National Library of Australia


State Library of Queenland collection assessment
Physical sciences

Division Report Comments:

A total of 2867 monographs are held in this division. This represents 0.72% of the 397,000 monographs quoted for the State Reference Library and Special Collections in the 1995/96 annual report of the State Library of Queensland.

Coverage in this division is very uneven. Current collecting level for monographs compared with the standard bibliographies checked is at level 3a-b although State Library's holdings compared with publishing output is at level 1b. Across the individual categories, coverage varies from level 3a to 0.

Serials holdings appear quite good with 42 open serials. However, when compared with the standard bibliographies, holdings appear very limited.

Collection strength is in introductory works on the principles and history of physics and introductions to major scientific theories such as molecular, atomic and sub-atomic physics. Encyclopedias of the physical sciences and biographical dictionaries of scientists provide another area of strength.

It is State Library collection development policy not to collect any juvenile literature, school or tertiary textbooks or advanced academic research material.

Holdings in the John Oxley Library have not been considered in this assessment. As Legal Deposit Library, this library collects works relative to and/or published in Queensland in all subject areas.

Relevant sections of the following major standard bibliographies have been checked against our monographic holdings:

Title

Total checked

SRL holdings

% held

Australian National Bibliography 1992-1996

Reader's Adviser

Walford's Guide to Reference Material

Collier's Encyclopedia

Popular Physics and Astronomy

Choosing Reality

What Makes Nature Tick?

Cambridge Atlas of Astronomy

280

799

390

268

443

75

27

156

21

251

122

101

223

31

19

52

7.5

31

31

38

50

41

70

33

Serials:

There are 42 open and 72 closed serial subscriptions for this division.

Relevant sections of the following bibliographies have been checked against State Library's holdings:

Title

Total checked

SRL holdings

% held

Magazines for Libraries 8th ed Information Sources in Physics

Astronomy and Astronautics

112

372

83

3 3

2

3

1

2

Last modified: August 18 2004.