Isis Current Bibliography 2006, Vol. 97 - History of Science Society

viii Introduction
cultural traditions. It is designed for subjects
that are either not part of the Western scientific
tradition or, as in the case of Islamic science,
often studied apart from the Western historical
tradition. Section E holds items classified
by discipline that do not fit into the narrower
chronological or cultural sections. Sections A
through D accommodate works either that are
very general, that focus on non-disciplinary
topics, or that have a specific analytical framework.
Items whose subjects are confined to a particular
chronological period in the Western scientific
tradition will be found in that time period.
Where a subject stretches between two periods,
the item will be in the earlier period. Where
a subject encompasses more than two chronological
periods, the item will be placed in the
topical or disciplinary category in the first part
of the bibliography.
Where items cover two disciplinary fields,
the item will probably be classified in one of
the two fields. Items covering three or more
widely disparate fields will usually be classified
in a non-disciplinary category.
All items are entered only once. Because
most works could easily be classified in more
than one subject area, it is impossible for each
classification division to contain a comprehensive
list of all works relevant to that subject.
Users should consult the subject index for a
thorough coverage of topics.
For a more detailed description of this system,
see the introduction to this bibliography in
volume 93 (2002): pp. vii–viii.
HSTM Database
Online access to the Isis Current Bibliography
data is through the History of Science,
Technology, and Medicine database (HSTM).
As of this printing it is hosted by the Research
Libraries Group (RLG). The database was recently
acquired by Online Computer Library
Center (OCLC), which will make it available
through its FirstSearch platform in the near future.
HSTM contains all of the data from the
Isis bibliographies from 1974 to the present.
In addition, it contains data from three other
bibliographies: the Current Bibliography in
the History of Technology (compiled by Henry
Lowood for the Society for the History of Technology),
containing entries from 1987 to the
present; the Bibliografia Italiana di Storia della
Scienza (BISS) from 1982 to the present; and
data from the Wellcome Bibliography for the
History of Medicine from 1991 to 2004, supplemented
periodically since then with monograph
citations supplied by the Wellcome Library for
the History and Understanding of Medicine.
HSTM can be accessed through libraries
or institutions with a subscription to the service
or by individuals who are members of
the History of Science Society. For individual
member access, go to the HSS web
site http://www.hssonline.org/teach_
res/hst/mf_hst.html, click on the link,
and login using the member username and
password printed in the most current History
of Science Society Newsletter. RLG can
be contacted directly by phone at 800-537-
7546 (in North America) or +1-650-691-2333
(outside North America), by fax at 650-964-
0943, or by email at ric@notes.rlg.org. Information
on the upcoming transition from
RLG to OCLC can be found at the following
web site: http://www.rlg.org/en/pdfs/
eureka-oclc.trans.pdf.
Searching the HSTM database. Researchers
with this bibliography in hand can use the
printed index to help guide their electronic subject
searching in the HSTM database. Because
HSTM contains data compiled by several independent
bibliographers, no rigid terminological
standard for indexing exists—only a loose set
of conventions. Researchers using the HSTM
database might find it useful to use the subject
index in this volume to help them with their
searches; in addition they should try variations
of terms and alternatives. Information about
classification and indexing can be accessed and
downloaded online as well through the Isis
CB website http://www.ou.edu/cas/hsci/
isis/website/index.html.
Other Bibliographic Sources
There exist numerous specialized bibliographies
dealing with the history of science. To
find them, search this and previous issues of
the Isis Current Bibliography. In addition to
these singly published bibliographies, there are
annual publications in various fields that readers
should consult, many of which are available
through the internet. Below is a short and incomplete
list.
The Bibliografia Italiana di Storia della
Scienza is annually updated and has special
strengths in Italian language sources. Their
web site gives access to a searchable version
of their database in either Italian or English,
and has links to other useful resources.
(See http://galileo.imss.firenze.it/
biblio/ebiss.html.)
There are other specialized bibliographies
of note. There is a periodically updated list
of current works on Islamic science in the Is-