CD ROM Days @ ICRISAT - AGRIS, AGRICOLA & CABI Databases on CD-ROM

After INSDOC's AIS (Associateship in Information Science) course, I joined ICRISAT's Library & Information and Documentation Unit as Library Associate in 1989. My work was primarily two fold. Conduct Literature Searches for Icrisat scientists and Research workers from other Institutions. The Literature searches were carried out using AGRIS, AGRICOLA and CABI databases on CD ROMs. Primarily FAO's AGRIS database, which was using a common Agricultural Thesaurus called AGROVOC (Agricultural Vocabulary, a Controlled Vocabulary in the field of Agriculture and allied fields). Before that there was a Printed version called AGRINDEX ..the fat bound book with a Glossy Green Cover and the nostalgic blac and whilte FAO Agris logo. We were referring agrindex only ocassionally because the AGROVOC thesaurus was built in and was a part of the software - Silver Platter. The search was based on Boolean logic. We were using the OR operator to group all the synonyms, especially the Botanical and common names of crops, and all variant forms, including hyphen, space, without space etc. I went to the extent of using common misspellings also! In one case it worked very well. We could retrieve a very useful document which without using the mispellt form of the crop name we would have missed. I was following the popular legal adage and was trying for maximum Recall. Of course the focus on recall and or precision depended on several factors, mainly the Topic of the Literature Search, for whom and for what purpose the search was being done. For projects undertaken for our own scientists, we were doing a very comprehensive search going as far as back in time, taking the help of various printed bibliographies that were the main Secondary Sources prior to the databases on CD-ROM. Example: Busseola fusca project which was a joint project. More about this work in another post. We were using extensive use of parantheses to build the logic through efficient boolean operators. We were taking a printout of the Search Strategy used and we were pasting the strip of the hardcopy paper with the `beautiful' search strategy on sheets/forms in our physical BOX file. we were also entering the topic of the Literature Search in a Register for further reference. We were using various codes and techniques like the use of Yellow highlighter pens to mark certain things and they were actually serving as POINTERS to the individual sheets filed in the Box file. We were trained to follow these simple conventions meticulously by our mentor. We have greatly benefitted by adhering to the carefully thought of practices and a well organized system. Consistency! We were the first to enjoy the fruit of our own labour because when we are working in a well organized system, work is not a stress, but a stress buster. Gratitude to our the then Senior Library Manager Ms. S. Prasannalakshmi! Silver platter software and the various fields in Agris database enabled us to narrow down the search using various labels, codes etc. We were limiting the search to various fields in a record, say Only in Title, or Only in Title or Abstracts, Author search, Names of Coneferences, place of Conference so on and so forth. We could limit our search to a particular period mentioning years. We were using geographic codes. We were using some Category Codes too specified by AGRIS database which served as Broad Subject categories. with the use of all these operators we could effectively increase our precision. After we retrieve the records we go through the entries and further refine the Search Strategy until we arrive at a reasonably good Recall and Precision ratio. We were then taking a print of these entries comprising of Bibliographic Citation and Abstracts and also Keywords. Keywords!! The most important thing in ISAR systems!! In Agris database we had two sets of Keywords - Descriptors and Identifiers. Descriptors were/are the terms that are the acceppted and preferred term listed in AGROVOC database. Primarily CONTROLLED Vocabulary. Identifers field is to give keywords that are not mentioned in Agrovoc but are felt important to input/retrieve a particular document. (At a later stage the terms given in Identifier field were reviewed for possible inclusion in the main Agrovoc) INPUT and RETRIEVAL were the two main activities and the persons doing input to Agris database are supposed to follow a common procedure across the various Agris input centres. There are specific guidelines to enter various fields. When it comes to KEYWORDS the procedure is roughly this, which of course become compiled to some extent during regular practice periods. 1) Read and Understand the content of a document 2) Pay particular attention to title, abstract and conclusion parts of an article 3) Note down all the relevant concepts 4) Look if the concepts exist as a Descriptor in Agrovoc, if yes Use it as a Keyword in Descriptors field 5) If a direct descriptor is not available, choose a Descriptor that is nearest to it 6) See if a particular concept could be represented using a combination of existing Descriptors 7) Finally, where a particular concept is not found in Agrovoc, include that term in the Identifier field and make an authority list of such terms so that some degree of uniformity or consistency is followed. While conducting a Literature search on the databases thus built, i.e. while retrieving the stored information, we adopt a rather reverse approach. We analyse a search request and identify the concepts. We match the concepts with existing AGROVOC descriptors and choose relevant ones and include in our Search Strategy. We also include other words/terms to increase the recall and these words or terms are mostly found in Titles, Abstracts and Identifier fields. We had proper control over the ISAR systems and it used to be a very fulfilling experience! Good Old Days!!

The INSDOC Days!

Floppy Discs & Punched Cards

Perhaps I belong to the people who were the last to use a Punched card system to compute. I could run a small Fortran program that generated KWIC index entries. The program read titles, word by word, the end of the word was identified by the presence of a space; matched each word with a list of 10 stop words; suppressed index entries for the Stop words and generated indexes for all the rest of the words present in the Title. Surprisingly delightful! The program ran in one go. When my Computers Sir Mr. Sharbhani Ranjan Kundu told me that my program ran without any `bug' I couldn't beleieve. We used about 30 titles as input. We could have tried with more titles but there was no point in working further with obsolete systems. But we were thrilled about using TEXT input and making a simple program work for our specific need. This was in 1986, when I was doing Associateship in Information Science, in the then INSDOC (Indian National Scientific Documentation Centre, a CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research), New Delhi. Now INSDOC is NISCAIR. However, my first introduction to computers was in Sri Venkateswara University Computer Centre, in 1985 soon after completing the course period of my degree in Agriculture from the then APAU (Andhra Pradesh Agricultural University), Tirupati. that year the university computer centre offered certificate course in Computer Languages with Fortran and Cobal as options. I chose Fortran. It is during this course our Teacher and family friend Sri. Swamy garu, Professor of Mechanical Engineering laid a strong foundation in drawing Flow charts. Once the Flow chart is in place, clearly reflecting the logic, input and output, writing a program is just a matter of translation. My gratitude to the great Master who inspured me for the rest of my life and changed the course of my specialization, from Agriculre to Computers via Library Science. I enrolled myself in a Systems Analysis and Design Program from Annamalai University in distance study mode. I was very much convinced withe course material they were sending and the way the course has been conducted. I had also submitted a paper on "Use of Computers in Library Applications" for a conference in the same University. This was a review of work done in various areas of Library and documentation domain. Tailpiece: While returning from INSDOC I carried with myself the handsome book with Navy Blue cardboard cover and beautiful colour plates, that I fell in love with. Actually, there was no need for me to buy that book after completing the course but I was excited about the new knowledge gained and was keeping that book handy to show every one what a computer is, and how it works, even to fellow passengers in trains and buses. Back in those days people didn't have mobiles in their hands and people didn't mind looking into a colourful book that talked about computers. Demystyfying computers! I took it as my mission. Note: I somehow remember the author name as PC Saunders ...the book looked very similar to this one, but not exactly the one shon in this picture.

The Seed - Dr. S.R. Ranganathan, Prolegomena of Library Science & the PMEST

Dr. S.R. Ranganathan became a household name for us when my mother joined a Library Science course in Sri Venkateswara University, where my Father was working, then as a Lecturer in the Department of Political Science, with his specialization in International Relations. I was often falling sick and my mother had to stay back to nurture me. Looking back, I feel that it was perhaps a subconscious way of manifesting mother-and-me time!! Also, Tirupathi being a Temple Town, we had the influx of relatives who came on a pilgrimage to the Holy City. My mother had to skip attending many a class due to all her household responsibilities. But that didn't become a hurdle, because of the kind cooperation of her Lecturers who covered the syllabus for when it was convenient for her to receive. Prof. Guruswamy Naidu garu literally walked so many extra miles to come tour house and teach her Dr. Ranganathan's Colon Classification which she found it difficult to understand. Especially the PLANES ... As the eldest child and a daughter I was to help her with household chores while she was busy listening to the lectures. Also, I was always homeloving and preferred to stay at home than go out and play. This gave me an opportunity to develop an affinity towards the subject and the Teacher sub consciously, although with my conscious mind I was admiring the art of Library Furniture in her record. Actually, my mother was not good at drawing, at least she thought so and never tried! The drawings were done by our neighbourhood boy Venkata Ramana. He drew so nicely with a COPY pencil that used to write in fine purple shade. Ramana's drawings were as nice as he used to look! But, I had a feeling that I could do better or I would draw differently, more realistically than doing a neat job of fine copying. Decades later that wish was fulfilled, when I myself joined the Library Science Course! But what was more worthwhile was receiving a Gold Medal from none other than Sri. Guruswamy Naidu garu, who by that time became a Professor and also happened to be Head of the Department of Library & Information Sciences, Sri Venkateswara University. Prof. Raghava Reddy Gold medal was just instituted and the money accrued for the Medal was not a very huge sum and Prof. Guuruswamy Naidu garu asked if I need a BIG medal with Gold Coating or a small medal with pure gold. I opted for a smaller Pure Gold Medal, remembering a scene from a movie played by Ranganath...as I am typing I notice the Name Coincidence. Ranganath is our Favorite actor and Person too! Something within me got healed when the University authority asked me in person about the choice of the Gold Medal that was going to be awarded to me. And Dr. Raghava Reddy garu too I know personally because he was my mother's Senior Professor!!! TailPiece: This episode in my life feels like the scene form Mahabharata ..lol...Abhimanyu listening to Lord Sri Krishna from mother Shubhadra's womb! Nurturing environment mothers create! Now I felt like looking for an art, a painting depicting thise scene - googled with the words Abhimanyu and Subhadra ...and retrieved one painting but it is a different one. Action item: Look for a painting of Lord Krishna, Shubhadra and Abhimanyu in her womb. Now, this is a CASE STUDY to see how I would retrieve this particular PAINTING from various information sources. Idea! May be I would give this as an ASSIGNMENT for the IT Employee group which I am going to address sometime during this month!

Concepts, Cognition & Knowledge Engineering

Documenting MY Experience with ISAR systems

A human brain and how it processes information over a period of existence is an important RESOURCE! During these COVID times we lost many valuable people without getting to know what was going on in their minds. We documented several things but we failed to or rather were too busy to document what goes on in our own minds, our own heuristics, our own very unique problem solving abilitiies and approaches. I now had made up my mind to document, for posterity, how I arrived an interdisciplinary subject of applying Arts & Agriculture. From the beginning I was a VISUAL person and the earliest Visual image I carry from my childhood is 'ME watching the Bata Glow sign Board from the terrace looking at the chain of torquise blue light bulbs. I was watching the Light filament with much muse and close quarters that I remember feeling the warmth emanating from them. But at the same time, I was not touching them`. I wonder when the knowledge that it is electricity and I am not supposed touch was installed in my mind! Just one Visual, but throws light on a multitude of things - the place, events, my cognition at that age etc. Fortunately, my mother is still alive and I can bring it back in some informal conversation to know something more. The power of visuals as Knowledge Elicitation Tools! Tailpiece: 1) Why did I stop at this particular image to start this series of posts?! Morning I was feeling connected with the sight of a Ladder near our Lift. It somehow felt `Special'. "Ladders & Lifts! Only LADDERS" - was my intuitive Affirmation and as soon as I saw this image, I associated both! Yes this is the ONE!!! The image that heralds the work I am embarking upoon. Gratitude to the Artist! Gratitute to all those who made this Knowledge Society Possible_/|\_ 2) Bata ...that word felt special as I reckon the earliest Visual I remember. Back then it was not a word, it was a Pattern! Now as I look for it's meaning, BATA is a musical instrument ...OMG from morning I was looking at various kinds of Drums! UNIVERSE IS A BIG INFORMATION SYSTEM!!! The Vibration of our Thoughts is the INPUT and the visuals, events & people are the Output 3) Now this word TAILPIECE ...when I look at the actual meaning before choosing this word, I now know that it is "the piece at the base of a violin or other stringed instrument to which the strings are attached". Well, this again reflects the current assignment I am working on. I did ask a group of people to DRAW/SKETCH musical instruments.