The National Library of Medicine and the American medical information system: the physician's perspective.

During the past 150 years an excellent health sciences information system has been developed in the United States. Led by the National Library of Medicine (NLM), the system grew along traditional lines until after World War II, when medical researchers, educators, and practitioners produced an enormous amount of new information. To cope with this growth, the power of computers joined traditional librarianship and MEDLARS was born. In 1965 Congress passed the Medical Library Assistance Act, which enabled NLM to lead the nation''s and the world''s health sciences professionals into the Information Age. Much as been accomplished by NLM, yet much remains to be done to make health information available cheaply, easily, and quickly to all who need it.     

Prediction: A six-year follow-up

The prereading and reading performance of a group of 370 predominantly Hispanic, bilingual public school children was followed for six years. The aim of the study was to compare the factorial make-up and predictive validity of tests used in the current research with findings from a previous study. The early study had followed the children from the end of their kindergarten year until the end of second grade. For purposes of the present study a 13-test predictor battery was administered to the children at the beginning of their first-grade year. This battery included a number of measures used in the early study, among them a 5-test Screening Index developed in the course of that study. Records were obtained of the follow-up children’s 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th grade reading test scores. Factor analysis of the pool of 13 predictor tests showed a two-cluster battery structure. These clusters closely resembled two of the four factors defined in the early study. As used with the group of bilingual children, the Screening Index misclassified many of the failing readers, as well as others who went ahead to read at grade level. The Screening Index quite accurately identified, across grades, children who eventually read well. A number of predictor tests administered at beginning of first grade continued to show significant correlations with reading at all grade levels. The consistent contribution of the predictor tests with reading points to their continuing usefulness as a point of departure for assessing children’s readiness to read. The investigation was conducted by the staff of the de Hirsch-Robinson Reading Clinic, Department of Pediatric Psychiatry, Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center, and the New York State Psychiatric Institute. The work has been supported by generous grants from a number of private donors, among them The Beinecke Foundation, The Morgan Family Fund, The Lita Annenberg-Hazen Charitable Trust, Mr. Seymour Milstein of the Milstein Family Foundation, and Mrs. William Carey.     

Scottish toolkit for knowledge management

BACKGROUND: Using specific examples, this paper describes the tools, methods and resources used to develop Managed Knowledge Networks (MKNs) within the NHS Scotland e-Library (http://www.elib.scot.nhs.uk). MKNs help to complete the knowledge management cycle by providing a place to share the learning and discuss the evidence for practice through combining the use of the published material (explicit knowledge) with the experience and knowledge held by individuals, communities and organizations (tacit knowledge). OBJECTIVES: First of all, this paper outlines the e-Library infrastructure, which provides an inter-operable framework to manage the published knowledge using a metadata management system; and a knowledge-sharing tool to support the development of MKNs. It then covers the various stages involved in developing an MKN: gathering and analysing information needs in a variety of ways; presenting and organizing the resources and services for the users as identified in the needs analysis; managing the tacit, personal and local knowledge. CONCLUSION: The toolkit described enables the Knowledge Services Group to take the needs of users, transcribe these into Specialist e-Libraries to provide access to the published information and to support this with accessing and sharing the knowledge of colleagues via MKNs.     

IDEALS AND METHODS OF RELIGIOUS EDUCATION FOR THE COMING WORLD ORDER∗

This article brings to bear on our understanding of learning many insights from the field of psychology

     

Children's Vulnerability to Interparental Conflict: The Protective Role of Sibling Relationship Quality

This study tested whether the strength of the mediational pathway involving interparental conflict, adolescent emotional insecurity, and their psychological problems depended on the quality of their sibling relationships. Using a multimethod approach, 236 adolescents (M_age = 12.6 years) and their parents participated in three annual measurement occasions. Tests of moderated mediation revealed that indirect paths among interparental conflict, insecurity, and psychological problems were significant for teens with low, but not high, quality bonds with siblings. High-quality (i.e., strong) sibling relationships conferred protection by neutralizing interparental conflict as a precursor of increases in adolescent insecurity. Results did not vary as a function of the valence of sibling relationship properties, adolescent sex, or gender and age compositions of the dyad.