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Major New Resources in the History of Physics, Astronomy, Geophysics and related fields



The Center for History of Physics at the American Institute of Physics
announces two important resources for researchers:  the brand new PHYSICS
HISTORY FINDING AIDS Web Site and a more powerful online version of the
INTERNATIONAL
CATALOG OF SOURCES (ICOS) for History of Physics and Allied Sciences.

The PHYSICS HISTORY FINDING AIDS Web Site (http://www.aip.org/history/ead):
This is a new resource that the AIP History Center has created in the past
year with a consortium of nine other leading science repositories and with
financial support from the National Endowment for the Humanities.  The
Physics History Finding Aids Web Site, which is a continuation and expansion
of the ICOS, is the largest subject-based consortium of SGML-EADfinding aids
on the Web. Researchers can use it to get detailed information on a wide
variety of important resources in 20th century American science and science
policy.  The more than 60 collections now represented cover a broad variety
of fields centered around physics, astronomy and geophysics, with
information on some of the most significant topics in modern science.
Users can search across the full texts (or, if preferred, only the
introductions or other portions) of the entire set of finding aids.  The
finding aids describe major collections at the ten institutions that are
currently members of the consortium:  American Institute of Physics,
California Institute of Technology, Harvard University, Massachusetts
Institute of Technology, Northwestern University, Rice University,
University of Alaska-Fairbanks, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign,
University of Iowa, and University of Texas-Austin.  We're making plans to
expand the database to include more repositories and more collections, and
we welcome inquiries about contributing finding aids to the database.

The INTERNATIONAL CATALOG OF SOURCES (link from
http://www.aip.org/history):
  A unique resource for scholars, the International Catalog of Sources
(ICOS) for History of Physics and Allied Sciences lists and briefly
describes archival materials, such as unpublished correspondence and
institutional records and oral histories, worldwide. The catalog now
contains records for over 7,000 collections, and our new online version is
more reliable and allows more sophisticated queries, including boolean
searches. Many science historians and other researchers check ICOS routinely
for resources in physics and related fields, especially when planning new
research.

What information goes into the ICOS?    We list information about papers of
scientists working in physics and related fields, such as astronomy,
acoustics, optics, geophysics, medical physics, and the other fields covered
by the AIP's Member Societies.  We also list information on records of major
institutions such as academies of science, academic physics departments, and
research laboratories. Our period of interest is chiefly from about 1890 to
the present, but we include 19th century collections of  interest and even
earlier ones of major importance. In addition to collections that are in
libraries and archives, the ICOS has information on papers in private hands
and information on papers of significant scientists that have been
destroyed.  The ICOS contains MARC-AMC style records which are thoroughly
indexed (names and subjects); topical index terms are assigned as
specifically as possible to enable focused searching.
How can I get information from the ICOS?   The ICOS database is available
online through our new Web catalog. The Center's Niels Bohr Library staff
will also search the ICOS database for any researcher on request (send an
inquiry by mail, fax, or e-mail). In addition, the majority of the existing
ICOS records have been uploaded into the AMC file of RLIN's bibliographic
database, and uploads of new information will continue periodically.

How can I add new information to the ICOS?  The Center is always on the
lookout for new collections to add to the ICOS, and we learn about new
materials through annual surveys of major science archives, information from
researchers, and other sources.  We strongly encourage users to contact us
about new resources that they find.


____________________________________________________________________________

Both the International Catalog of Sources (ICOS) and the Physics History
Finding Aids Web Site are created and maintained by the Center for History
of Physics at the American Institute of Physics.  For access to these
resources, and to learn about our other programs and resources, visit our
Web site at http://www.aip.org/history, or contact us at: Center for History
of Physics, American Institute of Physics, One Physics Ellipse, College
Park, MD 20740.      Phone: (301) 209-3177,       Fax: (301) 209-0882,
E-mail: chp@aip.org,


 http://www.aip.org/history





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