 full time equivalent (FTE) employees. GPO Access, the GPO’s Internet site provides access to “more than 200,000 titles and is used by the public to retrieve 30 million documents each month.”

"GPO's Appropriations for FY 2002 Approved," Office of Congressional, Legislative Public Affairs, Government Printing Office, http://www.gpo.gov/public-affairs/news/01news28.html. Dec. 4, 2001

→ Center for Research Libraries

Among the eclectic research collections at the Center for Research Libraries in

Chicago are about 800,000 foreign doctoral dissertations, college catalogs dating back as many as one hundred years, all the documents of the Nuremberg Trials, and thousands of international newspapers. Founded by 13 schools in 1949 as the Midwest Inter-Library Center, the membership of the center now includes more than 200 institutions.

William Hageman, "Chicago's Hidden Temple of Esoterica," Chicago Tribune Internet Edition, Nov. 27, 2001. http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/lifestyle/chi-0111270010nov27.story?coll=chi%2Dleisure%2Dhed. Dec. 4, 2001

→ Florida's largest library

Nova Southeastern University’s new Library, Research, and Information Technology Center, with an official opening held December 8, “will be Florida’s largest library at full capacity.” The new facility has 20 electronic classrooms, a 2,000-square-foot exhibit hall, and a 500-seat auditorium.

"NSU Reaches Out to Students Worldwide with New Library," Nova Southeastern University, http:// www.nova.edu/cwis/ia/pubaffairs/news/nsu-reachout-lib.html. Dec. 4, 2001

→ Information science articles in electronic journals

A study of 28 e-journals finds the number of information science articles contained in the journals increasing from 26 in 1995 to an expected 250 articles in

2001. “About two-thirds of the articles originate in academic institutions. Common topics of e-journal articles in information science include electronic information, electronic publishing, virtual (digital) libraries, information search and retrieval, and use of the Internet.”

Donald T. Hawkins, "Bibliometrics of Electronic Journals in Information Science," Information Research 7, no.1 (2001). http://lnformationR.net/ir/7-1/paper120.html. Dec. 5, 2001

Ann Viles is coordinator of reference and instruction at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina, e-mail: vilesea@conrad.appstate.edu