ACRL College & Research Libraries News

College & Research Libraries News

New Publications

George M, Eberhart

Access to Information: Materials, Technologies, and Services for Print-Im- paired Readers,by Tom McNulty and Dawn M. Suvino (1Ó2 pages, March 1993), examines the ways in which computer technology can increase access to print materials for the blind, visu- ally impaired, and learning disabled readers. Chapters cover the use of braille text, audio output systems, large- print and large-screen technologies, standard library programs and ser- vices, and specifications for creating a library access center. Appendices provide information on relevant agencies and associations, prod- ucts and vendors, resources for locating texts in accessible formats, and selected accessible- format reference sources. Copies are available for $28.00 from ALA Publishing, 50 E. Huron St., Chicago, IL 60611. ISBN 0-8389-7641-7.

Community College Libraries: Centers for Lifelong Learning,by Rosanne Kalick (204 pages, 1992), brings together ten essays on excellence in community college librarianship. Contributors include Camila A. Alire and Alice Beverley Gass, William V. Costanzo, Antoinette M. Kania, and Gloria B. Meisel. A noteworthy chapter by Alan Dyment assesses learning resource centers in Canada. A copy may be ordered for $27.50 from Scarecrow Press, P.O. Box 4167, Metuchen, NJ 08840. ISBN 0-8108-2607-0.

Continuity and Change in Brazil and the Southern Cone: Research Trends and Library Collections for the Year 2000,edited by Ann Hartness (361 pages, March 1993), contains the papers presented at the 35th Annual Meeting of the Seminar on the Acquisition of Latin American Library Materials held in Rio de Janeiro, June 3-8, 1990. Topics include a statistical survey of Latin American collections, Argentine popular theater, Brazilian political publications from 1978 to 1989, trends in the economies of Uruguay and Brazil, index coverage of Latin American materials in the Southern Cone, and a checklist of materials on the transition from authoritarianism to democracy in Chile. Copies are available for $50.00 (plus $2.50 handling) from the SALALM Secretariat, General Library, University of New Mexico, Albuquer- que, NM 87131. ISBN 0- 917617-30-4.

Culture of Complaint: The Fraying of America,by Robert Hughes (210 pages, March 1993), best- selling author of The Shock of the New and The Fatal Shore unleashes some sting- ing social criticism of Ameri- can political and cultural values. Based on a series of lectures given at the New York Public Library in January 1992, Hughes’s essays portray current obsessions with family-values rhetoric and political correctness as opposing extremist poles of an inability to accept nonideological multiculturalism. He calls for a return to the fruitful middle ground of acceptance and compromise that has been America’s strength in the past and should con- tinue to be its strength in the future. A passion- ate yet scholarly work, Culture of Complaint will engender lively debate and considerable controversy among students of American cul- ture. A copy may be ordered for $19.95 from Oxford University Press, 200 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016. Copublished by the New York Public Library. ISBN 0-19-507676-1.

The Elections of 1992,edited by Michael Nelson (192 pages, March 1993), consists of eight essays that address the dynamics of the 1992 presidential and congressional elections. Election analysis from the earliest caucuses and primaries through the potential achievements of the Clinton administration, with close scrutiny given to the effect of Ross Perot’s candidacy and the role played by the media. The book costs $25.95 and may be ordered from CQ Press, 300 Raritan Center Parkway, P.O. Box 7816, Edison, NJ 08818-7816. ISBN 0-87187-937-9.

From Sails to Satellites: The Origin and Development of Navigational Science,by J. E. D. Williams (310 pages, April 1993), examines the art and science of knowing exactly where one is on the sea or in the sky. Williams describes dead reckoning, astrolabes and crossstaffs, the development of spherical trigonometry and logarithms, the “Great Pursuit” of accurate measures of longitude and the chronometer, bubble sextants, magnetic compasses, lighthouses, gyroscopes, radio direction-finding systems, radar, and geosynchronous satellites. Technical enough to be accurate, Williams’s style is nonetheless informal and filled with entertaining anecdotes, illustrations, and diagrams. A copy may be purchased for $35.00 from Oxford University Press, 200 Madison Ave., New York, NY 10016. ISBN 0-19- 856387-6.

Internet Primer for Information Professionals: A Basic Guide to Internet Networking Technology,by Elizabeth Lane and Craig Summerhill (181 pages, March 1993), is a concise introduction to the Internet networks, how they work, and what they offer to users. In addition to descriptions of Internet services and network protocols, the authors provide an overview of the significant policy issues facing the network—including the transformation of the academic community through access to network information. A good supplement to Ed Krol’s “The Whole Internet ”(C&KL News, December 1992). The book costs $37.50 and is available from Meckler Corporation, 11 Ferry Lane West, Westport, CT 06880. ISBN 0-88736-831-X.

Mysterious Realms: Probing Paranormal, Historical, and Forensic Enigmas,by Joe Nickell and John F. Fischer (221 pages, February 1993), delves into ten different historical and scientific mysteries, including the ghost haunting a historic landmark in Frankfort, Kentucky; a forged Harry Truman document; English crop circles; spontaneous human combustion; eyeless sight; the identity of Lee Harvey Oswald; and the liquefying blood of St. Januarius. Written as a casebook in detective work and critical thinking, this collection will supplement courses in document analysis and criminalistics. A copy may be ordered for $23.95 from Prometheus Books, 700 E. Amherst St., Buffalo, NY 14215. ISBN 0-87975-765-5.

The 1992 ARL Annual Salary Survey,compiled by Gordon Fretwell (92 pages, January 1993), is based on data covering more than 12,000 professional positions in the 120 member libraries of the ARL. Tables display average, median, and beginning salaries; salaries by position and experience, sex, and race; and salaries in different geographic regions and sizes of libraries. Additional tables cover law, medical, Canadian, and nonuniversity research libraries. The survey is available by prepaid order to ARL member institutions for $20.00 and to individuals and nonmembers for $60.00. Write to ARL, 1527 New Hampshire Ave., N.W., Washington, DC 20036.

Research and Evaluation for Information Professionals,by Robert M. Losee Jr. and Karen A. Worley (239 pages, January 1993), is an introductory textbook on information science research methodology, analysis, and presentation. The authors have emphasized the appropriateness of selected tests for particular hypotheses and the proper interpretation of results rather than the mathematics itself, which is often performed with the help of statistical software. A copy may be ordered for $45.00 from Academic Press, 1250 Sixth Ave., San Diego, CA 92101-4311. ISBN 0-12-455770-8.

Russia and the Independent States,by Daniel C. Diller (481 pages, January 1993), places the vast changes in the former Soviet Union in historical and cultural context. Gives an account of Russian history from its beginnings; describes relations among the newly independent states, the economy, foreign policy, and relations with the United States; and presents geographical and political profiles of each of the 15 former republics. Includes a detailed chronology of Russian history from 1900 to the present, biographies of 50 influential Russian leaders, a bibliography, and selected documents. Copies are available for $34.95 from Congressional Quarterly Books, 300 Raritan Center Parkway, P.O. Box 7816, Edison, NJ 08818-7816. ISBN 0-87187-862-3.

Serials Cataloging: Modem Perspectives and International Developments,edited by Jim E. Cole and James W. Williams (415 pages, February 1993), covers developments in serials librarianship over the past five years. Topics include cataloging policy for microform reproductions, education for serials catalogers, the usefulness of uniform titles, the origins of the International Serials Data System (ISDS), and the Linked Systems Project and serials cataloging. This volume has been published simultaneously as The Serials Librarian, vol. 22, nos. 1-4. Copies are available for $75.00 from the Haworth Press, 10 Alice Street, Binghamton, NY 13904-1580. ISBN 1-56024-281-7. ■