Medical Book Selection

There are hundreds of medical books published every year in a wide range of topics and focuses. Medical book libraries can only hold a certain amount of books and the shear number of new medical books makes it hard for them to make selections. One useful solution to this dilemma is that medical book librarians can take advantage of is medical book reviewing. However, the availability and timeliness of the book reviews appearing in medical journals is questionable.

There are many reasons why medical book selection is a complicated process for medical librarians. The number of medical books that are published within the United States has been growing at a rapid rate, doubling the number of books with each new decade. Medical books are also imported from other countries into the United States as well, to add further complication. In addition, the number of medical book publishers has skyrocketed ever decade since 1970. In 1970, there were approximately twenty publishers. There are now well over one hundred different publishers of medical books.

With the bloated number of publishers comes great confusion among medical books with similar titles, which are usually grouped together, but differ in quality. Some medical experts find that a significant portion of medical books are almost worthless. With prices of books increasing at a rapid rate, the importance of selecting the best books becomes even more vital within medical libraries for two reasons– Libraries must spend money to purchase the books, and people will be less inclined to purchase a book themselves, and in turn, would be more likely to take out books from libraries for their research.

Librarians are left with the difficult task of identifying books that contain quality information and usefulness to strengthen their selection. Unfortunately, not all medical librarians have the proper knowledge or time to evaluate medical books for the selection process.

There is assistance that medical librarians can use however to aide in their medical book selection process. The Brandon list is a powerful tool aimed at assisting small medical libraries select quality and useful medical books. While the Brandon list should not be the primary source of medical book selection, it should be used selectively as a supplemental guide.

Also, publishers have begun shipping books to libraries where in-house specialists can review the books and make selections. There is a problem with this method, however, as potential books of interest must still be selected and reviewers cannot review all the books that are published.

The third available method for librarians for medical book selection is the traditional book review published in medical journals and other similar mediums. Medical journals have book reviews as a guide to readers, with most of the readings belonging to the medical community. This method seems to still be the most useful and extensive tool available. The availability of these reviews is in question though. Also, a past issue was the timeliness of the reviews because the lag time between the published medical book and its subsequent review was from six months to a year. Today, this issue has been fixed with the instantaneous nature of the internet, as many medical journals provide online resources.

Brandon/Hill Medical Book

The authors of the Brandon/Hill list of print medical books and journals have been releasing biennial updates for forty years. Every year, the list contains hundreds of books and journals that give assistance for small libraries in the selection process to offer visitors. It can potentially serve as a library consortium as well. The list of books and journals is categorized by subject, followed by an index organized by author/editor.

Medical book and Journal list purpose:
The purpose of the Brandon/Hill list is to provide small libraries with a list of medical books and journals that have the highest quality of information. The reason why it was created was because of the immense number of medical books that were released every year. Since 1970, the number of published medical books doubled on average. Many of these books contained similar titles, but were contrasted greatly by the quality of information they provided. To minimize the overwhelming confusion experienced by many medical librarians, the Brandon/Hill list began and was released once every two years for the past forty years.

Brandon/Hill List Statistics:
The first Brandon list released in 1965 contained a medical book count of 358 and 123 medical journals. Over 600 books and 140 journals are now contained on the list today. Another major change since its origin in the 1960s, is the inclusion of the word “print” to the lists official title. It is called Brandon/Hill Selected List of Print Books and Journals for the Small Medical Library. People who are looking for electronic info will not find any luck with the Brandon list. Although Brandon/Hill acknowledged the importance of electronic publications as an emerging source of quality information, they have not yet, as of 2001 implemented electronic informational resources.

Other Publications:
Many other lists, such as A Core Collection of Medical Books and Journals has been presented by British researchers as an alternative to the Brandon list, but has not been active since 1997. The Joint Commission on Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) has endorsed the Brandon/Hill list and A Core Collection but have stopped mentioning it.

Minimal Medical Book and Journal List:
To help librarians purchase a smaller and more affordable amount of books from the list, as well as minimize complications, librarians and medical staffs have requested that a smaller list be made in medical book selection. In response, Brandon/Hill assembled the “minimal core list” for medical book selection. While the medical book and journal value in the full list amounts to about $77,300, the minimal list is worth approximately $14,300. It is designed so that smaller librarians can update their medical book library by choosing a few titles from each category.

Content of the Medical Book and Journal List:
The publicans range from extremely detailed, to general in nature. The science journals, however, are clinical and detailed in nature because general journals are not cost efficient. With the ease and accessibility of the internet less-detailed, general journals have been rendered obsolete. In the 2001 medical book list, 89% of the books were published in 1998 or later.

Medical Book Library

Libraries are faced every year with the tough decision of discarding medical books. If a medical book contains information that is considered to be obsolete and no longer useful, should a library discard the medical book? It is a decision that effects the flow of accurate informational research. While this question may be quite controversial, there are many reasons why discarding the medical books is an easy decision. Libraries face many problems with housekeeping and upkeep and the majority of large libraries simply do not have enough room to indefinitely hold older medical books. Although it may be tough to throw away medical books donated to the library or purchased for a large sum, it is usually necessary.

Many librarians are familiar with the saying, “Let no book remain on the shelves unless someone fights to keep it there.” If this were held into consideration when it comes time to make extra space for updated medical books, then libraries would find themselves keeping all of their medical book content. This is simply not plausible though. Although libraries see every gift and purchase as a precious asset, especially with their tight budgets, many books continue to go unused. All information is vital to a library, but the information contained must be controlled in an effective manner, especially for medical books. For example, because of the every-changing advances in scientific knowledge, a medical book can become obsolete within months.

Before a library discards a medical book, it must put many notions into consideration to ensure that it is a proper decision. If a medical book contains a significant amount of historical material and information not found elsewhere in a library, it may consider keeping it. A library may also discard a book if it is certain that it can borrow the book from another nearby library. Also, if a medical book was referred to in the past, the library should take this into account before getting rid of it.

In addition, a library should ask the question “Is there a reason for us to keep sets of medical books, regardless of their accuracy or amount of usage?” Larger libraries may serve a large amount of people and may consider keeping all of its medical books in its archives or in an place that is easily retrievable. Smaller libraries have no need and no means to keep outdated material because they do not serve a large enough amount of people and they have insufficient space.

Library Study:
Based on a study of several libraries, a large number keep every edition of medical books or keep one set in each subject field while discarding the others. Many libraries choose to discard all older edition medical books or transfer them to “dead storage” if they have means of doing so. A small portion of libraries choose to keep everything, regardless of the quality or condition of the medical books and they are not permitted to discard anything.

Based on findings, it is ideal for a library that serves a large region to keep the first and last edition of each medical book set. For smaller libraries, there is no justification for them to keep sets that will only be used once or twice within a few years.

Library.

Law books can be extremely useful because they provide information about the state of the law in a certain area, in addition to commentary, annotations and practical law advice. Law books can be written with a variety of audiences in mind. They can either be scholarly or practice oriented. Although research of such law books may be tough to understand at first, many legal practitioners and law students find what they are looking for usually by referring to the author who penned the law book. If you are researching a topic, how should one go about finding information about that specific topic?

New technologies make it easier than ever to search for information, even from the comfort of your own home. For instance, Harvard Law School has informational resources pertaining to law books right on their website. You can perform a search for the topic that you are researching and find information quickly and easily. Most websites only contain excerpts from books and not the full text, unfortunately.

If you plan on buying a law book, your best bet is to find out which law books are most commonly referred to buy judges. You can do this by searching through listings, such as The Most-Cited Legal Books Published Since 1978. The amount of citing a law book has is usually relative to its quality, so if you have a small budget, you may want to pursue this method when choosing a law book.

A researcher may also refer to Ken Svengalis’ Legal Information Buyer’s Guide and Reference Manual. This manual gives prices and detailed descriptions of the law books with the highest quality, organized by subject. It also contains helpful advice for selecting the law book that would be most useful to you.

A traditional method of finding law books is through library catalogs. This is especially useful when combined with the ease of the internet. Many libraries have linked their catologues to be quickly searched on via the internet. The Library of Congress may be an excellent source for law books, but law school library catalogs would do just fine. Law librarians may also have the information needed to find the law book you are searching for. They are knowledgable in locating relevant material, even if it is hidden in certain law books. Librarians may be busy with their work however, so take consideration when referring to one for additional help.

Also, IndexMaster (www.indexmaster.com) is an extremely useful source where you can search by subject and keyword. The search engine retreives table of contents within a variety of law books that may meet your requirements. This is a viable option because it allows you to search law books from many publishers, aside from just one if you would use a publisher website. While this informational source costs money, the costs are reasonable and it will be well worth the price.

While the process of locating a proper law book for your research may be a time-consuming process, technology and professional sources can help trim the amount of time it takes to find what you are looking for.

Black's Law Dictionary

Black’s Law Dictionary is one of the most widely used and highly regarded law books still in use today. The law book was founded by Henry Campbell Black and is the authority in definitions used in legal briefs and court opinions and has even been used as a secondary legal authority in an abundance of U.S. Supreme Court cases.

Mix of Easiness and Extensive Information
Black’s Law Dictionary is widely used by a variety of different people. Whether one is a law student, a lawyer, a judge, a person involved in a trial, or just a member of the general public, this law book will help anyone with understanding legal terms. It has enough information to be an authority among other law books, but is written in enough clarity that the average person would be able to understand it.

Editions:
The first edition of Black’s Law Dictionary was published in 1891 and was well ahead of any other law books for its time. This makes Black’s Law Dictionary not only one of the oldest laws books in the world, but also one of the oldest dictionaries. The second edition did not come until 1910, well before the Oxford English Dictionary was published. The 9th edition was published in the summer of 2009.

Iterations:
Black’s Law Dictionary is available in its extensive unabridged form, but there are also other versions of the law book for the sake of convenience. There have been abridged versions released of the law book, designed for the average person to use to better understand legal terms. Also, a “pocket-sized” version of the law book has also been made, primarily targeted at law students so that they can easily transport the book and refer to it whenever needed.

Black’s Law Dictionary has also taken advantage of cutting edge technology to reach out to more “tech-savvy” people. Anyone with an iPhone can download the law book application to their phone so they can look up unfamiliar legal terms right from their cell phone. The application is easy to use and has search capabilities to make searching for terms easier. It even has audio pronunciations so you can hear the definition instead of reading it.

Black’s Law Dictionary, aside from offering its law books, gives people additional ways of looking up legal words. People can download the toolbar in their internet browser or word processor to look up meanings of law terms. When searching for terms in these programs, a special feature corrects a users incorrect spelling automatically.

Features that Separate Black’s Law Dictionary from other Law Books:
The later editions of the book provided case citations for the term cited. Many lawyers and other legal professionals believe that this is one of its most useful features because it provides a starting point with leading cases. Citations were later dropped in subsequent editions because of the emergence of the internet for looking up quick information.

Law books influenced by Black’s Law Dictionary:
Black’s Law Dictionary has influenced a number of other law books written in other languages, such as Persian.

Legal Books

Legal Treatises, also known as legal books, include over 21,000 works done from the beginning of the 19th century up until the dawn of the 20th century. About 14,000 of these works were done in the 19th century with about half as many from just the first twenty-six years of the 20th century alone. Almost every possible topic is discussed in these law books about British Commonwealth law and American law. Information contained in these books are presented in analytical, theoretical and practical forms. The collection of these books are of special interest, especially to scholars interested in domestic and international law, history, business and economics. They were written for practitioners in the law, such as attorneys and judges.

A law book can also be referred to as a monograph about the law, rather than a written account of actual laws or actual cases. It is important to realize that a law book does not contain transcripts, state documents or judicial reports. They are considered secondary source materials that have a purpose of examining a specific law or subject, by analytical, theoretical and practical means.

When these law books are studied, a clear picture of the evolution of American and British law can be painted. The majority of law books are present in Harvard Law School with works by Bentham, Maine and Kent.

A law book is considered to be an essential source for anyone practicing law or interested in law to discover new information about law studies. The law books from the 19th century provide researchers with a snapshot of the way law was practiced during that time and what kind of exceptional changes were made to form modern law.

19th Century Law:
Law books from the 19th century portray an era of economic, political and social change through America and Great Britain. The Industrial Revolution was in full effect and governments, along with institutions tried their best to catch up to the rapid change. The world was also coping with the concept of evolving technology and the constant change that comes along with it.

While the jury system originated further in the past, it was in the 19th century where many modern doctrines were established, according to law books. Modern law concepts began to take shape, including property, tort and contract laws.

The Industrial Revolution created the need for further changes to the law as well. Law books began to document laws pertaining to railroads, corporate business and strict labor laws. Individualism also began to emerge, evidenced in many law books. The American Civil War was the dawn of the concept of civil rights in the United States, including due process and equal protection of the laws.

Legal literature was also a relatively unexplored concept that experienced rapid increase in the 19th century. Law books had to be created to deal with new complications that came with the modern way of life. Lawyers and legal professions began law book writing more than ever to cope with the new complexities. Unfortunately, the circulation of the average law book was very low, and access to them was often limited until the 20th century.

Law Books

Publicitar a law book is a difficult task that requires much skill and expertise. It also takes a lot of time and patience. Writing it can take anywhere from months to years, depending on your ability to write and use language to convey information. If you choose to write a book, there are number of things you should know that might not be immediately apparent as the writing process begins and runs its course.

Making the Choice to Write:
Publishing a law book is a major decision for a law professional and there are many reasons for deciding to do so. One usually feels that the time is right and they know enough about a subject where they can shed light on it for the benefit of the general public. Other reasons can include wanting your name on law books so that you can be given credit for your contributions to the law community and to be considered an expert in your field. You may also want to steer your career in another direction and/or create a larger client base for your firm. In any case, writing a quality law book will help boost your reputation and exposure.

Why it is important to hire an editor to help facilitate the writing process:
Many would like to consider themselves a capable writer whom is able to explain information in a proper manner which is both grammatically correct and coherent. But the actual truth of the matter is that an editor is almost always necessary because authors are seldom able to edit a final draft of his or her own work. The simple fact is that we know our writing inside and out and we understand the history that backs up all the facts and information given in the writing. It is always possible that a person who is reading your material for the first time may have trouble deciphering the content. This is where an editor comes in. The editor acts as a normal reader of the book and will catch any problems involved in clarity that may cause a reader to become lost and confused.

The pace and flow of your law book will also be double checked by an experienced editor. A balanced sentence structure is vital in informational books (especially in law books) and important topics should be approached with occasional “breaks” which will prevent a reader from becoming exhausted. Adding strong verbs will also spark reader interest in dull topics and will go a long ways in making law books more readable.

The publishing process:
Once a law book is edited to flow smoothly and continuity problems are fixed, an cover and design layout must be settled upon. After that, an ISBN number is given to the book and the final package is sent to the writer for his or her approval. Finished law books, with a finalized appearance, is sometimes sent to the writer for a second, last-minute approval. The writer will usually pay fees for the preparation of the book as well as some manufacturing fees.

Law Students

Technology in e-reading has vastly improved over the years with new advancements for the sake of convenience. First, the internet provided a revolutionary new means for almost instantaneous information search and retrieval. Eventually, computer technology began to shift and become more sophisticated. Memory storage for information and data because larger and more cost efficient. Next, using this vastly improved capabilities, the informational paradigm will shift towards e-readers.

The benefit of e-readers for law students:
Law students are burdened with a great deal of law book reading. There are dozens of extensive law books that they must learn to become familiar with the law and how it works. These books can be quite hefty, making it nearly impossible for law students to carry the law books around to read when they need them. This is where new e-reader technology comes in.

New devices that allow law students to store hundreds of law books in one lightweight enclosure are increasingly becoming popular. Electronic case books would greatly lighten a student’s heavy law books and will allow for professors to more easily modify cases in the classroom. The ability to quickly and easily retrieve information from a long list of all the law books one owns is an exciting prospect for law students, to say the least. The technology has already proven to be quite useful and popular for ordinary avid readers. Barnes and Noble and Amazon offer their own versions of e-reader devices that have sold quite well in recent months. Consumers use the devices to buy and store a collection of their favorite books.

There are quite a few concerns with the e-reader devices, however. Copyrights and piracy protection are an apparent issue within the e-reader technology, and many publishers are pushing for copy protection in electronic books. This is a case not unlike the music industry’s recent stance on song copy protection.

Conferences and meetings are being held to begin preliminary talks about a new revolution in the way a law book is used. Many law School officials hope that a shift in educational techniques will render the old style of using a law book obsolete and e-books will provide new ease and convenience the educational world is looking for.

Companies that offer e-readers already have a wide selection of law book titles in their library. Amazon.com is leading the way with such titles. Also, West launched its first electronic law book, called Civil Procedure: A Contemporary Approach and they plan to add several new titles through the year.

To avoid arguments over copyright issues from publishers, many law professors are encouraging companies to avoid porting existing law books to e-reader technology and instead create new ones that take advantage of professor customization. In this open source system, professors could create their own casebooks by using a frame already provided by a law book. This system will be free of copyright infringement and will avoid a similar disaster that took place in the music industry.

Guidelines for Writing

Medical book reviews play an important role in the flow of information in the medical community. Thousands of medical books are released every year and the shear number can be quite overwhelming for medical researchers and librarians. Many medical books contain similar titles but the quality of the information is quite different from each other. Medical book reviews ensure that the best information is contained within medical libraries and used by professionals.

The Medical Library Association (MLA)
The MLA was founded to serve society by improving health through the provision of information. Members provide a vital role in the flow of information and the purpose is to provide education and proper conduct while performing medical research. It was also created so that members can give high-quality information pertaining to health to the general public. They firmly believe that better health information leads to better health decisions. The organizations also support medical research, information research done by librarians on a variety of topics, and the way information is put into the hands of medical practitioners.

Medical Book Reviews Conducted by MLA:
One important way that MLA provides a service to medical professionals and librarians is by offering book reviews conducted by members of the MLA and medical professionals. The purpose of medical book reviews is to ensure that quality information is contained within medical libraries and read by medical students, professionals, and the general public. Over the past forty years, the number of medical books has been doubling each decade. To avoid all the clutter and confusion, the book reviews determine if a medical book will provide useful and relevant information depending on the subject it is based on. The MLA publishes its reviews in its journal, Medical Library Association Journal (MLAJ).

Guidelines for Medical Book Reviews:
In order for medical book reviews to provide useful critical appraisals and serials, the MLAJ has set forth guidelines for reviewers to be approved and write the review properly. Reviewers are choose to write reviews based on their expertise in areas relevant to the subject of medicine.

The reviews for medical books are required to contain a brief summary of the book and what kind of information it provides for its readers. This will help the readers determine if the book is of interest to them. Also, the significance of the information provided in medical books should also be put into perspective for historical research, in addition to the usefulness of the medical book for descriptive work. The books should also be compared to works of similar subjects and information and what type of person would find the medical book useful.

Any information cited within the review should be presented in MLA format as well. Reviews should not exceed four pages and should be double spaced. If the review is too long, it may be edited for length. The reviews are accepted electronically via email through an attached file commonly used, such as Microsoft word format. For further information, go to www.mlanet.org.