025.431: The Dewey blog

Dewey Breakfast/Update at ALA Annual 2009

Please join us for the Dewey Breakfast/Update at the ALA Annual Conference on Saturday, July 11, 7:00–8:20 a.m., Chicago Hilton, Lake Michigan Room. The program will feature a presentation on planned functionality in WebDewey 2.0 (with time for input from attendees), plus three brief presentations in a session entitled “What does it mean to ‘use Dewey’?”   In the latter, we’ll be discussing uses of the new 083 and 085 fields in the MARC Bibliographic format (both fields are slated to be introduced in WorldCat in August 2009), the use of a DDC-driven representation in seven languages to provide access to digital resources in the World Digital Library, and a multilingual DDC linked data prototype service.  

For those of you who attended my talk at the Texas Library Association Conference in April 2009 by the same name as the upcoming session, we’ll be showing new content at the Dewey Breakfast/Update at ALA. (By the way, Renee Patzer of Topeka and Shawnee County [KS] Public Library also participated in the same TLA program [Looking beyond Shelf Location: The Benefits of the Dewey Decimal Classification System in Libraries], and demonstrated a great use of the DDC to build “Dewey neighborhoods” in her library—her presentation and supporting materials are here.)

If you haven’t done so already, please register for the Dewey Breakfast/Update here.  See you next week in Chicago.

Accidents and Safety in Local Rail Transit Systems

The June 22 accident on the Washington, DC, Metrorail Red Line has been in the news, e.g., “Red Line Train Operator Used Brakes In Failed Bid to Stop Six-Car Train” and “Washington Metro Checking 3,000 Circuits After Crash.”  The accident is of special interest to two DDC assistant editors, Rebecca and Juli, who usually ride the Red Line to and from work—but were still at work when the accident occurred.  Our hearts go out to the people who were involved in the accident and their families.

The interdisciplinary number for works on transportation accidents and transportation safety is 363.12 Transportation hazards, as shown in the unsubdivided Relative Index entries:

Transportation accidents       363.12

Transportation safety           363.12

At 363.12 is the class-here note “Class here accidents.” Because class-here notes have hierarchical force, transportation accidents are also classed in appropriate subdivisions of 363.12.   

The interdisciplinary number for works on railroad accidents and on railroad safety is 363.122 Rail transportation, as shown in the unsubdivided Relative Index entries:

Railroad accidents       363.122

Railroad safety           363.122

Local rail transit systems do not approximate the whole of railroad transportation; consequently, works about accidents and safety in local rail transit are in standing room in 363.122, and nothing further can be added.  Examples of works classed in standing room at 363.122 are The Malbone Street Wreck, about a 1918 accident on the New York subway, and Light Rail Service: Pedestrian and Vehicular Safety.

Hate Crimes and Hate Crime Laws

Hate crimes and hate crime laws in the United States have been in the news recently, e.g., “Holocaust Museum Shooter James von Brunn Had History of Hate,” “Immigration Debate Tied to Rise in Hate Crimes,” and “Holder Tells Congress New Hate Crime Law Needed.”

A check of the Relative Index yields:

Hate crimes           364.15

The interdisciplinary number for hate crimes, as shown by the unsubdivided Relative Index entry, is 364.15 Offenses against the person.  In the schedule at 364.15 is the note: “Class here hate crimes.”  An example of a work classed in 364.15 is Hate Crimes.

Because the class-here note has hierarchical force, murder as a hate crime is classed in 364.1523 Murder.  An example of a work about murder as a hate crime is Hate Crime: The Story of a Dragging in Jasper, Texas. It is classed in 364.152309764159 Murder in Jasper County, Texas, built as shown:

364.1523    Murder
09               Geographic treatment (from Table 1)
764159       Jasper County (from Table 2, following instructions at

T1—093–T1—099 Treatment by specific continents, countries, localities; extraterrestrial worlds)

The number for hate crime laws is a built number that appears in the Relative Index:

Hate crimes—law       345.025

The number 345.025 Law of offenses against the person is built with base number 345.02 Crimes (Offenses) plus 5 from 364.15 Offenses against the person, following instructions at 345.023-345.028 Specific crimes and classes of crime.  An example of a work about United States law of hate crimes is Hate Crimes: Legal Issues and Legislation, classed in 345.73025 United States law of offenses against the person, built as shown:

345    Criminal law
73      United States (from Table 2, as instructed at 345.3–345.9

Specific jurisdictions and areas)

02      Crimes (Offenses) (from 345.02, as instructed at

345.3–345.9 Specific jurisdictions and areas)

5        Offenses against the person (from 364.15, as instructed at

 345.023–345.028).

EPC Meeting 131

Giles Martin took the photo of EPC at OCLC on June 12, 2009.  Standing, from left to right: Andrea Kappler (Evansville Vanderburgh [IN] Public Library), Sandra Singh (University of British Columbia), Lyn McKinney (Billings [MT] Senior High School), and Welna van Eeden (University of South Africa); seated, from left to right: Karl Debus-López (Library of Congress, standing in for Beacher Wiggins), David Farris (Library and Archives Canada), EPC Vice-Chair Anne Robertson (Australian Committee on Cataloguing), and Deborah Rose-Lefmann (Northwestern University).

It seems like forever since I’ve written something here, and I’m suppressing the urge to report chronologically on my activities since the last time you heard from me (so stay tuned for reports on three very interesting meetings [one in Houston and two in Vienna] in which I participated back in April).  Today, I’m jumping forward to last week with a quick summary of Meeting 131 of the Decimal Classification Editorial Policy Committee (EPC), which was held June 10-12 at OCLC.  The meeting was chaired by EPC Vice-Chair Anne Robertson (Australian Committee on Cataloguing).  EPC Chair Caroline Kent (British Library) and new EPC member Jonathan Furner (UCLA [and yes, former DDC assistant editor and creator of 025.431: The Dewey blog]) were unable to attend in person, but e-mailed voluminous comments that were considered by the committee during the meeting.

EPC reviewed the full version of Table 1 (Standard Subdivisions).  One provision was postponed for discussion at Meeting 132 in November 2009: the use of T1—0286 Waste technology to represent green technology.  We'll have more to say about that issue once we sort out the ripple effects throughout the schedules.  In Table 2 (Geographic Areas, Historical Periods, Persons), EPC looked mostly to the past in reviewing provisions for the ancient world in T2—3.  Some of the ancient world proposals have implications for the modern world versions of the Mediterranean and Black Sea regions, Asia Minor, and Turkey.  EPC also approved some adjustments to German administrative units proposed by colleagues at Deutsche Nationalbibliothek, plus the placement of the Barents Sea region, North Calotte, and Sápmi (Lapland).  EPC approved the full version of Table 3 (Subdivisions for the Arts, for Individual Literatures, for Specific Literary Forms), and an expansion for Hakka (Han Chinese who speak Hakka dialect) in Table 5 (Ethnic and National Groups).

EPC approved updates in the following schedules: 004-006 Computer science, 200 Religion, 300 Social sciences, 301-307 Sociology and anthropology, 320 Political science, 330 Economics, 340 Law, 400 Language, 610 Medicine and health, 780 Music, 800 Literature, and 960 History of Africa.  EPC reviewed preliminary versions of 640 Home and family management, 690 Buildings, 710 Civic and landscape art, and 720 Architecture.  On the recommendation of EPC, we plan to post the sewing and clothing sections of 646 shortly for outside comment.  EPC also reviewed a preliminary proposal for updates to sections of 372.3-372.8 Elementary education in specific subjects.  In addition to comments from members and observers on the private EPC mailing list, EPC’s deliberations were informed by reports from the working groups associated with the European DDC Users’ Group (EDUG) in the areas of law, education, archaeology, and technical issues.

EPC reviewed several research initiatives from the OCLC Office of Research and the Dewey editorial team, plus the latest draft specification for Dewey Uniform Resource Identifiers (URIs).  We’ll be back with more information on these initiatives later.

EPC scheduled a follow-up electronic Meeting 131A (to be held August 3-28, 2009), during which the committee will address use of the term “encompassing” in the DDC, plus minor issues in 400, 710, and 780.  Meeting 132 will be held November 16-17, 2009, at the Library of Congress.

One other major Dewey event took place last week—June 12 was the last day for updating Dewey data in the current Editorial Support System (ESS).  The new ESS, along with new data formats based on the MARC classification and authority formats, is scheduled to be launched on July 5 (another reason for our recent periods of silence on this blog).  Rebecca wrote a bit about the new ESS last month—watch for more reports shortly.

Baby Animals

Spring brings news of baby animals, e.g., fawns (“Fawns Pop Up in Backyards around Washtenaw County” and “Wild Sunday II: Look Close”) or chicks (“Hatching a Love”).

Interdisciplinary works on all kinds of baby animals and comprehensive works on baby wild animals are both classed in 591.39 Young animals, a subdivision of 590 Animals.  The Relative Index entry is “Baby animals 591.39.” Examples of works classed in 591.39 are Wild Babies and Small Babies. 

Comprehensive works on baby domestic animals are classed in 636.07 Young of animals, a subdivision of 636 Animal husbandry.  The Relative Index entry is “Baby animals—domestic animals 636.07.”  An example of a work classed in 636.07 is Animal Babies on the Farm.

Works on fawns are classed in 599.65139 Fawns, a built number to which the LCSH “Fawns” has been editorially mapped in WebDewey.  The number 599.65139 Fawns is built with 599.65 Cervidae (Deer) plus 1 General topics of natural history of animals from the add table at 592–599 Specific taxonomic groups of animals, following the footnote add instruction at 599.65, plus 39 from 591.39 Young animals, following add instruction at 1 General topics of natural history of animals in the add table at 592–599. An example of a work classed in 599.65139 is Fawns.

Works on baby chickens are classed in 636.507 Chicks, a number built with 636.5 Poultry    Chickens plus 0 plus 7 from 636.07 Young of animals, following add instruction at 636.5001–636.508 Standard subdivisions, specific topics of husbandry of poultry.  An example of a work classed in 636.507 Chicks is A Chick Grows Up.

Diabetes Type 1 and 2

In addition to clarifying the scope of pediatrics and adolescent medicine, the May 2009 posting of New and Changed Entries presents two new numbers, subdivisions of 616.462 *Diabetes mellitus:

616.462 2            *Diabetes mellitus, type 1 (Insulin-dependent diabetes)

616.462 4            *Diabetes mellitus, type 2 (Non-insulin-dependent diabetes)

*Add as instructed under 616.1–616.9

An example of the kind of work that will be classed in 616.4622 Diabetes mellitus, type 1 (Insulin-dependent diabetes) is Type 1 Diabetes in Adults: Principles and Practice.  Incidentally, the LCSH (Library of Congress Subject Heading) “Diabetes” is used for comprehensive works on type 1 and type 2 diabetes and is also used for type 1 diabetes alone.  The MeSH (Medical Subject Headings) heading is “Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1.”

An example of the kind of work that will be classed in 616.4624 Diabetes mellitus, type 2 (Non-insulin-dependent diabetes) is The Type 2 Diabetes Sourcebook.  The LCSH “Non-insulin-dependent diabetes” is used for type 2 diabetes.  The MeSH heading is “Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2.”

Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine

In a March 2008 blog entry the Dewey editorial team and the Decimal Classification Editorial Policy Committee (EPC) sought advice about treatment of pediatrics and adolescent medicine in DDC.  Here is an excerpt from the blog:

The scope of 618.92 Pediatrics is defined by the first three notes in the entry:

Medicine for infants and children up to puberty

Class here comprehensive works on child and adolescent medicine

For medicine for young people who have reached puberty, see 616.00835

The problem is that many other definitions of the scope of pediatrics include young people past puberty.

. . . . .

Is the broader definition of pediatrics that includes adolescents widespread in the world? Should we broaden the scope of 618.92 Pediatrics to match?

Responses were mixed.  In the end the decision was to retain the current definition of pediatrics in DDC and provide additional schedule entries, notes, and Relative Index entries to clarify how works on pediatrics and adolescent medicine should be classed.  The May 2009 posting of New and Changed Entries presents the material added to clarify the scope of pediatrics and adolescent medicine. 

Here is a brief guide to classifying works on pediatrics and adolescent medicine.  Works on (1) medicine for infants and children up to puberty and (2) comprehensive works on child and adolescent medicine are both classed in 618.92 Pediatrics.  An example of a work classed in 618.92 Pediatrics is Practical Guide to the Care of the Pediatric Patient. 

Works limited to adolescent medicine are classed in 616.00835, a number built with 616 Diseases plus standard subdivision T1—0835 Young people twelve to twenty.  The extra zero comes from following the pattern at 616.008 History and description with respect to kinds of persons. With the May 2009 posting, the built number 616.00835 has an entry in the schedule, with notes:

616.008 35    Young people twelve to twenty

Do not use for diseases of young people twelve to twenty who have not reached puberty; class in 618.92

Class here adolescent medicine

An example of a work classed in 616.00835 is Adolescent Health Care: A Practical Guide.

Works on a specific disease or branch of medicine are classed in subdivisions of 618.92 Pediatrics if they cover (1) infants and children up to puberty or (2) both children and adolescents.  For example, works on cancer in children, or on cancer in children and adolescents, are classed in 618.92994 Pediatric cancer, a built number with the Relative Index entry “Cancer—humans—pediatrics.”  The number 618.92994 is built with 618.92 Pediatrics plus 994 from 616.994 Cancers, following instructions under 618.921–618.929 Specific diseases.  An example of a work classed in 618.92994 is Pediatric Oncology.

Works on a specific disease or branch of medicine are classed with the disease or branch in 610 Medicine and health if limited in coverage to adolescents.  If the topic approximates the whole of the number, the standard subdivision T1—0835 Young people twelve to twenty is added.  For example, works on cancer in adolescents are classed in 616.99400835 Cancer in young people twelve to twenty, a built number with the Relative Index entry “Cancer—humans—adolescent medicine.”  The number is built with 616.994 Cancers plus T1—0835 Young people twelve to twenty, following the footnote instruction at 616.994 to “Add as instructed under 618.1–618.8.”   The extra zero comes from following the pattern for standard subdivision notation 00835 Young people twelve to twenty given in the add table under 618.1–618.8 Gynecology and obstetrics.  (Why does the footnote at 616.994 Cancers instruct one to add from 618.1–618.8 instead of 616.1–616.9?  Because that is a convenient way to provide for the full range of treatments needed for cancer: the add table at 616.1–616.9 does not provide for surgery as a treatment and the add table at 618.1–618.8 does.)  An example of a work classed in 616.99400835 is Cancer and the Adolescent.

2009 Influenza A (H1N1) (Swine Flu)

The 2009 Influenza A (H1N1) (Swine Flu) has been in the news, e.g., “Swine Flu” and “WHO Says H1N1 Flu Cases, Death Toll Rise.”  Informative web sites have appeared, e.g., 2009 H1N1 Flu (Swine Flu).

In a May 2006 blog entitled “Bird Flu,” we made several points about DDC treatment of influenza A (H5N1) that apply also to DDC treatment of 2009 Influenza A (H1N1).  The key point is that “the DDC medicine schedule does not make fine distinctions based on the type of virus nor on the origin of the virus; rather, it treats all influenza in a particular animal the same.”  The comprehensive number in medicine for influenza in humans (the number with the Relative Index entry “Influenza—medicine”) is 616.203 Influenza.  That is true regardless of what kind of virus causes the influenza.  An example of a work classed in 616.203 is Influenza.

Works discussing details about one or more types or subtypes of viruses that cause influenza in humans are classed in 616.203019 Medical virology of influenza (built with 616.203 Influenza plus notation 019 Medical virology from the add table under 616.1–616.9 Specific diseases, following the footnote instruction at 616.203, “Add as instructed under 616.1–616.9”).  An example of a work classed in 616.203019 is Influenza Virology: Current Topics. 

Works about use of drugs to treat influenza in humans are classed in 616.203061 Drug therapy for influenza (built with 616.203 Influenza plus notation 061 Drug therapy from the add table under 616.1–616.9 Specific diseases, following the footnote instruction, “Add as instructed under 616.1–616.9”).  An example of a work classed in 616.203061 is Zanamivir for the Treatment of Influenza in Adults: A Systematic Review and Economic Evaluation.

Incidence of influenza in humans and vaccination to prevent influenza in humans are both classed in 614.518 Influenza.  How does one know?  The first clue is obvious: the Relative Index entry “Influenza—incidence” leads to 614.518.   The second clue is more subtle.  The Relative Index entry “Vaccination—disease control” leads to 614.47 Immunization, which has the note: “Class here vaccination.”  Above 614.47 in the hierarchy, at 614.4 Incidence of and public measures to prevent disease, is the see reference: “For incidence of and public measures to prevent specific diseases and kinds of diseases, see 614.5.”  The see reference has hierarchical force; consequently, works on immunization for a specific disease are classed with the disease under 614.5 Incidence of and public measures to prevent specific diseases and kinds of diseases.  There are also other clues.  If one follows the Relative Index entry “Vaccines—pharmacology” to 615.372 Vaccines, one finds the class-elsewhere note: “Class use of specific vaccines with the disease in 614.5, e.g., use of influenza vaccines 614.518.” If one looks at the add table under 616.1-616.9 Specific diseases and considers using notation 05 Preventive measures, one finds the class-elsewhere note: “Class public measures for preventing a specific disease, use of specific vaccines with the disease in 614.5, e.g., mosquito control for prevention of malaria 614.532, use of influenza vaccines 614.518.” Examples of works classed in 614.518 Influenza are Global Spread of the Avian Flu: Issues and Actions and Immunization Safety Review: Influenza Vaccines and Neurological Complications.

Comprehensive works on drug therapy and vaccination for influenza in humans are classed in 616.203061 Drug therapy for influenza.  How does one know?  The first indication is the Relative Index entry that marks 616.203 as the comprehensive number in medicine for influenza: “Influenza—medicine.”  Second, see references mark 616+ as logically superordinate to 614.5+.  At 616 Diseases is a see reference to 614.4: “For incidence of and public measures to prevent disease, see 614.4.”  The see reference implies that 614.4 is logically a subdivision of 616.  The see reference from 614.4 to 614.5 quoted above similarly indicates that 614.5 is logically a subdivision of 614.4.  In other words, 616 is superordinate to 614.4, which in turn is superordinate to 614.5.  Because see references have hierarchical force, what is true of 616 is also true of 616.203061.  Because of the hierarchical relationships marked by see references, the first-of-two rule does not apply to a choice between 614.518 and 616.203061.  An example of a work classed in 616.203061 is Combating the Threat of Pandemic Influenza: Drug Discovery Approaches.

Data in Our New Editorial Support System

When I joined the Dewey editorial team over two years ago, planning and design efforts for a next-generation (fourth-generation, in fact) editorial support system (ESS) had already occupied the editors for a lengthy stretch of time, as evidenced by a blog entry on the subject from early 2006.  The day when those efforts will finally come to fruition are fast approaching:  we expect to be using the new system for our editorial work by July.

When the development effort had generated enough documents that we were all losing track of them, someone had the bright idea that we needed to develop a set of categories for organizing them.  What an irony, I thought.  Here we are devising a set of categories for organizing documents when we have the world’s pre-eminent classification scheme at our fingertips.  Why not give the documents DDC class numbers? 

The documents have long since been grouped into a few high-level categories, but giving them class numbers still appeals to me.  As I survey the documents, I note that they fall into three overall areas:  the data, the application, and the development process.  Today we look at the data side of the new ESS, much of which falls within 005.7 Data in computer systems.  Blog entries on the application and development process will be forthcoming in the weeks to come.

As previously blogged (here and here), an important aspect of the new ESS is that, instead of being maintained in a proprietary format, the data will be represented using the MARC classification and authority formats.  (Records for schedule and table numbers, as well as Manual records, will use the classification format, while records for Relative Index headings and mapped headings will use the authority format.)  Works on the MARC classification format are classed in 025.420285572 (built from 025.42 Classification, plus T1—0285 Computer applications, plus 572 from 005.72 Data representation, record formats, as instructed under T1—0285).  Works on the MARC authority format are classed in 025.32220285572 (built as above, except that the base is 025.3222, the comprehensive number for authority files).  Note that, although MARC is in a class-here note at 025.316 Machine-readable record formats, a scatter see reference there instructs that formats for a specific kind of record should be classed in the number for the kind, plus notation T1—0285572, as shown above.

Another data representation nicety in the new system is that diacritics and special characters will no longer be coded differently from all of our “standard” data.  Everything’s Unicode, a topic in standing room at 005.722 Character sets.  All we have to do is drag-and-drop from the Windows Character Map utility. 

Of course, adopting a new data format means needing to convert the data from the old format to the new format.  The including note at 005.72 Data preparation and representation specifically mentions conversion to machine-readable form (implicitly from non-machine-readable form), but is also the number for conversion from one machine-readable form to another.

Coming next:  the features in our new ESS application.

Cattle Genome

The cattle genome has been in the news recently, e.g., “Cattle Genome Sequenced” and “Bovine Genome Could Lead To Better Meat For Consumers, Experts Say.” A quotation from the latter article:  “The researchers used the complete sequence from a single Hereford cow and comparative genome sequences for six more breeds, looking for changes called single nucleotide polymorphisms – SNPs – markers that can help researchers identify favorable traits.” Related papers include “Genetics: It's a Bull's Market,” “The Genome Sequence of Taurine Cattle: A Window to Ruminant Biology and Evolution,” “Genome-Wide Survey of SNP Variation Uncovers the Genetic Structure of Cattle Breeds” (all in Science), and “A Whole-Genome Assembly of the Domestic Cow, Bos Taurus” in Genome Biology.  There is also a special series from BioMedCentral: Bovine: The Companion Papers for the Publication of the Bovine Genome Sequence.

Where might one begin looking for DDC numbers for the cattle genome?  One might browse the Relative Index in WebDewey for “cattle”:

Cattle       636.2
Cattle—agricultural economics       338.1762
Cattle—animal husbandry       636.2
. . . . .
Cattle—zoology       599.6422

The number opposite the unsubdivided entry for cattle is both the interdisciplinary number for cattle and the animal husbandry number for cattle: 636.2 Ruminants and Camelidae    Bovidae    Cattle.  The record for the zoology number for cattle—599.6422 Bos (Oxen)—has the note: “Class interdisciplinary works on Bos taurus (domestic cattle) in 636.2.”  Clearly 636.2 is a good number for works that emphasize domestic cattle, including interdisciplinary works that have some discussion about wild ancestors of domestic cattle.

One might also browse the Relative Index for “genetics”:

Genetics       576.5
Genetics
      see Manual at  576.5 vs. 572.8         
Genetics—animal husbandry       636.0821
Genetics—animal husbandry—sheep       636.30821
Genetics—animals       591.35
. . . . . .

Although the interdisciplinary number for genetics is in biology (576.5 Genetics), the comprehensive number for genetics in animal husbandry is 636.0821 Genetics.

In biology there is a split between the interdisciplinary number 576.5 Genetics and 572.8 Biochemical genetics.  The distinction is explained in the Manual entry 576.5 vs. 572.8 Genetics vs. Biochemical genetics.  Genomes are classed with biochemical genetics in 572.86 DNA (Deoxyribonucleic acid), where there is a note: “Class here chromosomal DNA, codons, genes, genomes.”  For example, works on genomes of sponges are classed in 572.86134 DNA of sponges.  The number is built with 572.86 DNA (Deoxyribonucleic acid) plus 1 from 571.1 Animals, as instructed under 572.5–572.8 Specific biochemicals and biochemical genetics, plus 34 from 593.4 Porifera (Sponges) as instructed at 571.1.  An example of a work classed in 572.86134 is Genome Organization in Sponges. 

In animal husbandry, general genetics and biochemical genetics are classed together in 636.0821 Genetics or in other subdivisions of 636 Animal husbandry.  Examples of works classed in 636.0821 are Chromosome Mapping of Some Genes in Farm Animals by In Situ Hybridization and Genome Analysis in Domestic Animals.

According to the rule of zero, for works about genetics of cattle, 636.2 Ruminants and Camelidae    Bovidae    Cattle is preferred over 636.0821 Genetics.  The heading at 636.2 is a dual heading—actually, a triple heading, with three parts. Further addition is possible for each of the three parts, even the smallest part, cattle. The information conveyed in the dual/triple heading has hierarchical force and carries down to subdivisions that may mention only the broadest part of the heading as a kind of shorthand. At 636.2001–636.208 Standard subdivisions, specific topics on husbandry of ruminants and Camelidae is a note that permits addition of notation for genetics to the number for cattle:  “Add to base number 636.20 the numbers following 636.0 in 636.001–636.08, e.g., heifers 636.207 . . . . .”  Thus one can add 821 from 636.0821 Genetics to 636.20  to build 636.20821 Genetics of ruminants and Camelidae, of Bovidae, of cattle.  An example of a work classed in 636.20821 is The Bovine Gene Map.

What about the genome sequence of a single Hereford cow?  Hereford cattle are classed in 636.222 English beef breeds, where there is a note: “Including Hereford and Shorthorn cattle.”  Again by the rule of zero, for works about genetics of Hereford cattle, 636.222 is preferred over 636.20821.  There are no instructions for adding to express genetics of specific breeds, and if there were, one could not use them for Hereford cattle because Herefords are in the including note.  An example of a work classed in 636.222 is International Genetic Evaluation for the North American Hereford and Polled Hereford Populations.

Presidential Pets

Many U.S. presidents and their families have had well-known pets, as can be seen in the photo essay “Presidential Pets.”  Works about presidential pets are often historical and biographical, e.g., The Presidents and Their Pets, which is classed in 973.099 United States presidents—collected biography (built with 9 plus T2—73 United States plus 099 Collected persons treatment, as instructed under 930–990 History of ancient world; of specific continents, countries, localities; of extraterrestrial worlds and under 973.01–973.09 Standard subdivisions, which shows that only one zero instead of two should be used and which has the note, “As modified under 930–990”).  

There are also historical and biographical works about individual pets, e.g., First Dog, Fala, which is classed in 973.917092 Administration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 1933–1945—biography (built with 973.917 Administration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 1933–1945 plus T1—092 Persons). Even Millie’s Book: As Dictated to Barbara Bush sticks close to history and biography; the book is classed in 973.928092 Administration of George Bush, 1989–1993—biography (built with 973.928 Administration of George Bush, 1989–1993 plus T1—092 Persons).       

Biographical works about presidential pets are usually classed according to the advice in the “Families and close associates of the famous” part of the Manual note at T1—092 Persons: “Class a history of the immediate or extended family of a famous person with the biography of that person if the work strongly emphasizes the famous person. The same rule applies to the biography of a single relative or close associate of a famous person. However, if the relative or associate is important in his or her own right, or if the famous person is not strongly featured, class the life of the relative in the subject warranted by his or her own work, e.g., use 269.2092 for a biography of evangelist Ruth Carter Stapleton, sister of President Jimmy Carter, that treats the president only incidentally.”  Most presidential pets are not famous or important in their own right—that is, they are best known as pets of famous people, not best known as prize-winning show dogs or racehorses, not famous for having rescued humans, etc.—and usually the famous person is strongly featured.  Consequently, biographical works about presidential pets are usually classed in presidential biography numbers instead of in the pets’ own biography numbers, and T1—0929 Persons treatment of nonhumans is not used.

The newest presidential pet, Bo, is a Portuguese water dog.  The interdisciplinary number for the Portuguese water dog is 636.73 Working and herding dogs, where the breed is named in the including note and where there is an unsubdivided Relative Index entry for the breed.  The American Kennel Club puts the Portuguese water dog in the “working group.”  The Manual entry 636.72–636.75 Specific breeds and groups of dogs explains, “The main groupings used are those recognized by the American Kennel Club (AKC) in The Complete Dog Book, 1997. The roughly corresponding groupings of the Kennel Club of United Kingdom (KC) are given in class-here notes when the names differ materially.”  An example of a work classed in 636.73 Working and herding dogs is Portuguese Water Dog.  

Prosperity or Depression

April 2009 New and Changed Entries include the following:

 

338.542           Business cycles

 

Including prosperity, recession, depression, recovery; panics

 

Class remedial and preventive measures in 338.543. Class comprehensive economic works on a specific period of prosperity or depression with the economic conditions of the specific time or place in 330.9, e.g., worldwide depression in 1930s 330.9043, economic prosperity in Germany, 1949–1962 330.9430875

 

The new note marked with underlining is intended to remind us all that the economics of a specific period of prosperity or depression should be classed with economic conditions of the specific time or place in a subdivision of 330.9 Economic situation and conditions.  For example, The Asian Financial Crisis: Crisis, Reform, and Recovery is classed in 330.950429 Economic conditions in Asia, 1990–1999 (built with 330.9 Economic situation and conditions plus T2—5 Asia plus 0 plus notation 429 from 950.429 History of Asia, 1990–1999, following instructions under 330.93–330.99 Treatment by specific continents, countries, localities).

 

Broader works about a specific period of prosperity or depression—not just economics but also the life and civilization of the time—are classed in history.  For example, Hard Times: An Oral History of the Great Depression is classed in 973.9160922 Collective biography of United States, 1929–1933 (built with 973.916 Administration of Herbert Clark Hoover, 1929–1933 plus T1—0922 Collected persons treatment).  The choice of historical period follows the first-of-two rule, since the Great Depression continued into 973.917 Administration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 1933–1945.

 

The earlier blog about recessions was unclear and may have been misleading—sorry!  Works classed in 338.542 Business cycles should emphasize general and recurring economic processes, not economic conditions in a specific time or place.   An example of a work classed in 338.542 Business cycles is Manias, Panics, and Crashes: A History of Financial Crises.  The including note at 338.542 makes clear that works focusing on only a part of the business cycle—in this case crises—do not approximate the whole; thus no further addition is possible.

Endangered Languages

Endangered languages have been in the news since the “United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) . . . launched an interactive electronic version of its atlas cataloguing some 2,500 endangered languages worldwide” (UNESCO press release), e.g., the Washington Post article “Preserving Languages Is About More Than Words.”

Interdisciplinary works on endangered languages are classed in 408.9 Treatment of language with respect to ethnic and national groups (built with 4 from 400 Language plus T1—089 Ethnic and national groups).  The interdisciplinary number for language and languages is 400 Language; it has unsubdivided Relative Index entries “Language” and “Languages” and the class-here note “Class here interdisciplinary works on language and literature.”  Standard subdivision T1—089 Ethnic and national groups has the note “Class here ethnic and national minorities.”  It is especially the languages spoken by minority groups that are endangered.  An example of a work classed in 408.9 is Endangered Languages: What Role for the Specialist?

By the rule of zero, works on a specific endangered language are classed with the language in 420-490 Specific languages.  For example, A Tarifit Berber-English Dictionary: Documenting an Endangered Language is classed in 493.3 Berber languages (built with 493 Non-Semitic Afro-Asiatic languages plus 3 from T6—933 Berber languages, as instructed at 493).  Tarifit Berber is also known as Rif language, and Rif is in the including note at T6—933 Berber languages; hence no further addition is possible. 

Sociological and anthropological works on endangered languages are classed in 306.44 Language, which has the note “Class here anthropological linguistics, ethnolinguistics, sociolinguistics.”  The number 306.44 is subordinate to 302–307 Specific topics in sociology and anthropology. An example of a work classed in 306.44 is Discourses of Endangerment: Ideology and Interest in the Defence of Languages.

In WebDewey the LCSH “Endangered languages” has been editorially mapped to both 408.9 Treatment of language with respect to ethnic and national groups and 306.44 Language.

Biofilms

“Scientists Learning to Target Bacteria Where They Live,” an article in Washington Post by Kari Lydersen, recently drew attention to bacterial biofilms:

In the arms race between humans and bacteria, the ability to form “biofilms”—large aggregations of microbes embedded in a slimy matrix—has been one of the weapons the organisms use to defeat the immune system, antibiotic drugs and other threats. But scientists, who only recently recognized the role that biofilms play in antibiotic resistance, may be closing in on promising prospects for defeating pathogens.

Scientists have learned that bacteria that are vulnerable when floating around as individual cells in what is known as their “planktonic state” are much tougher to combat once they get established in a suitable place—whether the hull of a ship or inside the lungs—and come together in tightly bound biofilms. In that state, they can activate mechanisms like tiny pumps to expel antibiotics, share genes that confer protection against drugs, slow down their metabolism or become dormant, making them harder to kill.

The answer, say researchers, is to find substances that will break up biofilms.

Interdisciplinary works on microbial biofilms are classed in 579.1782 Ecological communities of microorganisms, fungi, algae (built with 579.17 Ecology, organisms characteristic of specific environments plus 82 from 577.82 Ecological communities, according to instructions at 579.171–579.178 Specific topics in ecology, specific environments).  The number 579.1782 is a subdivision of the interdisciplinary number for microbiology: 579 Microorganisms, fungi, algae.  The number 579 has the note “Class here microbiology” and the unsubdivided Relative Index entry “Microbiology.”  An example of a work classed in 579.1782 is Community Structure and Co-operation in Biofilms.

Interdisciplinary works on bacterial biofilms are classed in 579.31782 Ecological communities of prokaryotes (built with 579.3 Prokaryotes, which has the notes: “Variant names: Monera, Schizomycetes, Schizophyta, bacteria” and “Class here bacteriology,” plus 17 from 579.17 Ecology, organisms characteristic of specific environments, following the footnote instruction at 579.3 to add as instructed under 579.2–579.8 Specific taxonomic groups of microorganisms, fungi, algae, plus 82 from 577.82 Ecological communities).

Comprehensive medical works on microbial biofilms are classed in the comprehensive number for medical microbiology:  616.9041 Medical microbiology.  The number 616.9041 has the Relative Index entry “Microbiology—medicine.”  Under 616.9041 is the note: “Class here drug resistance in microorganisms.”   The number was built with 616.904 Special topics of communicable diseases plus 1 from 01 Medical microbiology in the add table under 616.1–616.9 Specific diseases according to instructions under 616.904.  An example of a work classed in 616.9041 is Biofilms, Infection, and Antimicrobial Therapy.

Under 616.9041 Medical microbiology is the note:  “Class medical microbiology of a specific disease or group of diseases with the disease or group of diseases, plus notation 01 from table under 616.1-616.9, e.g., medical microbiology of tuberculosis 616.99501.”     Comprehensive medical works on bacterial biofilms are classed in 616.9201 Medical microbiology of bacterial diseases (built with 616.92 Bacterial diseases plus 01 Medical microbiology from table under 616.1–616.9 Specific diseases, following footnote instruction at 616.92 to add as instructed under 616.1–616.9).  An example of a work on bacterial biofilms classed in 616.9201 is Control of Biofilm Infections by Signal Manipulation.   

Contemporary Styles of Music

There are several areas of difficulty that plague classifiers when approaching 780 Music:

• The citation order is complex; its implementation, via a class-with-the-last policy, is hard to grasp.
• Not all cultures recognize a distinction between folk music and popular music.
• The evolution of music styles muddies everything!

We are proposing several sets of changes in the 780s to address these difficulties, which especially affect the classification of contemporary music. The changes aim to:

• Make clear that the classification of (contemporary) folk and popular music follows the same principles that govern all of the 780s
• Accommodate contemporary developments in musical styles
• Make the classification of contemporary music less volatile (i.e., less subject to change over time)
• Make the classification of contemporary music more expressive

A few examples will provide a taste of the problems addressed and the solutions proposed. Consider, for example, kwaito, which one source describes as “a mixture of all that 1990’s South African youth grew up on: South African disco music, hip hop, R&B, Ragga, and a heavy, heavy dose of American and British house music.”  Several issues are evident here: (1) Should kwaito be treated as folk music (781.62) or as popular music (781.63-781.66)? More generally, is there a way to distinguish reliably between 781.62 Folk music and 781.63-781.66 Popular music? (2) If treated as popular music, should kwaito be seen as non-western popular music (781.63) or, given the western basis of many of its underlying influences, as western popular music (781.64-781.66)? (3) If treated as western popular music, should kwaito be classed in the number coming first, the number coming last, or the number of the most prominent genre? That is, how should hybrid music styles be treated? (4) If classed with house music (arguably its most prominent genre), where should kwaito be classed? That is, where does electronica belong?

Our answer to question (1) is based on a new scope note proposed for 781.62 Folk music: Music originating within and associated with an ethnic or national group. The criteria in the scope note are meant to be not only necessary--a musical style should not be classed in 781.62 if (a) it originated within an ethnic or national group, but is not longer associated with them or (b) it is associated with an ethnic or national group, but did not originate within them--but also sufficient; that is, if the two criteria are met, the musical style should be classed in 781.62 (but see the exception in the paragraph below). The sufficiency of the criteria is meant to be communicated by notes at 781.63 ("Class popular music originating within and associated with an ethnic or national group in 781.62") and 781.64 ("Class western popular music originating within and associated with an ethnic or national group in 781.62"). We recognize that adhering to these criteria may result at times in classing a style under 781.62 for which "popular music" is a better label than "folk music."

But does kwaito meet the exception given at 781.62 ("Class a specific style of music provided for in 781.64-781.66 with the style, e.g., reggae 781.646, Afro-Cuban jazz 781.6572687291")? This is a trickier question, because it is more subjective. What does it mean to be a specific style of, for example, hip-hop? Our intent is to include in "specific style of X" only those styles that are considered solely "a kind of X" (rather than being considered, say, a blend of X and Y). The case with kwaito is intriguing: some sources describe it as a kind of house music; other sources refer to it as South African hip-hop. That both claims are made is evidence that kwaito is not simply a kind of house or a kind of hip-hop.

Fortunately, there is agreement that kwaito originated within South Africa and is currently associated with South Africans; it thus accords with the scope note at 781.62. This means kwaito would be classed in 781.62968 South African folk music (built with 781.62 Folk music, plus T5—96 African, following instructions in the add table under 781.621–781.629, plus notation 8, from T2—68 South Africa, following instructions at T5—966–968).

Answering the first question as we did makes the other questions moot for kwaito, but the other questions—especially the third and fourth questions—have significant generality beyond kwaito. We have struggled with deciding how to handle styles of music based on two or more previous styles. Using Grove Music Online as our source (supplemented by information on styles of popular music at allmusic.com), we propose to distinguish between styles that are essentially specializations of an existing style (as rockabilly is a kind of rock style) and hybrid styles, in which two or more styles have fused to form a new style (as folk rock is a blending or fusion of folk music and rock music). Styles that are specializations of an existing style would class with that style; indeed, we propose to add a class-here note for specific styles (e.g., Class here specific rock styles at 781.66), resulting in specialized styles approximating the whole of the number where they are classed. Thus rockabilly would be classed in 781.66 Rock (Rock ‘n’ roll). Hybrid styles would class with the number coming last (following the policy enunciated under 780), to which newly proposed notation 17 from the table under 781.63-781.69 could be added, so a prominent other style could be expressed. Thus folk rock would be classed in 781.661762 (built with 781.66 Rock (Rock ‘n’ roll), plus notation 17 Hybrid styles from the add table under 781.63-781.69, following the footnote instruction at 781.66, plus notation 62 from 781.62 Folk music, following the instruction at the add table notation).

As for question 4, where in the world is (Veronica) Electronica?—OK, so you gotta know the game Where in the World is Carmen San Diego? to appreciate that clever turn of phrase—we are proposing an expansion for electronica at 781.648.

What about existing styles whose treatment may not accord with these principles? Take, for example, reggae, which meets the newly proposed folk music criteria: reggae clearly originated in Jamaica and typically is still associated with that country. We have decided, however, not to move any styles that have already been developed in the schedules, so reggae stays at 781.646, rather than moving to 781.629697292 Jamaican folk music (built with 781.62 Folk music, plus T5—969 African (outside Africa), following instructions in the add table under 781.621–781.629, plus notation 7292, from T2—7292 Jamaica and Cayman Islands, following instructions at T5—969).

A detailed discussion of the changes being proposed can be viewed here.

We invite your feedback on the proposed changes, either posted as a comment to this blog entry or sent directly to dewey@loc.gov. Feedback is requested by April 15, 2009.

Motion Pictures and Television

The March 2009 New and Changed Entries posting focuses on 791.43 Motion pictures, 791.44 Radio, and 791.45 Television. 

The entry for 791.43 Motion pictures has the notes:

Regardless of distribution medium or method

Class here made-for-television movies, video recordings of motion pictures [both formerly 791.45]; direct-to-video and direct-to-DVD releases of motion pictures; dramatic films, entertainment films; films developed originally for Internet transmission; comprehensive works on dramatic, entertainment, documentary, educational, news films

The entry for 791.45 Television has the notes:

Regardless of distribution medium or method

Class here dramatic programs, entertainment programs; mini-series, extended pilots of television series; television-like programs developed originally for Internet transmission; comprehensive works on dramatic, entertainment, documentary, educational, news programs

Made-for-television movies, video recordings of motion pictures relocated to 791.43

These notes all have hierarchical force and thus affect subdivisions of 791.43 and 791.45.

There is a new Manual note to help distinguish between 791.43 Motion pictures and 791.45 Television:

Use the Internet Movie Database (http://www.imdb.com/) or a similar online source for help in determining if a production should be treated as a motion picture or a television program.  If in doubt, prefer 791.43.

An example of a made-for-television movie is Carrie’s War (2004), which is now classed in 791.4372 Single films.  The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) entry has the label “(TV)”: Carrie’s War (2004) (TV).

An example of a video recording of a motion picture is Fanny och Alexander, issued on videodisc in 2004, but originally released as a motion picture in 1982; it is now classed in 791.4372 Single films.  The IMDb entry has no special label after the date of the original theatrical release:  Fanny och Alexander (1982).

An example of a television mini-series is Jane Eyre (2006), which is classed in 791.4572 Single programs.  The IMDb entry has the label “TV mini-series”: “Jane Eyre” (2006) TV mini-series. 

There are also several film versions of Jane Eyre that are properly classed in 791.4372 Single films, e.g., a video recording of the 1996 motion picture Jane Eyre, which has no special label attached to its IMDb entry: Jane Eyre (1996).

New Assistant Editor of the DDC

We are delighted to announce the appointment of Michael Panzer as assistant editor of the Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC), effective today.  Michael, who from 2002 to 2005 headed the technical team that translated Dewey into German, is the first member of a Dewey translation team to be appointed assistant editor.

Since joining OCLC in 2007, Michael has served as global product manager of taxonomy services at OCLC.  Along with colleagues in the OCLC Office of Research, Michael has been heavily involved in representations of the DDC for semantic web applications.  His recent focus has been on the development of a prototype Dewey history-of-concepts web service.  Michael will continue to serve as a technical advisor to Dewey research projects and web services, but his current business and licensing responsibilities will be assumed by OCLC Dewey product manager Libbie Crawford.

Prior to joining OCLC, Michael worked at Cologne University of Applied Sciences, where he was team leader of CrissCross, a research project funded by the German Research Foundation focused on mapping SWD, DDC, RAMEAU, and LCSH.   Michael has an MA from Heinrich Heine University (Düsseldorf) in German Literature with a minor in Information Science.  He also attended the University of California, Davis, on a four-month research scholarship.

Michael will continue to be based at OCLC headquarters in Dublin, Ohio.  Please join us in congratulating Michael on this important appointment.

Rethinking Meals

The current development for meals at 641.52–641.54 Cooking specific meals combines the type of meal with the time of day consumed.  This approach poses a problem for the representation of the main meal of the day in different cultural contexts.  We are proposing a simpler framework for meals to meet the needs of the worldwide community of Dewey users.  We welcome comments and suggestions--please tell us what you think!  Please reply directly to this blog entry (or alternatively to dewey@loc.gov) by March 27, 2009.

Proposed Development for Meals 

>                                   641.52–641.54       *‡Cooking specific meals

                    Class comprehensive works in 641.5

 

641.52          First meal of the day

 

Class here breakfasts, brunches

 

641.53  *‡     Light meals

Class here snacks; dinners, lunches, suppers, teas as light meals

 

Class breakfasts and brunches in 641.52; class dinners, lunches, suppers, teas as main meals in 641.54

 

641.54            Main meal of the day

 

Class here dinners, lunches, suppers, teas as main meals

 

Class breakfasts and brunches in 641.52; class dinners, lunches, suppers, teas as light meals in 641.53

 

Comprehensive works on specific meals will continue to be classed in 641.5 Cooking, where there are further instructions about the choice of numbers within 641.5 and elsewhere in 641 Food and drink and 642 Meals and table service.  For example, works on cooking specific kinds of dishes associated with specific meals are classed in 641.8 Cooking specific kinds of dishes, preparing beverages, e.g., wraps are classed in 641.84 Sandwiches.

Below are the proposed changes to the current development to produce the new framework shown above.  Changes to schedule numbers are indicated only by underlining.  Other changes are underlined, and deletions are marked by strikethroughs. 

Proposed Development for Meals (with changes to current development indicated)

>                                   641.52–641.54       *‡Cooking specific meals

                    Class comprehensive works in 641.5

 

641.52          First meal of the day Breakfasts

 

Class here brunches [formerly 641.532], breakfasts

 

641.53  *‡     Light meals Luncheons, lunches, brunches, teas, suppers, snacks

Standard subdivisions are added for luncheons, lunches, brunches, teas, suppers, snacks together; for luncheons alone, for lunches alone

 

Class here snacks, dinners, lunches, suppers, teas as light meals

 

Class breakfasts and brunches in 641.52; class dinners, lunches, suppers, teas as main meals in 641.54

 

641[.532]          Brunches

 

                            Relocated to 641.52

 

641[.534]          Box and bag lunches

 

                            Standard subdivisions are added for either or both topics in heading 

 

                            Number discontinued; class in 641.53

 

641[.536]          Afternoon teas

 

                            Number discontinued; class in 641.53

 

641[.538]          Suppers

                         

Class evening meals that constitute the main meals of the day in 641.54

 

                             Number discontinued; class in 641.53

 

641[.539]          Snacks

 

                            Including elevenses

 

                            Number discontinued; class in 641.53

 

 

 

641.54            Main meal of the day Dinners

 

Class here dinners, lunches, suppers, teas as main meals

 

Class breakfasts and brunches in 641.52; class dinners, lunches, suppers, teas as light meals in 641.53

My Excellent Scandinavian Adventure

I spent the last week of January and the first week of February in Norway and Sweden.  The purpose of my trip was threefold:

Work on the mixed translation project with colleagues from the National Library of Norway and the National Library of Sweden (I’ve blogged about our mixed translation work previously—see our presentation from ISKO 2008)

Speak at Kunnskapsorganisasjonsdagene 2009 in Oslo, followed by a meeting with the Norwegian Classification Committee (NKKI)

Speak at a Dewey—let’s do it! in Stockholm, followed by a day of meetings with catalogers, subject experts, and members of the Libris department at the National Library of Sweden

I spent over a week in Oslo, most of it working on the mixed translation project at the National Library of Norway.  Ingebjørg Rype, Karen Nisja Domaas, and I worked on developing a mixed Norwegian-English version of 006 and 616-616.1 (back in DC, my colleague Rebecca Green performed magic on the mixed translation files each evening to transform the English-language instructions into their Norwegian counterparts for Dewey records in Norwegian).  Magdalena Svanberg (National Library of Sweden) joined us in Oslo at the midpoint of my visit to continue work on the mixed translation, and to discuss future project directions.  Inger Johanne Christiansen gave me a wonderful behind-the-scenes tour of the National Library of Norway (a highpoint of which was the chance to look at some Ibsen manuscripts that happened to be out for an Ibsen scholar’s visit later in the day).  On February 3, Magdalena, Ingebjørg, and I gave presentations at Kunnskapsorganisasjonsdagene 2009.  Later that day, we met with NKKI members to discuss the needs of Norwegian librarians in the design of the next Norwegian translation.  We also discussed the treatment of Nordkalotten (the area north of the Arctic Circle in Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia). On the following day, Magdalena and Ingebjørg participated in a Dewey workshop sponsored by the National Library of Norway, NKKI, and JBI (the three of us used a break in the workshop to squeeze in a final meeting on the mixed translation research project). 

After the workshop in Oslo ended, Magdalena and I flew to Stockholm for a whirlwind two days of meetings.  The first was occupied by a full-day seminar on Dewey (the aforementioned “Dewey—let’s do it!”).  On the day following the seminar, I met with catalogers and subject experts at the National Library of Sweden to discuss use of the DDC in general, mappings between Svenska ämnesord (SAO) and Dewey, and the addition of Dewey numbers to SAO records.  We also managed to have two side discussions about classification of visual materials and proposed changes to the 780 Music schedule. (After my return home, I shared draft documents on both topics with our Swedish colleagues, and we have already received back preliminary reactions to the proposed changes in 780 Music [we will be posting a discussion paper on 780 Music for public comment shortly].)  I also briefed members of the Libris department on our work on MARC, RDF/SKOS, and URI representations of DDC data, plus a prototype DDC history-of-concepts web service.

During the course of my trip, the National Library of Norway made a decision to proceed with a web version of a Norwegian translation of the DDC, and the administration of the National Library of Sweden awarded preliminary funding to a group headed by Magdalena Svanberg to launch work on the Swedish translation of the DDC in September 2009.  Also, three more Swedish university libraries (Göteborg, Linköping, and Gävle) announced that they would make the switch to the DDC.

My colleague Lorcan Dempsey often writes about the need to make our data work harder.  The underlying DDC data files (including the set of interoperable translations), the mappings between Dewey and other terminology resources, and the large body of content categorized by Dewey available in WorldCat and elsewhere are incredible resources in the networked information environment.  We are focused right now on a number of efforts to make the DDC data available in web-friendly formats for human and machine interaction.  The challenge remains to find ways to make our DDC data work harder.

Bank Failures and Deposit Insurance

Bank failures have been in the news in the U.S. and elsewhere, e.g., “FACTBOX-14 U.S. Banks Have Failed in 2009” (details at U. S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation’s (FDIC’s) “Failed Bank List”) and, from the Copenhagen Post about Danish banks, “Experts: More Bank Failures on the Horizon.” Bank failures are nothing new, of course; that’s why we have deposit insurance (and why the FDIC is celebrating its 75th anniversary).

Works on bank failures are classed in 332.1 Banks, which has the note: “Including bank failures.”  An example of a work about bank failures classed in 332.1 is Systemic Financial Crises: Resolving Large Bank Insolvencies. 

Because topics named in an including note are in standing room, nothing further can be added to 332.1 for works on bank failures.  The Relative Index entries in WebDewey emphasize that: both “Bank failures” and “Bank failures—United States” are indexed to 332.1.   The PPT (People, Places, and Things) mapping of the LCSH “Bank failures—United States” to 332.10973 Banks—United States remains in WebDewey because the PPT mapping has not been updated. Clicking on PPT in WebDewey brings up a note that reads in part: “Terms with the designation PPT have been either intellectually associated with the DDC, or statistically associated and then reviewed by Dewey editorial staff. Mappings in the areas of computer science, religion, and law have been updated to match DDC 22 numbers; the rest of the PPT mappings reflect DDC 21, and have not yet been revised to fit DDC 22.”  In DDC 21, “bank failures” appeared in a class-here note at 332.1, which meant that further addition was possible.

The entry 332.1 Banks has the relocation note: “Government guaranty of deposits relocated to 368.854.”  The entry 368.854 Bank deposit insurance has the other end of the relocation note: “Class here government guaranty of deposits [formerly also 332.1].”  An example of a work classed in 368.854 is Deposit Insurance around the World: Issues of Design and Implementation. 

Because government guaranty of deposits is named in a class-here note at 368.854 Bank deposit insurance, the topic approximates the whole of the number, and standard subdivisions can be added.  Works focusing on the United States are classed in 368.85400973 Bank deposit insurance—United States.  The number is built with 368.854 plus 0 (extra 0 for standard subdivisions as instructed in the add table under 368.1–368.8 Specific kinds of insurance) plus T1—09 Geographic treatment plus T2—73 United States.  A footnote at 368.854 leads to 368.1–368.8: “Add as instructed under 368.1-368.8.” An example of a work classed in 368.85400973 is The Reform of Federal Deposit Insurance: Disciplining the Government and Protecting Taxpayers.