How to use a thesaurus, Humanities

Assignment Help:

How to Use a Thesaurus 

The final process of indexing involves translating the relevant subject concepts of the document into the indexing language or the descriptor language of the system. The translation stage involves  the comparison of each term in the subject statement with the descriptors of the thesaurus to determine: 

  1. whether an exact equivalent is available in the thesaurus, 
  2. whether a broader term in the thesaurus is adequate for retrieval, 
  3. whether the pre-coordinated term exists in the thesaurus (e.g. corrosion prevention, production capacity) which can be substituted for one or more terms (adjacent to each other) in a subject statement, 
  4. whether it is necessary to introduce a new term  as a last resort. New terms should be introduced only after a careful consideration of terms already available in the thesaurus, the relative frequency  of occurrence of the concept in the literature, the relative frequency of its probable use in the system, its relationship to descriptors already existing in the thesauri and  its technical  precision and acceptability as determined by references to other thesauri, dictionaries, handbooks, glossaries and the like. 

After each term in a subject statement is  translated into the descriptors from the thesaurus used in a system, a set of references is established between the terms in a subject statement and the corresponding terms revealed by the thesaurus. This step is essential when the thesaurus is used as a vocabulary control tool in a system which adopts as pre-coordinated indexing system such as, PRECIS, POPSI or BTI. The two kinds of references are: 

  1. See  reference (corresponding to USE reference) which directs the user to an appropriate term from, which is not used as a descriptor. A see reference is made for the non-preferred synonyms or quasi-synonymous term to the preferred lead term. 
  2. See also reference (corresponding to BT to NT) to the lead term is made from its immediate broader term. A see also reference is made from the other terms which are associatively related  (M) terms, having strong mental association between that term and the lead term.  

Related Discussions:- How to use a thesaurus

Cataloguing-in-publication, Cataloguing-in-Publication   The cataloguin...

Cataloguing-in-Publication   The cataloguing-in-Source given up by the LC in 1959 was revived in July 1971. The entries were prepared from galley proofs and data returned to pu

Handbooks, Handbooks, Manuals, Guide-books We have a very large group ...

Handbooks, Manuals, Guide-books We have a very large group of ready reference sources consisting of handbooks, manuals, source books and guide books. It is difficult to disti

Nature of buddhism in japan, "In China, Buddhism apparently took root among...

"In China, Buddhism apparently took root among the common people before it found popularity with the elite. In Japan, despite the leading role of the state and great families i

Citation indexes - types of indexing periodic, Citation Indexes Citati...

Citation Indexes Citation indexes are unique from the point of view of technique followed. They are based on citations made in current documents. They follow a novel metho

Authority - evaluation of dictionary, Authority The authority of a dic...

Authority The authority of a dictionary can be determined by the reputation of its compiler(s)/editor(s), associates and publishers. Generally, a linguist et a philologist he

Meaning - list of subject headings, Meaning   A vocabulary control devi...

Meaning   A vocabulary control device depends on a master list of terms that can be assigned to documents. Such a master list of terms is called 'List of Subject Headings'. A l

Bibliographies, Bibliographies   A library catalogue and a bibliography...

Bibliographies   A library catalogue and a bibliography are distinct from each other as they serve different purposes. A bibliography is an organised list of documents compiled

LEGEND a play in one-act by Floyd Dell.., Discuss how you would modernize t...

Discuss how you would modernize the mise-en-scène in a 200-word description. You can substitute or change any stage directions from the original play; however, you cannot change an

Project Management, discuss management part of project management.

discuss management part of project management.

FST-01, describe the factors which decide the broad area of scientific acti...

describe the factors which decide the broad area of scientific activity

Write Your Message!

Captcha
Free Assignment Quote

Assured A++ Grade

Get guaranteed satisfaction & time on delivery in every assignment order you paid with us! We ensure premium quality solution document along with free turntin report!

All rights reserved! Copyrights ©2019-2020 ExpertsMind IT Educational Pvt Ltd