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Foundation of Library and Information Science

Notes

Case Study Facilitating Scientific Research with Library Services

cientific communication has changed because of rapid advances in information
technology, which has also changed the pace of scientific developments. Traditional
Sinformation services are no longer sufficient to meet researchers’ complex needs
and expectations. Librarians have the challenge of striking a balance between the enormous
growth in scholarly literature and technological advancements in information technology.
The Institute
The Institute for Plasma Research (IPR) was founded in 1982 and is a premiere physics
research institute of the Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India. Its research
is in a very specialized subject field, plasma physics, also known as the fourth state of
matter.
IPR is involved in various aspects of plasma science, including basic plasma physics,
magnetically-confined hot plasmas, and plasma technologies for industrial applications.
Apart from basic research, the institute is building a Steady State Superconducting Tokamak
(SST-1). IPR is now the Indian representative of the International Thermonuclear
Experimental Reactor (ITER).
Community and Information Needs
IPR’s user community includes scientists, engineers, and researchers involved in plasma
science and engineering. Their information requirements are complex and varied.
IPR Library

IPR has a state-of-the-art library. It provides guidance to other libraries. The rich collection,
versatile staff, innovative services, soothing ambience, and atmosphere of intellectual
freedom provide an environment that is conducive to scientific research. The success of a
research institution can be measured by its output of scholarly publications. The figure
below shows the growth of scientific publications at IPR.

Figure 1: Growth in Scientific Publications

The Role of Librarians
The research librarian is crucial to the research process in any organization.

Contd....

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