Scientists Press For Boost In Federal Library Funding

New committee says paper collections are threatened, but librarians say that the information glut demands new acquisitions strategies A committee of more than 130 scientists from different disciplines--newly organized by a consultant with longstanding ties to several commercial academic publishers- -is calling for more federal funding for research libraries. Increasingly, they say, libraries are failing to keep collections of sci

Written byFranklin Hoke

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New committee says paper collections are threatened, but librarians say that the information glut demands new acquisitions strategies

A committee of more than 130 scientists from different disciplines--newly organized by a consultant with longstanding ties to several commercial academic publishers- -is calling for more federal funding for research libraries. Increasingly, they say, libraries are failing to keep collections of science books and journals up to date because they lack money for acquisitions. They warn that, in time, the declining accessibility of these materials may threaten their investigations.

Librarians and scientific society officials say, however, that the problem of keeping abreast of scientific information is more complicated than the committee and its Bridgeport, Conn.-based consultant organizer, Albert Henderson, would make it appear. They say that part of the acquisitions problem is the rising cost of journals-- especially some of those produced by the commercial academic publishers. In addition, the increasing specialization ...

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