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History of Science Collection Development Policy

Collection Development Policy Guidelines
Guidelines for writing collection development policies for specific subject areas, to be followed by all selectors.

  1. General Scope
    This section defines the general priorities governing selection. Include the following:
    1. Audience
      Activities at Dartmouth which directly bear on the history of science:

      Science and Technology Studies (STS) provides a curricular and extracurricular focus for students and faculty seeking to examine the historical, philosophical, and social traditions that have shaped the construction of science and technology, and the effects of science and technology on other intellectual, social, and political activities.

      STS is not a department or a program, and does not offer a major. Rather, it identifies a core of Dartmouth faculty (Arts and Sciences, plus the professional schools) interested in the history, philosophy, or social relations of science and technology, and the interdisciplinary courses they offer in these areas. The faculty may also arrange extracurricular activities related to the content of these courses.

      13 faculty are currently listed as involved in STS.
    2. Boundaries
      History of science material is generally found in the following Library of Congress classifications: general history of science is classified in Q and the histories of specific science fields are within the classification of that subject. For example, QE, the history of geology, QC, the history of physics, QL, the history of zoology, etc. In addition, the history of technology classes in T.
    3. Partnerships
      No current partnerships
  2. Specific Delimitations to collecting in this subject area
    1. Languages
      Primarily in English
    2. Geographical Areas (if applicable)
      Coverage is world-wide with an emphasis on North America, Western Europe and Asia; however, no area is specifically excluded.
    3. Types of Materials Collected
      No material type is excluded.

      A special type of material collected is the papers of Dartmouth science faculty. Special Collections makes every effort to identify faculty who have made significant contributions to science and technology and they actively solicit the ownership of the material. In addition, they encourage suggestions from faculty, colleagues and librarians.
    4. Format of Materials Collected
      No preference
    5. Collective Collections
      No current arrangements
  3. Revision History
    In reverse chronological order, indicate
    • September, 2016, Mark Mounts, updated
    • 2009, Mark Mounts, updated
    • Barbara DeFelice, updated
    • Bill McEwen, Connie Rinaldo, created
    • Current selectors: Wendel Cox