College and Research Libraries B y F . J . H A R S A G H Y , J R . Roads to Aeronaui Mr. Harsaghy is reviews editor, Institute of the Aeronautical Sciences, New York. I N T R O D U C T I O N THE ROADS to a e r o n a u t i c a l research are m a n y : broad and n a r r o w . T h e y reach as a n e t w o r k a l l o v e r the w o r l d , h a v i n g been b u i l t by g o v e r n m e n t a l and p r i v a t e agencies f o r v a r i o u s purposes. U l t i m a t e l y , in this e x p a n d i n g air age in w h i c h w e l i v e , they lead to both w a r and peace. A t the i m p o r t a n t crossroads of the w o r l d stand institutes, f o u n d a t i o n s , associations, societies, and o t h e r bodies in w h o s e libraries and research f a c i l i t i e s f a r - r e a c h i n g investi- g a t i o n s are b e i n g c o n d u c t e d . O f the m a n y d i f f e r e n t types of bodies f u r t h e r i n g the field of a e r o n a u t i c a l research, the R o y a l A e r o - n a u t i c a l S o c i e t y in B r i t a i n , the N a t i o n a l A e r o n a u t i c a l R e s e a r c h I n s t i t u t e s in the N e t h e r l a n d s and in S w e d e n , M a s s a c h u s e t t s I n s t i t u t e of T e c h n o l o g y and the N a t i o n a l A d v i s o r y C o m m i t t e e f o r A e r o n a u t i c s in the U n i t e d States are b u t a token f e w . A m o n g such e m i n e n t bodies, w e find the I n s t i t u t e of the A e r o n a u t i c a l Sciences, 1 w i t h its head- q u a r t e r s located in N e w Y o r k . T h e o b j e c t i v e of this paper is to describe the f u n c t i o n i n g of the I A S l i b r a r y in N e w Y o r k C i t y and of the I A S d o c u m e n t a t i o n service w h i c h is published m o n t h l y in the Aeronautical Engineering Review, an offi- cial I A S p u b l i c a t i o n . P A R T I — L I B R A R Y S E R V I C E S T h e p r i n c i p a l aim of the I n s t i t u t e l i b r a r y in N e w Y o r k is to p r o v i d e the r e a d e r or researcher w i t h the l i t e r a t u r e required to f u r t h e r i n v e s t i g a t i o n s and research. T h i s 1 H e r e i n a f t e r referred to as I A S . ical Research aim is d i r e c t l y related to the stated official policy of the I n s t i t u t e itself w h i c h seeks to f a c i l i t a t e the i n t e r c h a n g e of ideas a m o n g persons interested in the a d v a n c e m e n t of the a e r o n a u t i c a l sciences. T h e history of the l i b r a r y goes back to the f o u n d i n g of the I A S in 1 9 3 2 . H o w - ever, the l a r g e s t p o r t i o n of the c o l l e c t i o n w a s added in 1940, w h e n the W . A . M . B u r d e n L i b r a r y w a s loaned to the I A S and the P a u l K o l l s m a n L e n d i n g L i b r a r y w a s started. I n 1 9 5 0 , the collections of the W . A . M . B u r d e n L i b r a r y became an inte- g r a l p a r t of the I n s t i t u t e l i b r a r y . T h i s accretion m a d e a v a i l a b l e extensive and ad- d i t i o n a l c o v e r a g e on both g e n e r a l aero- n a u t i c a l topics and on specific t e c h n i c a l phases, some of w h i c h w i l l be e n u m e r a t e d in P a r t I I , as p a r t of a s u b j e c t b r e a k d o w n . T h e I n s t i t u t e l i b r a r y p r o v i d e s v a r i o u s f u n c t i o n a l services to a p o t e n t i a l readership of over 10,000 i n d i v i d u a l and c o r p o r a t e m e m b e r s w h o are entitled to use l i b r a r y and i n f o r m a t i o n a l facilities. A m o n g these services, the r e a d i n g and r e f e r e n c e , c i r c u l a - tion, and d u p l i c a t i n g services ( p h o t o s t a t i n g , m i c r o f i l m i n g , e t c . ) are of prime i m p o r t a n c e . T h e l i b r a r y c o l l e c t i o n consists of a p p r o x i - m a t e l y 50,000 items, of w h i c h a b o u t 18,000 are w e l l - s e l e c t e d books. T h e r e m a i n d e r of the c o l l e c t i o n is m a d e up of scientific and t e c h n i c a l reports f r o m all o v e r the w o r l d , periodicals, p a m p h l e t s , films, and miscella- neous and e p h e m e r a l m a t e r i a l s . I A S m e m - bers m a y b o r r o w these l i b r a r y m a t e r i a l s f o r a period of t w o w e e k s ( w i t h r e n e w a l p r i v i - l e g e s ) ; excepted are c e r t a i n r e f e r e n c e w o r k s and rare items. O t h e r s o v e r eighteen years old w i t h w e l l - d e f i n e d a e r o n a u t i c a l interests 164 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES and r e s i d i n g in the U n i t e d States m a y apply f o r membership in the P a u l K o l l s m a n L e n d i n g L i b r a r y , w h i c h w o u l d p e r m i t them to b o r r o w books and, as f a r as facilities per- mit, other research m a t e r i a l s . I n the case of rare items, the independ- e n t l y f u n c t i o n i n g I A S A e r o n a u t i c a l M u - seum has a close c o o p e r a t i v e w o r k i n g ar- r a n g e m e n t w i t h the l i b r a r y . O n e a c t i v i t y w h i c h i l l u s t r a t e s this c o o p e r a t i v e a r r a n g e - m e n t deals w i t h the I n s t i t u t e ' s collections of W r i g h t m e m o r a b i l i a , w h i c h w e r e used ex- tensively last y e a r t o c o m m e m o r a t e the his- toric F i f t i e t h A n n i v e r s a r y of P o w e r e d F l i g h t . T h e I A S l i b r a r y in N e w Y o r k also m a i n - tains a w o r k i n g a r r a n g e m e n t w i t h the Insti- t u t e ' s P a c i f i c A e r o n a u t i c a l L i b r a r y in L o s A n g e l e s . T h e P A L is u n d e r the direction of M r s . N e l l S t e i n m e t z and f u n c t i o n s as an independent a c t i v i t y s e r v i n g the technical libraries of the W e s t C o a s t aviation industry by p r o v i d i n g t h e m w i t h essential d a y - t o - d a y i n f o r m a t i o n needed t o c a r r y on their de- fense e f f o r t . T o a lesser e x t e n t this same type of relationship likewise is being main- tained w i t h the I A S l i b r a r y in San D i e g o . Some 300 pieces of l i b r a r y m a t e r i a l s are c i r c u l a t e d f r o m the N e w Y o r k l i b r a r y per m o n t h . F o r this purpose the postal service is used e x t e n s i v e l y , w i t h books b e i n g m a i l e d to distant points in the U n i t e d States and C a n a d a as one means of m a i n t a i n i n g con- nections w i t h the f a r - f l u n g membership. T h e I n s t i t u t e l i b r a r y in N e w Y o r k f u n c - tions w i t h a r e g u l a r staff of seven persons, i n c l u d i n g the l i b r a r i a n , J o h n J . G l e n n o n . A d m i n i s t r a t i v e l y , it is an i n t e g r a l p a r t of the I n s t i t u t e , w h i c h is a scientific m e m b e r - ship society d e r i v i n g financial s u p p o r t di- r e c t l y f r o m the a i r c r a f t i n d u s t r y . I n short, the f u n d a m e n t a l purpose of this I A S l i b r a r y is to p r o v i d e f u n c t i o n a l and pro- fessional specialized l i b r a r y service f u r t h e r - i n g the a e r o n a u t i c a l sciences. P A R T I I — A E R O N A U T I C A L R E V I E W S T h e " A e r o n a u t i c a l R e v i e w s " section w h i c h is published m o n t h l y in the Aeronau- tical Engineering Review, and w h i c h is c u m u l a t e d a n n u a l l y as the Aeronautical En- gineering Index, is an i m p o r t a n t p a r t of the i n f o r m a t i o n a l and editorial services of the I A S . T h e R e v i e w s D e p a r t m e n t f u n c t i o n - a l l y m a y be considered to be the i n d e x i n g and a b s t r a c t i n g a r m of the l i b r a r y . C o n s e - q u e n t l y , a p e r f e c t l y c o o r d i n a t e d and s m o o t h l y f u n c t i o n i n g liaison has been es- tablished and is b e i n g m a i n t a i n e d b e t w e e n the E d i t o r i a l R e v i e w s D e p a r t m e n t and the l i b r a r y o r g a n i z a t i o n . T h e policy d e t e r m i n i n g " A e r o n a u t i c a l R e v i e w s " c o v e r a g e stems d i r e c t l y f r o m the stated basic mission of the I n s t i t u t e as a w h o l e . T h e director of the I n s t i t u t e , S. P a u l J o h n s t o n , in an editorial published in the A p r i l , 1 9 5 0 , issue of the Aeronautical Engineering Review, on page 1 7 , has em- phasized t h a t : T h e basic mission of the Institute is to facilitate the interchange of ideas among aeronautical engineers to advance the aero- nautical sciences. A n d in an earlier editorial, published J a n - u a r y , 1 9 4 7 , {ibid.), on page 2 1 , he has stated c e r t a i n principles still h a v i n g v a l i d i t y t o d a y : W i t h the release of w a r t i m e restrictions on information, more and more significant articles are appearing in the technical press at home and abroad, and it is more im- portant than ever that I A S members every- where be given a brief, accurate, and cur- rent evaluation of them as fast as they appear. W i t h this in view, the Institute staff has been reorganized to bring the libraries and the Review closer together . . ., to extend the quantity and quality of our coverage. Classification of articles is being intensively studied and improved. A b s t r a c t s are being briefed by elimination of extrane- ous matter. A new style of presentation has been adopted which is consistent with APRIL, 1955 19 7 other technical abstracting services and which is geared into the indexing systems of technical libraries. W i t h the p h e n o m e n a l g r o w t h of aero- nautics, k e e p i n g pace w i t h its v a s t l i t e r a t u r e and t h a t of related fields has d e v e l o p e d into a v o l u m i n o u s task. T h e t r e m e n d o u s w e i g h t of the c o v e r a g e n o w b e i n g w r i t t e n up in p u b l i c a t i o n s a l l over the w o r l d requires a v e r y s t r i c t l y defined basis f o r selection of items to be i n c l u d e d in the Review. T h u s , only that l i t e r a t u r e is considered f o r in- clusion w h i c h r e p o r t s results of o r i g i n a l t h e o r e t i c a l or e x p e r i m e n t a l studies, or is concerned w i t h n e w d e v e l o p m e n t s in tech- niques, processes, or i n s t r u m e n t a t i o n . E x - tensive a u t h o r i t a t i v e s u m m a r i e s also are in- c l u d e d . A r t i c l e s w r i t t e n solely f r o m the s t a n d p o i n t s of n e w s or p o p u l a r i z a t i o n are e x c l u d e d . S u b j e c t - w i s e , w i t h i n a classified t r e a t - m e n t , aspects of a e r o d y n a m i c s , a i r p l a n e de- sign, p o w e r plants, s t r u c t u r e s , research, w i n d t u n n e l s , and f l i g h t o p e r a t i n g p r o b l e m s are g i v e n p r i m a r y emphasis in the selection process. O t h e r e l e m e n t s such as aeroelas- ticity, a i r p o r t s , flight testing, f u e l s and l u - bricants, g l i d e r s , l i g h t e r - t h a n - a i r c r a f t , spe- c i a l i z e d e q u i p m e n t , i n s t r u m e n t s , m a t e r i a l s , missiles, p a r a c h u t e s , propellers, s a f e t y , and t h e r m o d y n a m i c s also are c o v e r e d . I n ad- dition, there are m a n y related fields w h i c h are i n c l u d e d in this c o v e r a g e because of the i m p o r t a n t b e a r i n g on the a e r o n a u t i c a l sci- ences. A m o n g t h e m are air t r a n s p o r t a t i o n , a v i a t i o n medicine, c o m p u t e r s , e d u c a t i o n and t r a i n i n g , electronics, l a w s and r e g u l a t i o n s , m a c h i n e elements, m a t h e m a t i c s , mechanics and physics, m e t e o r o l o g y , m i l i t a r y a v i a t i o n , n a v i g a t i o n , o r d n a n c e and a r m a m e n t , p h o t o g - r a p h y , a i r c r a f t p r o d u c t i o n , and space t r a v e l . T h e m a i n d e v e l o p m e n t of the c o v e r a g e technique w a s s t a r t e d d u r i n g the l a t t e r p a r t of 1 9 4 6 . P r i o r to that date it w a s usual to c a r r y l a r g e n u m b e r s of items of v e r y g e n e r a l interest. T h e S e p t e m b e r , 1 9 4 6 , issue of the Aeronautical Engineering Review, f o r ex- ample, carried b u t 1 3 5 r e v i e w s of w h i c h ap- p r o x i m a t e l y 5 0 % w e r e n e w s o r p o p u l a r items, in m a n y cases, of o n l y c u r r e n t inter- est. T h i s contrasts s h a r p l y w i t h the c o v e r - age f o r S e p t e m b e r , 1 9 5 3 , w h e n 4 1 6 items w e r e i n c l u d e d . O f these 2 1 7 w e r e c a r r i e d w i t h a n n o t a t i o n s and the r e m a i n i n g 1 9 9 w e r e listed, each w i t h a descriptive title, a u t h o r or a u t h o r s u s u a l l y , and the source. T h e s u b j e c t s i n c l u d e d in these 4 1 6 items w e r e confined e n t i r e l y to the three strictly defined c o v e r a g e categories listed above. W i t h o u t d o u b t the presently used selection p r o c e s s — a i m e d at the m a i n t e n a n c e of c u r - rency and at the broadest possible c o v e r a g e of u s e f u l items in the l i t e r a t u r e — a n d the system of brief item citations developed d u r i n g the past s e v e r a l years to c a r r y o u t these aims are to be c r e d i t e d f o r this l a r g e increase in c o v e r a g e . A better appreciation m a y be had by c o n s i d e r i n g the m a g n i t u d e of the problem f a c i n g the R e v i e w s D e p a r t m e n t and the l i b r a r y s h a r i n g the responsibility of de- t e r m i n i n g selection policies. R e g u l a r l y , ap- p r o x i m a t e l y 500 specialized periodicals and serials are received at the I n s t i t u t e . O f these a p p r o x i m a t e l y 200 are w e e d e d o u t in the l i b r a r y w i t h o u t b e i n g r o u t e d i n t o the R e v i e w s D e p a r t m e n t f o r v a r i o u s reasons, i n c l u d i n g t h a t of l i m i t e d scope, over-special- i z a t i o n of c o v e r a g e , and because of difficul- ties in the use of certain f o r e i g n m a t e r i a l s . O f the r e m a i n i n g 300, a p p r o x i m a t e l y 5 0 % are a l w a y s used as sources and 3 0 % are used to a lesser e x t e n t . T h e r e m a i n i n g 2 0 % are used o n l y o c c a s i o n a l l y . In addi- tion, an a v e r a g e of a p p r o x i m a t e l y 1 7 5 re- ports each m o n t h are r o u t e d into the R e - v i e w s D e p a r t m e n t a f t e r initial processing by the l i b r a r y . T h e s e reports c o n s t i t u t e per- haps the m o s t i m p o r t a n t g r o u p of m a t e r i a l s c o v e r e d in the Review, f o r g e n e r a l l y they 166 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES represent the results of o r i g i n a l research, e n l a r g e m e n t s or extensions of t h e o r e t i c a l and e x p e r i m e n t a l studies, and n e w develop- ments in techniques, procedures, or instru- m e n t a t i o n . T h e y are channeled to the I n - stitute f r o m all o v e r the w o r l d , both f r o m g o v e r n m e n t a l and f r o m p r i v a t e l y operated o r g a n i z a t i o n s . I l l u s t r a t i v e of the f o r e m o s t of these aero- n a u t i c a l research agencies are the N a t i o n a l A d v i s o r y C o m m i t t e e f o r A e r o n a u t i c s ( N A C A ) , R o y a l A e r o n a u t i c a l Society ( R A S ) , G r e a t B r i t a i n ' s A e r o n a u t i c a l R e - search C o u n c i l ( A R C ) , C a n a d a ' s N a t i o n a l A e r o n a u t i c a l E s t a b l i s h m e n t ( N A E ) , the C o l l e g e of A e r o n a u t i c s at C r a n f i e l d , E n g - land, U n i v e r s i t y of C a l i f o r n i a ' s I n s t i t u t e of T e c h n o l o g y ( C a l T e c h ) J e t P r o p u l s i o n L a b o r a t o r y , C o r n e l l A e r o n a u t i c a l L a b o r a - t o r y ( C A L ) , U n i v e r s i t y of T o r o n t o Insti- tute of A e r o p h y s i c s ( U T I A ) , the A e r o - n a u t i c a l R e s e a r c h I n s t i t u t e of S w e d e n , F r a n c e ' s N a t i o n a l O f f i c e of A e r o n a u t i c a l S t u d i e s and R e s e a r c h ( O N E R A ) , U n i t e d States C i v i l A e r o n a u t i c s A d m i n i s t r a t i o n ( C A A ) , T e c h n i c a l D e v e l o p m e n t and E v a l - uation C e n t e r , and the U n i t e d States A i r F o r c e and N a v a l A i r D e v e l o p m e n t and re- search units. I n short, the A e r o n a u t i c a l R e v i e w s D e - p a r t m e n t f u n c t i o n s p r i m a r i l y to l i n k to- g e t h e r the I n s t i t u t e ' s w i d e - f l u n g m e m b e r - ship n e t w o r k . N o t only does this d o c u m e n - tation service act as a g u i d e to the c u r r e n t l i t e r a t u r e of the field b u t it also serves to t e l l m e m b e r s and other interested i n d i v i d - uals and o r g a n i z a t i o n s a l l over the w o r l d w h a t is a c t u a l l y available f o r their use. C O N C L U D I N G S T A T E M E N T W i t h i n its e d i t o r i a l and i n f o r m a t i o n a l activities, the I A S attempts to b r i n g to its m e m b e r s and others in the a e r o n a u t i c a l fields a t w o - f o l d s e r v i c e : I ) to keep them i n f o r m e d of the c u r r e n t l i t e r a t u r e needed in their professional w o r k by means of a pub- lished d o c u m e n t a t i o n s e r v i c e ; and 2 ) to m a k e this l i t e r a t u r e a v a i l a b l e to the limits of feasibility t h r o u g h professional and spe- c i a l i z e d l i b r a r y services.2 2 Thanks are due to John J. Glennon, the librarian, for his gracious cooperation in the preparation of this article. Postal Legislation C o l l e g e a n d u n i v e r s i t y l i b r a r i a n s w i l l b e i n t e r e s t e d i n a m e a s u r e to be i n t r o d u c e d i n t o t h e c u r r e n t s e s s i o n of C o n g r e s s r e l a t i n g to t h e t r a n s m i s s i o n of e d u c a t i o n a l a n d c u l t u r a l m a t e r i a l s t h r o u g h t h e m a i l s . T h i s p i e c e o f l e g i s l a t i o n , s p o n s o r e d b y a g r o u p of e d u c a t i o n a l a n d r e l a t e d o r g a n i z a t i o n s , is i n t e n d e d to e s t a b l i s h m o r e n e a r l y u n i f o r m a n d l o g i c a l r a t e s f o r t h e s e m a t e r i a l s . I n c l u d e d i n t h e p r o p o s e d b i l l a r e t h e f o l l o w i n g p r o v i s i o n s : 1. Special postal rates for interlibrary loan would be made applicable nation-wide as are all other rates on reading matter. Presently these special rates for interlibrary loan are limited to a single state or within the first three postal zones. 2. The present permit requirement would be deleted. 3. Bound typed theses, bound issues of periodicals, and other library materials, including photographs atid manuscripts, could be sent through the mail on interlibrary loan at the library book rate. 4. Sheet music, which now goes at fourth class (parcel post) rate, would be treated as bound music and would receive the library rate on interlibrary loans and the book rate on other shipments. 5. Scholarly bibliographies that now go as advertising catalogs if they include publishers and prices would be treated as books and take the library rate for interlibrary loan and the book rate for other shipments. 6. The general book rate would be held at its present level which is 80 on the first pound and 4