EDITORIAL
A CONTINUING CRITIQUE Under the chairmanship of Dr. Bruno M . Vasta, t h e Division of Chemical Literature plans to have a continuing critique symposium in which speakers are encouraged to critically examine and evaluate information systems and services, the objective being to determine their nature, value, limitations, and conformity to desirable standards. To critically examine a n information system or service, however, does not restrict the examiner to demerits and faults, but rather imposes upon him t h e need for measured judgment and evaluation. A critique is most valuable when we examine a system or service in terms of both merits and demerits, value and cost, and what it does relative to alternat ives . This should be a popular symposium. Yet it has been slow in starting, as judged by t h e papers presented at the recent Los Angeles ACS Meeting. The next session will be a t t h e forthcoming Boston ACS Meeting (April 9-14, 1972), but, unfortunately, t h e deadline for abstracts, November 15, 1971, will be upon us before this editorial can be of much help to Dr. Vasta in recruiting good papers. Nevertheless, t h e fact t h a t t h e symposium will continue prompts m e to bring t h e opportunity to your attention. One of the virtues of the symposium being based on the critique concept is t h a t it broadens the base of potential speakers that can be involved. Thus, all literature chemists can exercise their critical a n d evaluative faculties on a large number of information systems and services. In a very large measure, every contribution to this Journal was preceded by a critique; every system installed by literature chemists for a group of scientists was preceded by a critique; and every producer of a n information service introduced it following a critique. All critiques, however, are not equally valid or worth knowing. Too often in chemical documentation, systems are installed and services prolifigate via the bandwagon effect-i.e., what’s good for you ergo must be good for me. Evidently, it is not easy to evaluate a system or service critically and meaningfully. Affluence tends to soften our critical faculty. Once our investment in a system or
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service reaches a certain point, we put blinders on our critical faculty. Change imposes the need for thinking and doing, two very unpopular tasks. Yet every information system and service should be examined periodically as though it were to be installed from scratch. Few, if any, information systems and services can survive many years without changes concomitant with the changing nature of chemistry. The increasing diversity and scope of and new directions in chemistry have been revealed particularly in the pages of this Journal since its inception eleven years ago. In short, evolution in chemistry, a n d in chemical documentation, is not unlike biological evolution, with one exception: it is occurring very much faster in chemistry and chemical documentation. The growth of scientific knowledge has resulted in greater specialization and higher differentiation of subject matter, in t h e introduction of new disciplines of science, and in t h e envolvement of disciplines into interdisciplinary sciences. How have these changes influenced our classification and indexing systems or are we still wedded t o L.C., D.C., and U.D.C. for classifying books a n d to the Uniterm system for indexing reports? How have these changes influenced t h e value of our traditional information sources, except to make them more expensive and less useful? How are we reacting to new tools, especially computers, and to new services based on computerized systems? Are we satisfied that these new services are responding to the needs of those we serve and are they compatible, rational, and coherent with t h e changing nature of chemistry, and consequently the changing needs of chemists? I can think of many questions that need to be answered on the basis of measured judgments, with rationality and a n appreciation for standards and criteria as our guide. Yo information system or service is sacrosanct, and each is suitable and appropriate grist for Dr. Vasta’s future critique symposia. All that is needed is your involvement. HERMAN SKOLNIK
