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MEDIA RELEASE
Monday 22 September 2003
For immediate release (Please copy to online discussion lists)

GARDENS, LORRIES AND ARCHITECTURE FEATURE IN CILIP/NIELSEN BOOKDATA REFERENCE AWARDS

Shortlists announced for outstanding reference works and indexes

An illustrated guide to the botanical garden, a Science Museum handbook on historic road haulage vehicles and a catalogue of some of the earliest architecture books in the world feature in the shortlist for this year's CILIP/Nielsen BookData Reference Awards. The Awards are organised and administered by CILIP: the Chartered Institute of Library and Information professionals, with generous sponsorship from Nielsen BookData, the market leading bibliographic information provider, which supplies order re routing and EDI messaging together with a range of web services for the book industry worldwide. The winners of the competition will be announced at CILIP's Gala Awards presentation day on 21 November.

The Awards on offer include the Besterman/McColvin Medal for both printed and electronic works of reference, the Walford Award for bibliography and the Wheatley Medal for an outstanding index. Shortlisted for the Wheatley this year are indexes to three scientific works - Dermatology (published by Elsevier Mosby), Encyclopaedia of Cognitive Science and Encyclopaedia of Life Sciences (both Nature Publishing Group). Entries are judged by a panel of expert library and information professionals, in collaboration with the Society of Indexers.

"People don't generally pay much attention to indexes, but they're vital for effective information retrieval," says CILIP's Head of External Relations Tim Buckley Owen about the
Wheatley Medal. "A good index lets people get the very best out of a reference work,
whereas a poor one can ruin what might otherwise have been a useful information source."

Award sponsor Nielsen BookData is clear that rewarding excellence in reference work compilation is a very worthwhile activity. "Authoritative reference works are vital for librarians," says Claire Dowbekin, UK Library Manager, of Nielsen BookData, "and we are pleased to be able to play a part in recognising excellence in an area of such importance to our customers."

Electronic reference tools also feature in the Awards, in a special category of the Besterman-McColvin Medal. The Online version of Dermatology features on the shortlist along with digital versions of BNF 45: British National Formulary, published by the BMA and the Royal Pharmaceutical Society and the xreferplus website published by xrefer Ltd.

The full shortlist for the CILIP/Nielsen BookData Reference Awards 2003 is:

Besterman/McColvin Medal for an outstanding work of reference: printed category

The Botanical Garden, vols 1 & 2 by Roger Phillips and Martyn Rix, published by Macmillan, ISBN: 0333730038 & 0333748905

Companion to British Road Haulage History, edited by John Armstrong, John Aldridge, Grahame Boyes, Gordon Mustoe and Richard Storey, published by the Science Museum ISBN: 1900747464

Early Printed Books Catalogue 1478 - 1840: catalogue of the British Architectural Library Early Imprints Collection, vol 5. Compiled for the Royal Institute of British Architects British Architectural Library by Paul W Nash, Nicholas Savage, Gerald Beasley, John Meriton and Alison Shell, published by K G Saur. ISBN: 3598240538 (complete edition)

Besterman/McColvin Medal for an outstanding work of reference: electronic category

BNF 45: British National Formulary, digital versions, published by the BMA and the Royal Pharmaceutical Society.

Dermatology Online www.dermtext.com edited by Jean L Bolognia, Joseph L Jorizzo and Ronald P Rapini, published by Elsevier Mosby. Website ISBN: 0323025773; E-dition (book and website) ISBN: 0323025781

xreferplus www.xrefer.com published by xrefer Ltd

Wheatley Medal for an outstanding index, awarded in association with the Society of Indexers

Dermatology, edited by Jean L Bolognia, Joseph L Jorizzo and Ronald P Rapini, published by Elsevier Mosby. Indexer: Jan Ross. ISBN: 0323024092.

Encyclopedia of Cognitive Science, Editor in Chief Lynn Nadel, published by Nature Publishing Group. Indexer: L Virgo. ISBN: 0333792610

Encyclopedia of Life Sciences, Publishing Director Gina Fullerlove, published by Nature Publishing Group. Indexer: Jan Ross (Merrall - Ross International). ISBN: 0333726219

The winner of the Walford Award, which is presented to an individual who has made a sustained and continual contribution to the science and art of bibliography, will be announced together with the rest of the Reference Awards at the CILIP Awards Gala presentation day at the Landmark Hotel, in London on November 21.


Contact: Louisa Myatt, Marketing Manager, CILIP.
                Tel: 020 7255 0650. Email: [log in to unmask]


Notes to Editors

Synopses of shortlisted reference works follows.

        * CILIP: the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals is the leading professional body for librarians, information specialists and knowledge managers, with well over 20,000 members working in all sectors, including business and industry, science and technology, further and higher education, schools, local and central government, the health service, the voluntary sector, national and public libraries. Further information is available from www.cilip.org.uk

        * The Society of Indexers, the only professional body for indexers in the UK and Ireland, exists to promote indexing, the quality of indexes and the profession of indexing. Website: www.socind.demon.co.uk
        * VNU Media Measurement and Information formed Nielsen BookData during 2002 after the acquisition of Book Data. One of the key objectives has been to merge Whitaker, Book Data and first Edition to bring together the expertise of these three companies in order to create the leading source of high quality bibliographic data and order routing services. Nielsen BookData offers libraries, publishers and booksellers the most comprehensive and timely bibliographic information with the additional benefits of order routing, EDI messaging and a range of web services. The company is working towards providing greater efficiencies for the industry by merging the two databases and creating a range of improved services. For more information about the company and its services go to: www.nielsenbookdata.com

Synopses of shortlisted reference works

Besterman/McColvin Medal for an outstanding work of reference: printed category

The Botanical Garden, vols 1 & 2 by Roger Phillips and Martyn Rix, published by Macmillan.

This major two-volume reference work covers over 1,000 genera and is the most comprehensive work of its kind, bridging the divide between scientific texts and everyday horticultural books and providing an unrivalled insight into the relationship between garden plants and the natural environment from which they come. Volume 1 covers trees and shrubs and volume 2 perennials and annuals. In the tradition of the great botanical encyclopaedias all the genera are lavishly illustrated.

Companion to British Road Haulage History, edited by John Armstrong, John Aldridge, Grahame Boyes, Gordon Mustoe and Richard Storey, published by the Science Museum.

This encyclopaedic reference work is the first to address in depth the subject of road haulage in Britain throughout the twentieth century. It presents over 600 cross-referenced articles on the whole range of themes that make up the history of road freight transport in Britain. It covers business, economic, legal, administrative, technical and social aspects, from the very beginning of the motor vehicle era, through the slow transition from horse-drawn transport to modern heavy lorries.

Early Printed Books Catalogue 1478 - 1840: catalogue of the British Architectural Library Early Imprints Collection, vol 5. Compiled for the Royal Institute of British Architects British Architectural Library by Paul W Nash, Nicholas Savage, Gerald Beasley, John Meriton and Alison Shell, published by K G Saur.

The final volume of a five-volume work devoted to a detailed bibliographical description of the British Architectural Library's Early Imprints Collection. The bulk of the text consists of a fully cross-referenced name and title index, and separate subject and geographical printer/publisher indices to the complete catalogue of some 4,200 books published between 1478 and 1840. In addition, addenda and corrigenda to the first four volumes have been included, along with a supplement describing more than 440 recent acquisitions and other works omitted from volumes 1 to 4. Appendices additionally list periodicals and the shelfmarks of the imprints. The five-volume set forms the most comprehensive bibliography of architecture and the related arts and sciences ever published. This work was made possible by the generous support of the Getty Grant Program of the J Paul Getty Trust, the Headley Trust and the British Architectural Library Trust.

Besterman/McColvin Medal for an outstanding work of reference: electronic category

BNF 45: British National Formulary, digital versions, published by the BMA and the Royal Pharmaceutical Society.

The BNF digital portfolio aims to provide doctors, pharmacists and other healthcare professionals with sound up-to-date information about the use of medicines. It provides ready access to key information on the selection, prescribing, dispensing and administration of medicines. Drugs that are generally prescribed in the UK are included and those that are considered less suitable for prescribing are clearly identified. Little or no information is included on medicines that are promoted for purchase by the public.

Dermatology Online www.dermtext.com edited by Jean L Bolognia, Joseph L Jorizzo and Ronald P Rapini, published by Elsevier Mosby.

Dermatology Online is an advanced reference source that aims to meet the needs of today's practitioners. It is balanced in its coverage, user friendly, richly illustrated, evidence based, clinically oriented, and international in scope. In addition to encyclopaedic information on every area of the field, it includes ongoing content updates, a complete library of easily downloadable electronic images, specialty news, links to key society websites, systemic drug questionnaires and self-assessment tests.

xreferplus www.xrefer.com published by xrefer Ltd

xreferplus is an online reference library which offers access to 150 reference titles. These include dictionaries, encyclopedias and atlases from well-known publishers such as Macmillan, Penguin and Blackwell. It contains millions of entries and thousands of searchable images and audio files. Its unique 'xreferencing' technology provides intelligent links between entries and titles. A 'Pick and Mix' selection system allows libraries to choose the content that makes up their subscription, and to change their selection throughout the year.

Wheatley Medal for an outstanding index, awarded in association with the Society of Indexers

Dermatology, edited by Jean L Bolognia, Joseph L Jorizzo and Ronald P Rapini, published by Elsevier Mosby. Indexer: Jan Ross.

Dermatology is an advanced reference source that aims to meet the needs of today's practitioners. It is balanced in its coverage, user friendly, richly illustrated, evidence based, clinically oriented, and international in scope. It includes contributions from over 280 renowned experts and aims to function as a practical reference tool for daily use.


Encyclopedia of Cognitive Science, editor in chief Lynn Nadel, published by Nature Publishing Group. Indexer: L Virgo.

Encyclopedia of Cognitive Science covers the cognitive sciences in the broadest sense. It reviews the common themes of information and information processing, representation and computation and covers in depth the core areas of psychology, philosophy, linguistics, computer science, and neuroscience. Ancillary topics include: education, economics, evolutionary biology and anthropology.


Encyclopedia of Life Sciences, publishing director Gina Fullerlove, published by Nature Publishing Group. Indexer: Jan Ross (Merrall - Ross International).

Comprising 12 million words, Encyclopedia of Life Sciences encompasses 3,000 original peer-reviewed articles written by an international roster of 5,000 experts in their fields. From molecular and cellular to organismal level, the encyclopedia elucidates contemporary biology highlighting structures, processes, methods, systems, and applications across the biological biomedical sciences. 6,000 colour illustrations bring the text to life, while 30,000 internal cross references and 30,000 external bibliographic references for further reading direct undergraduates, graduate students, post-docs and professional scientist to the next level of research.


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