Forty Projects Funded to Improve Access to Electronic Health Information for the Public
Professional Reading Shelf
Health Information--United States--Funding
Source: NLM Forty Projects Funded to Improve Access to Electronic Health Information for the Public
"The National Library of Medicine is pleased to announce that 40 projects to improve access to electronic health information for the general public have been funded in 24 states. All projects will last up to eighteen months. Funding for the projects was provided through the National Network of Libraries of Medicine."
-- Libraries
Source: New York Times Making a Web Search Feel Like a Stroll in the Library
A commercial/general web engine is not a library for many reasons. I'm sure you can list several. Here's one: Libraries -- in the physical sense -- and even many electronic resources/digital libraries (free and fee) are controlled and well organized. Web search engines do offer access to data (although making it available in a timely manner can be an issue), but the organization of that data is something that still needs a great deal of work in the world of general web engines like Google, Yahoo and others. Jeeves is doing good work with Smart Search, as is Vivisimo, with dynamic clustering. (More about clustering in a post yesterday). We can refrain from discussing all the information that's not accessible on the open web, all the information that hasn't been digitized (books still matter), info quality, and other ways commercial web search engines are not libraries. From the article: "A visit to the school library was once a necessity before writing term papers or reports. But nowadays, many students use the Internet as their library. However convenient it may be to search the Web from home or a dorm room, the Internet cannot replace many of the built-in benefits of the library, like browsing the stacks for related information that could add spark and depth to an essay or a report. But researchers are working on more flexible approaches to searching for digital information not only on the Web, but on one's own hard drive, where elusive details may be scattered through photos, e-mail and other files."
See Also: Home Page of Dr. Marti Hearst
and while we're on the topic... Law Libraries
Source: Bangor Daily News Law library still relies on hard copy in time of Google
From the article: "During that time, Bennett has decreased the number of books purchased to pay for online research services like Westlaw, a key site for topics in business law, criminal justice and paralegal studies and treatises that include analysis of recent decisions in specialty areas of the law such as education, trademark and patent, labor and real estate. Bennett said that while the number of attorneys using the library might have decreased over the years because of expanded online services, the public is using the library more often. Many people come to the law library after they fail to find what they need at their local public library."
Public Libraries
Source: LA Times New City Librarian Named in Los Angeles
"Mayor James K. Hahn has tapped 30-year city librarian Fontayne Holmes to head the Los Angeles Public Library and its 71 branches, a system that serves a larger population than any library system in the country."
-- Libraries--Italy
Source: Reuters Italian library crack down
From the article: " Italy's Senate library is getting tough on forgetful lawmakers demanding they return books on Adolf Hitler and other subjects that are up to 25 years overdue. In letters and calls to the absent-minded bibliophiles, including a former senate president, the library recently issued a gentle plea for the safe return of books on everything from French philosophy to Italian law. "With a letter or a phone call, we say: Attention. A certain period has passed, so please return them in a good will gesture to the library," a library official said, explaining the campaign to reclaim the literature.
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