Universidad de San Martn de Porres Facultad de Medicina Humana

Informtica Mdica II

Gestin de la informacin
y del conocimiento en el mundo acadmico
Dante Bobadilla Ramrez

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Tabla de Contenido

Conceptos preliminares .................................................................................................. 2 Etapas de la gestin de la informacin y el conocimiento ........................................... 2 Investigacin bibliogrfica .............................................................................................. 3 La informacin cientfica ................................................................................................. 4 Los artculos cientficos .................................................................................................. 5 Los tipos de artculo ........................................................................................................ 7 1.- La monografa ......................................................................................................... 7 2.- El artculo cientfico ................................................................................................ 8 3.- El reporte de investigacin..................................................................................... 8 4.- Papel de trabajo ...................................................................................................... 8 5.- Ponencia .................................................................................................................. 9 6.- Tesis......................................................................................................................... 9 7.- Tesina ...................................................................................................................... 9 8.- Proyecto de investigacin .................................................................................... 10 9.- Resea ................................................................................................................... 10 10.- Ensayo ................................................................................................................. 10 11.- Revisin sistemtica ........................................................................................... 10 Tipos de artculo en PUBMED ....................................................................................... 11

Dante Bobadilla Ramrez

Conceptos preliminares
Llamamos gestin al conjunto de procesos necesarios de realizar para mantener una actividad en ptimo nivel de rendimiento. En tales trminos es posible hablar de gestin en cualquier escenario, incluyendo el conocimiento y la informacin. La manera ms simple de diferenciar informacin y conocimiento es considerando que la informacin est fuera de nosotros y el conocimiento es lo que tenemos en la mente y lo que empleamos en nuestros procesos cognitivos. Si hablamos de gestin de la informacin y del conocimiento, significa entonces que hay procesos que se realizan dentro y fuera de nosotros, susceptibles de ser identificados, pero tambin de ser optimizados aplicando alguna metodologa y apoyndolas con alguna herramienta apropiada.

Etapas de la gestin de la informacin y el conocimiento

Cuando Charles Darwin recorri medio mundo a bordo del bergantn Beagle antes de formular su famosa Teora de la Evolucin, todo lo que hizo fue observar lo mismo que haba sido observado por millones de otros seres humanos. Toda la diferencia estriba en que Darwin observaba de una manera diferente porque tena un inters particular en mente. Darwin buscaba cierto tipo de informacin y la iba recogiendo, la recolectaba, catalogaba, organizaba hasta que lleg el momento en que pudo analizar todo el conjunto y razonar sobre l, logrando darse cuenta de que todas sus muestras se ordenaban como piezas de un gran rompecabezas. El resultado final tena la apariencia de una imagen grandiosa: evolucin. Este breve relato nos ha mostrado paso a paso cada una de las etapas de la gestin de la informacin y el conocimiento. Solo hace falta volver a leerlo con la intencin de descubrir estas etapas y lo vern. Lo cual significa que el primer paso de la gestin es una actitud mental apropiada para la exploracin. En este primer paso es indispensable tener claro qu estamos buscando. El segundo paso es buscar. Se trata ya de una operacin manipulativa sobre los elementos de la realidad que son objetos de nuestro inters. Esto quiere decir que existen pasos en la esfera mental y en la esfera manipulativa. No podemos dejar de lado que los procesos de gestin se producen en ambos escenarios, ya que siempre estamos gestionando informacin y conocimiento al mismo tiempo.

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El tercer paso es seleccionar los objetos apropiados para nuestra investigacin, y el siguiente paso es coleccionarlos de una manera apropiada, lo cual significa organizarlos, catalogarlos, etc. Todo esto se repetir tantas veces sea necesario desde la bsqueda hasta la catalogacin de los objetos seleccionados. Esta etapa puede durar meses o incluso aos dependiendo del universo o campo de estudio. En algn momento habremos acumulado el material suficiente y necesario para saltar a la siguiente etapa que es el anlisis de la informacin. Esta, obviamente, es una etapa que sucede en la mente. Sin embargo, contamos con herramientas que ayudan al anlisis de la informacin, tanto de tipo numrico como cualitativo. La ltima etapa es la generacin de informacin. Es decir, debemos realizar un reporte de nuestra investigacin e informar nuestros hallazgos. Esto es algo que combina la tarea mental con la operativa o manual. Todas estas etapas las realizaremos muchas veces en nuestra vida acadmica, tanto para cumplir con los requerimientos habituales de los cursos como para hacer la tesis de grado. Sin duda, el tipo de investigacin ms habitual ser el de investigacin bibliogrfica, es decir, la bsqueda de informacin cientfica en alguna de sus formas de publicacin mediante el empleo de buscadores. Para esta tarea necesitamos tener en cuenta de manera muy clara sus etapas.

Investigacin bibliogrfica
La tarea ms recurrente del estudiante es la bsqueda de informacin a travs de un buscador. Esto es lo que se llama investigacin bibliogrfica, es decir, la que se basa en libros, revistas o algn otro medio de publicacin. Para esto hace falta que el estudiante tenga presente las siguientes etapas del proceso: Definir claramente la informacin que se requiere Elegir una fuente confiable donde buscar Elegir una herramienta: motor de bsqueda Determinar las palabras clave de la bsqueda Buscar Filtrar Seleccionar y almacenar Organizar el material y volver a buscar Analizar toda la informacin acumulada Escribir el reporte de nuestros hallazgos

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No olvidemos que a estos dos ltimos pasos solo accederemos luego de haber repetido varias veces el proceso desde su inicio, hasta haber reunido suficiente material para el anlisis. En todo este proceso de gestin hay etapas operativas y tambin mentales. Es importante ser conscientes de que existen etapas mentales y de que estas no pueden ser eludidas o descuidadas. Muchas personas parecen creer que no hace falta pensar y tienden a guiarse ciegamente de las herramientas operativas tales como el buscador o las estadsticas, esperando que ellas hagan por s solas todo el trabajo. Esto obviamente no funciona as. Acostmbrese a utilizar principalmente su cerebro antes que las herramientas operativas.

La informacin cientfica
La informacin adquiere diferentes formatos. En trminos generales y simples, la informacin es cualquier cosa que nos proporcione un conocimiento. Para efectos prcticos solemos distinguir entre dato e informacin sealando que dato es un elemento simple, elemental y directo de la realidad que, acumulado junto a otros similares, nos permite generar un procesamiento de los mismos cuyo resultado final es algn tipo de informacin. Este procesamiento debera ser, en primer trmino, el pensamiento. Pero por lo general podemos emplear simultneamente diversas herramientas de anlisis que nos ayudan a un mejor procesamiento, tal vez ms objetivo, tales como los anlisis estadsticos y/o cualitativos. Para ambos casos existen herramientas informticas como el SPSS y el Atlas.ti, entre muchos otros. Ellas facilitan el procesamiento de enormes cantidades de data. Si bien el primer paso para obtener informacin es la simple percepcin de las seales de nuestro medio circundante, en el ambiente acadmico solemos considerar como fuente de informacin primaria a los textos contenidos en libros, revistas y otros documentos. Desde luego que tenemos otras fuentes directas cuando se trata de investigaciones de campo o de laboratorio, pero el trabajo ms frecuente en la academia es el de investigacin bibliogrfica que realizamos alrededor de libros y revistas, ya sea en una biblioteca real o virtual. La mayor parte de revistas pueden ser localizadas hoy en la web de manera directa ingresando al mismo website de la revista o, indirectamente, a travs de una base de datos y un buscador. La gran ventaja de los artculos de revista es que constituyen una informacin ms actualizada pues las revistas se publican con mayor regularidad que los libros. Mientras la confeccin de un buen libro puede tomar como mnimo dos o tres aos en tanto que se recopila informacin

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(mucha de ella publicada en otros libros) y se termina la redaccin, a lo que se le debe aadir el trabajo de edicin, publicacin y distribucin que puede tomar dos aos ms, podemos decir que un libro de cierta magnitud tarda alrededor de cinco aos en ser producido. Si adems esperamos la traduccin, cuando llega a manos de los estudiantes probablemente hayan transcurrido otros dos aos ms. Es decir, un libro por lo general nos ofrece informacin que era vlida hace unos diez aos. Es muy posible que gran parte de dicha informacin siga siendo vlida, pero a mayor tiempo mayor probabilidad de que la informacin se desactualice, dependiendo del campo especfico del que trate. Por ejemplo en informtica mdica, toda informacin mayor de tres aos suele ser obsoleta. Lo mismo ocurre en otros campos de la medicina como la tecnologa mdica, la farmacutica, la gentica, virologa y muchos otros. Por su parte las revistas son medios mucho ms dinmicos y actualizados. La mayor parte de las revistas tiene al menos dos ediciones anuales, siendo muchas las que se publican cada dos meses o incluso mensualmente. Esto significa que gran parte de dicha informacin se corresponde ms con el momento actual, especialmente cuando se trata de artculos de investigacin. De all la importancia de tener acceso a este tipo de informacin.

Los artculos cientficos

Un artculo cientfico es un texto breve y conciso que contiene informacin acerca de un tema muy concreto, que es abordado desde la perspectiva de una disciplina cientfica, y redactado siguiendo unas normas apropiadas de publicacin. Los artculos cientficos presentan una gran variedad de formas de acuerdo a la naturaleza de la informacin que ofrecen. As podemos encontrar artculos que informan acerca de algn tipo de investigacin emprica, las que conforman la mayor parte de artculos cientficos publicados. Sin embargo, las investigaciones tambin tienen otras formas y modalidades diversas y, en correspondencia, los artculos tratan de adoptar formatos adecuados que se acomodan mejor al tipo de investigacin que reportan. Hay investigaciones de campo, de laboratorio, de clnica, bibliogrficas, etc. Por otra parte, tambin hay artculos que no son de investigacin propiamente dicha sino que abordan otros temas como por ejemplo historia, biografa, tica, deontologa, epistemologa, crticas, etc. Toda esta amplia variedad de tipos de informacin se corresponde necesariamente con los diversos tipos de artculos que conocemos, los cuales adoptan formatos particulares que

Dante Bobadilla Ramrez

han sido definidos por las revistas que las publican o por las entidades que las requieren. Adems existen otro tipo de formatos definidos por la academia. Cul es la importancia de conocer los diversos tipos de artculo existentes? La respuesta es bastante obvia para cualquiera que enfrente la tarea de escribir o buscar informacin, pues cmo podramos hacer algo o encontrar algo que no conocemos? Antes de escribir un artculo o de buscarlo debemos ser conscientes de la clase de informacin que necesitamos y conocer el formato adecuado que le corresponde, para solicitarlo explcitamente. De lo contrario, las bsquedas a ciegas nunca proporcionarn la informacin adecuada y solo perder tiempo. Entre las opciones de filtrado que nos ofrece Pubmed, sin duda la ms importante de todas es el tipo de artculo. En la Base de Datos de la U.S. National Library of Medicine existen ms de 50 tipos de artculos registrados.
Addresses Autobiography Bibliography Biography Case Reports Classical Article Clinical Conference Clinical Trial Clinical Trial, Phase I Clinical Trial, Phase II Clinical Trial, Phase III Clinical Trial, Phase IV Collected Works Comment Comparative Study Congresses Consensus Development Conference Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S. Controlled Clinical Trial Corrected and Republished Article Review Dictionary Directory Duplicate Publication Editorial English Abstract Evaluation Studies Festschrift Government Publications Guideline Historical Article In Vitro Interactive Tutorial Interview Introductory Journal Article Journal Article Lectures Legal Cases Legislation Letter Meta-Analysis Twin Study Multicenter Study News Newspaper Article Overall Patient Education Handout Periodical Index Personal Narratives Portraits Practice Guideline Publication Components Publication Formats Publication Type Category Published Erratum Randomized Controlled Trial Research Support, American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural Research Support, N.I.H., Intramural Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S. Retracted Publication Validation Studies

Cuando enfrentamos un proceso de bsqueda teniendo en claro qu informacin necesitamos, debemos primero determinar las palabras clave para la bsqueda. En el caso de la Base de Datos MEDLINE de Pubmed, las palabras clave deben ser las que contiene el Mesh (Medical Subject Headings) que son los trminos

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mdicos oficiales definidos por la Biblioteca Nacional de Medicina de los EEUU y empleados para almacenar toda la informacin de su Base de Datos. En el caso de emplear trminos en castellano, debemos emplear los registrados en DECS (Descriptores de ciencias de la salud) que es el tesauro o base de datos de los trminos clnicos en espaol. Una vez determinadas las palabras clave para la bsqueda, a continuacin hay que pensar en el tipo de artculo que necesitamos y que debe contener el tipo de informacin que estamos buscando. Cada clase de artculo ofrece informacin muy diferente. Para saber qu clase de artculo nos conviene, debemos conocer cada uno de ellos. Enseguida echaremos un vistazo a algunos de estos tipos.

Los tipos de artculo

Toda clasificacin obedece a algn criterio. Por ello existe siempre ms de una clasificacin de lo que sea. En lo que respecta a los artculos o documentos empleados para publicaciones cientficas o acadmicas los criterios han sido impuestos bsicamente por tres agentes: las universidades, las editoriales y ltimamente las bibliotecas virtuales. Cada uno emplea una clasificacin segn sus propias necesidades y formas de trabajo. Los tipos de documento ms usados en el mundo acadmico son:

1.- La monografa: es un trabajo acerca de un tema muy concreto, bien

delimitado y preciso. Por tanto resulta un escrito ms o menos breve, en el que importa ms tratar los aspectos centrales del asunto tratado. Generalmente es producto de una investigacin bibliogrfica amplia, aunque nada impide que el autor apele a otro tipo de fuentes ms directas. Este es el tipo de documento ms requerido por los docentes de las universidades a sus alumnos. Es muy til para que los alumnos aprendan a hacer investigaciones bibliogrficas exhaustivas y a redactar un breve informe de sus hallazgos sobre un tema concreto revisado en clase. Muchos de estos artculos aparecen tambin publicados en revistas cientficas. Incluso existe un website famoso por contener puras monografas. Desde el punto de vista de la presentacin, las monografas deben mostrar una impecable organizacin del material informativo. Existen pautas generales que pueden ser usadas como gua.

Dante Bobadilla Ramrez

2.- El artculo cientfico: es el que empleamos para publicar en las revistas

especializadas. Las caractersticas de su formato o apariencia son definidas por la propia revista. Vase aqu el formato exigido por Horizonte Mdico. De hecho tiene que ser escrito siguiendo las pautas generales propias de la redaccin cientfica, tratando de ser claro y sinttico, y haciendo las citas y referencias necesarias para sustentar lo manifestado. Los artculos cientficos tambin pueden ser una sntesis de trabajos mayores, como una tesis, que se presenta de una manera resumida a la comunidad cientfica, dejando la posibilidad de que aquellos interesados en el trabajo puedan acceder a la obra original. La palabra inglesa paper es empleada justamente con este sentido. Los artculos cientficos tambin pueden construirse como parte de captulos o partes independientes de ciertos libros, de tal manera que un especialista o grupo aborda secciones especficas de un campo amplio que luego son compilados para formar un libro o tratado. Esta es tambin una modalidad empleada por los mismos autores que recopilan sus propios artculos para generar un libro.

3.- El reporte de investigacin: Es una exposicin escrita acerca de alguna

investigacin realizada. En tal sentido no se permite expresar juicios u opiniones acerca del carcter de la misma, su tipo, valoracin, importancia o magnitud, ni de los propsitos a que se encamina. Nada de eso importa. Se trata de un simple documento de trabajo, donde aparecen los elementos tpicos de una investigacin y sus resultados y conclusiones. No se trata de grandes hallazgos sino que puede servir para fines meramente informativos. En el mejor de los casos puede servir como base para futuras decisiones en el mismo campo de investigacin. Este es el tipo de artculo ms empleado y el preferido por muchas revistas que se dedican a publicar investigacin emprica. En muchas revistas es el ms comn de los tipos de artculo que encontramos. Sus caractersticas son muy conocidas porque hacen un empleo muy intensivo de las estadsticas.

4.- Papel de trabajo: es un escrito poco formal cuya finalidad es exponer una
idea general para someterla al debate, por lo tanto su contenido es modificable. Se usa para guiar las discusiones que se realizan en un escenario de investigacin o en los rganos colegiados de cualquier tipo. Tambin se usan para ir mostrando ante un tutor los avances que se van realizando en el proceso de investigacin que tiene a cargo. Dado a que su contenido es modificable, no tiene el rigor formal que otros tipos de artculo destinados a ser publicados, aunque esto no significa que no se publiquen, pero esto ocurre en escenarios de mucha especializacin, como por ejemplo las discusiones actuales en torno al estudio de la conciencia.

- Gestin de la informacin 5.- Ponencia: es el escrito que se presenta ante algn evento cientfico tal como
un seminario o congreso. Son los organizadores del evento quienes definen las caractersticas del documento. Aunque suelen ser trabajos breves y similares a una monografa, es usual permitir cierta libertad en su estructura. Para este tipo de documento resulta particularmente importante incluir todo tipo de apoyos temticos como tablas, fotos, imgenes, grficos, etc. Si es que los organizadores del evento piensan publicar las ponencias en la forma de libro, entonces har falta realizar ciertas revisiones a los escritos para completar una serie de formalidades, especialmente en cuanto a las citas y referencias bibliogrficas.

6.- Tesis: es el documento que se presenta ante una universidad con el fin de
obtener un ttulo. Mediante tal documento el autor pretende demostrar ante un jurado que domina plenamente la materia que ha cursado. Adems, en algunas instancias como el doctorado, debe demostrar que es capaz de aportar nuevos y slidos conocimientos a la misma. En general podemos decir que una tesis es el trabajo escrito formal que demuestra la conclusin de unos estudios, y que el graduando merece el grado acadmico al que aspira. Como ocurre con otros documentos, son las instancias universitarias las que finalmente deciden las formalidades y el nivel de exigencias de las tesis. Por lo general, en nuestro pas, las tesis han adoptado la estructura de un reporte de investigacin fundado en la manipulacin estadstica de datos. Pero aunque esto sea una costumbre generalizada en nuestro medio, es necesario tener en cuenta que las tesis pueden adoptar muy diferentes formatos en virtud de la clase de tesis de que se trate y del grado al que se aspire. Sin embargo, siempre se trata de un trabajo serio y bien meditado que sirve como sustento de lo alcanzado tras varios aos de estudios, as como para demostrar las aptitudes del aspirante al grado en el campo de la investigacin cientfica. Por esto mismo, muchos creen que la tesis debe asumir el formato de un reporte de investigacin basado en estadsticas. Aunque esta sea una manera muy rigurosa de investigacin, no es la nica. En ltima instancia todo depender del problema que se investiga. Es el problema el que realmente decide qu tipo de investigacin conviene realizar.

7.- Tesina: es un documento similar a la tesis pero de menor amplitud. Se usa

igualmente para pasar una evaluacin acadmica. Se asemeja a una monografa desde el punto de vista de sus formalidades, pero su objetivo acadmico es conocer y evaluar los aprendizajes y habilidades metodolgicas de los estudiantes respecto a determinada materia o campo; en consecuencia, sus caractersticas especficas dependen de lo consideren conveniente los departamentos, ctedras y profesores de cada asignatura.

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8.- Proyecto de investigacin: sirve para presentar ante una instancia o entidad
un proyecto de investigacin, con el fin de lograr su aprobacin o incluso su financiamiento. Ofrece los lineamientos bsicos sobre la investigacin a realizar siguiendo una estructura tal que permita visualizar todos sus alcances, incluyendo los costos. Por tanto, tienen una lgica interna y una estructura muy particular y diferente a los anteriores documentos revisados. Tambin son las instancias de financiamiento las que determinan finalmente las caractersticas especficas del escrito a presentar.

9.- Resea: es un texto breve que intenta dar una visin panormica y a la vez
crtica de alguna obra. Es usual que las revistas cientficas ofrezcan reseas de libros de la especialidad recientemente publicados, que ayudan a los lectores a conocer a grandes rasgos el contenido de tales libros para que puedan guiarse en su investigacin o bsqueda de fuentes. Las reseas las realizan personas muy especializadas y con amplia experiencia, capaces de resumir en poco espacio el contenido ms valioso de un libro. Como se comprender, las reseas suelen ser textos muy consultados y apreciados por los investigadores. Generalmente son las que permiten decidir la compra de un libro a personas y entidades.

10.- Ensayo: es una obra de libre redaccin en la que el autor expone sus propias
ideas. Aunque se concede amplia libertad en su construccin, esto no impide que el autor deba ceirse a un estilo de redaccin cientfica, lo cual incluye las citas necesarias para apoyar sus enunciados. Un ensayo siempre es un aporte de nuevas ideas que pueden inspirar a posteriores investigaciones o discusiones. En tanto que no existen modelos ni formatos, el concepto de ensayo puede usarse para una amplia gama de estilos de comunicacin cientfica, incluyendo libros.

11.- Revisin sistemtica: Es un documento que se escribe con el propsito de

mostrar el panorama general del conocimiento alcanzado sobre una materia o tema, realizado luego de una amplia revisin de fuentes actuales sobre la cuestin. Una diferencia sustancial con las monografas es que estas versan sobre campos muy amplios y generales, mientras que las revisiones sistemticas suelen cubrir escenarios estrechos y muy especficos, como por ejemplo las tcnicas y consideraciones acerca del diagnstico de un sndrome. Por otro lado, las revisiones sistemticas estn en la obligacin de ser una revisin actualizada de la materia sobre la que versa, ofreciendo el panorama actual de la discusin, con los diversos puntos de vista y sus semejanzas y desacuerdos. Obviamente su valor depender del tema que encara. Por lo general se trata de temas polmicos o recientes sobre los que existe desconcierto o variedad de opiniones discordantes, como por ejemplo el efecto que podra tener en la salud el empleo de semillas

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transgnicas, una cuestin muy discutida ltimamente. Aunque las formalidades de su estructura no estn estrictamente definidas debido a lo variable de los estudios posibles de realizar, existen ciertas pautas que resultan tiles y que versan fundamentalmente sobre las tcnicas de gestin de la informacin, pues es en este tipo de trabajos en donde ms se les necesita.

Tipos de artculo en PUBMED

A continuacin presentamos los diversos elementos existentes en la Base de Dato de MEDLINE, entre los cuales podemos distinguir la gran variedad de artculos o documentos que es posible encontrar. Un cuadro resumido ha sido mostrado en un captulo anterior, pero en la presente lista puede hallarse la descripcin del tipo de artculo, segn las consideraciones de la Base de Datos MEDLINE. Evidentemente, es importante reconocer la clase de artculos que existen antes de empezar una bsqueda en la Base de Datos. Cada tipo de artculo ofrece una clase diferente de informacin, por lo que el investigador debe saber qu es lo que necesita para sealrselo al motor de bsqueda.

Abbreviations Works consisting of lists of shortened forms of written words or phrases used for brevity. Acronyms are included here.

Abstracts Works consisting of lists of publications on a subject and that provide full annotated bibliographical information together with substantive summaries or condensations of the facts, ideas, or opinions presented in each publication listed. (From LC Subject Cataloging Manual)

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Academic Dissertations Works consisting of formal presentations made usually to fulfill requirements for an academic degree.

Account Books Books in which personal or commercial accounts of financial transactions are recorded. (From Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed)

Addresses Works consisting of speeches, orations, or written statements, usually formal, directed to a particular group of persons. These are different from LECTURES that are usually delivered to classes for instructional purposes.

Advertisements Works consisting of publicly distributed notices, usually as paid announcements in mass media such as newspapers, magazines, or on billboards. They include those in motion picture, television advertising, or electronic media.

Almanacs Works consisting of a calendar of days, weeks, and months, together with information such as astronomical data, various statistics, etc. (From Genre Terms: A Thesaurus for Use in Rare Book and Special Collections Cataloguing, 2d ed)

Anecdotes Works consisting of brief accounts or narratives of incidents or events.

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Animation A film or video wholly or partially created by photographing drawings, sculptures, or other inanimate things in sequence to create the illusion of motion. Animations are also generated by computers. (From Moving Image Materials: Genre Terms, 1988)

Annual Reports Works consisting of annual statements concerning the administrative and operational functions of an institution or organization.

Aphorisms and Proverbs Short memorable sayings in common use. They express in simple language an obvious truth, familiar experience, or advice.

Architectural Drawings Works consisting of drawings of architecture and architectural projects, whether the project was executed or not. (Art & Architecture Thesaurus, 1990, v.2)

Atlases Works consisting of collections of illustrative plates, charts, etc., usually with explanatory captions.

Autobiography Works consisting of self-described accounts.

Bibliography A work consisting of a list of books, articles, documents, publications, and other items, usually on a single subject or related subjects.

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Biobibliography Works consisting of biographical information as well as lists of the writings of those persons.

Biography Works consisting of an account of the events, works, and achievements, personal and professional, during a person's life. It includes articles on the activities and accomplishments of living persons as well as the presentation of an obituary.

Book Illustrations Works consisting of photographs, prints, drawings, portraits, plates, diagrams, facsimiles, maps, tables, or other representations or systematic arrangements of data designed to elucidate or decorate the contents of a publication. (From The ALA Glossary of Library and Information Science, 1983, p114)

Book Reviews Works consisting of critical analyses of books or other monographic works.

Bookplates Works consisting of book owner's identification labels. They are usually intended for attaching inside a book or similar object. (From Thesaurus for Graphic Materials II: Genre and Physical Characteristic Terms, 1995)

Broadsides Works consisting of published pieces of paper or other material, usually printed on one side and intended to be read unfolded and usually intended to be posted, publicly distributed, or sold, e.g., proclamations, handbills, newssheets, etc. (From

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Genre Terms: A Thesaurus for Use in Rare Book and Special Collections Cataloguing, 2d ed)

Caricatures Works portraying in a critical or facetious way a real individual or group, or a figure representing a social, political, ethnic, or racial type. The effect is usually achieved through distortion or exaggeration of characteristics. (Genre Terms: A Thesaurus for Use in Rare Book and Special Collection Cataloguing, 2d ed)

Cartoons Images used to comment on such things as contemporary events, social habits, or political trends; usually executed in a broad or abbreviated manner.

Case Reports Clinical presentations that may be followed by evaluative studies that eventually lead to a diagnosis.

Catalogs Works consisting of bibliographic records, created according to specific and uniform principles of construction and under the control of an authority file, which describe the materials contained in a collection, library, or group of libraries. Catalogs include also lists of materials prepared for a particular purpose, such as exhibition catalogs, sales catalogs, garden catalogs, medical supply catalogs. (From The ALA Glossary of Library and Information Sciences, 1983)

Charts Information presented in graphic form, for example, graphs or diagrams.

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Chronology Works consisting of lists of events arranged in chronological order.

Classical Article Works consisting of a current presentation of a previously printed seminal article marking a milestone in the history of medicine or science. It is usually accompanied by introductory remarks heralding its reprinting, often on the anniversary of its original publication or on an anniversary of the author's birth or death. It is usually reprinted in full, with complete bibliographical reference to the original appearance.

Clinical Conference Work that consists of a conference of physicians on their observations of a patient at the bedside, regarding the physical state, laboratory and other diagnostic findings, clinical manifestations, results of current therapy, etc. A clinical conference usually ends with a confirmation or correction of clinical findings by a pathological diagnosis performed by a pathologist. "Clinical conference" is often referred to as a "clinico-pathological conference."

Clinical Trial Work that is the report of a pre-planned clinical study of the safety, efficacy, or optimum dosage schedule of one or more diagnostic, therapeutic, or prophylactic drugs, devices, or techniques in humans selected according to predetermined criteria of eligibility and observed for predefined evidence of favorable and unfavorable effects. While most clinical trials concern humans, this publication type may be used for clinical veterinary articles meeting the requisites for humans. Specific headings for specific types and phases of clinical trials are also available.

Clinical Trial, Phase I Work that is the report of a pre-planned, usually controlled, clinical study of the safety and efficacy of diagnostic, therapeutic, or prophylactic drugs, devices, or

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techniques based on a small number of healthy persons and conducted over the period of about a year in either the United States or a foreign country.

Clinical Trial, Phase II Work that is a report of a pre-planned, usually controlled, clinical study of the safety and efficacy of diagnostic, therapeutic, or prophylactic drugs, devices, or techniques based on several hundred volunteers, including a limited number of patients, and conducted over a period of about two years in either the United States or a foreign country.

Clinical Trial, Phase III Work that is a report of a pre-planned, usually controlled, clinical study of the safety and efficacy of diagnostic, therapeutic, or prophylactic drugs, devices, or techniques after phase II trials. A large enough group of patients is studied and closely monitored by physicians for adverse response to long-term exposure, over a period of about three years in either the United States or a foreign country.

Clinical Trial, Phase IV Work that is a report of a planned post-marketing study of diagnostic, therapeutic, or prophylactic drugs, devices, or techniques that have been approved for general sale after clinical trials, phases I, II, and III. These studies, conducted in the United States or a foreign country, often garner additional data about the safety and efficacy of a product.

Collected Correspondence Works consisting of collected letters by or about a person or on a subject.

Collected Works Works consisting of collections of previously published works.

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Collections Works that consist of collections of objects.

Comment Work consisting of a critical or explanatory note written to discuss, support, or dispute an article or other presentation previously published. It may take the form of an article, letter, editorial, etc. It appears in publications under a variety of names: comment, commentary, editorial comment, viewpoint, etc.

Comparative Study Comparison of outcomes, results, responses, etc for different techniques, therapeutic approaches or other inputs.

Congresses Published records of the papers delivered at or issued on the occasion of individual congresses, symposia, and meetings; abstracts of papers delivered at such congresses; reports of the officers and delegates of such congresses; combinations of the foregoing; or proceedings of the conference of a society if they are not limited to matters of internal organization.

Consensus Development Conference A work that consists of summary statements representing the majority and current agreement of physicians, scientists, and other professionals meeting to reach a consensus on a selected subject.

Consensus Development Conference, NIH Work consisting of summary statements, from a conference sponsored by NIH, representing the majority of current opinion of physicians, scientists, and other professionals on a selected subject.

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Controlled Clinical Trial Work consisting of a clinical trial involving one or more test treatments, at least one control treatment, specified outcome measures for evaluating the studied intervention, and a bias-free method for assigning patients to the test treatment. The treatment may be drugs, devices, or procedures studied for diagnostic, therapeutic, or prophylactic effectiveness. Control measures include placebos, active medicine, no-treatment, dosage forms and regimens, historical comparisons, etc. When randomization using mathematical techniques, such as the use of a random numbers table, is employed to assign patients to test or control treatments, the trial is characterized as a RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL.

Cookbooks Collections of recipes or instructions for preparation of food and organization of meals.

Corrected and Republished Article Work that is the republication of an article to correct, amplify, or restore text and data of the originally published article.

Database Work consisting of a structured file of information or a set of logically related data stored and retrieved using computer-based means.

Diaries Works consisting of records, usually private, of writers' experiences, observations, feelings, attitudes, etc. They may also be works marked in calendar order in which to note appointments and the like. (From Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed)

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Dictionary A reference book containing a list of words - usually in alphabetical order - giving information about form, pronunciation, etymology, grammar, and meaning. A foreign-language dictionary is an alphabetical list of words of one language with their meaning and equivalents in another language.

Directory Work consisting of an alphabetical or classified list of names, organizations, subjects, etc., giving usually titles, addresses, affiliations, and other professional data.

Documentaries and Factual Films Works consisting of films, videos, and programs which depict actual persons or actual events. They do not include frank historical re-creations and do not attempt to judge the truth of the depiction in a film purporting to be factual or documentary in character. (From Moving Image Materials: Genre Terms, 1988)

Drawings Works consisting of graphic representations of objects or ideas by lines.

Duplicate Publication Work consisting of an article or book of identical or nearly identical material published simultaneously or successively to material previously published elsewhere, without acknowledgment of the prior publication.

Editorial Work consisting of a statement of the opinions, beliefs, and policy of the editor or publisher of a journal, usually on current matters of medical or scientific significance to the medical community or society at large. The editorials published

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by editors of journals representing the official organ of a society or organization are generally substantive.

Electronic Supplementary Materials Supporting content or information, such as animation, datasets, multimedia files, video, movies, audio files, text files, or software, which is submitted for publication in an online journal or an online edition of a journal. This information may be referenced in the text of the article with a link to the supplementary data provided. CATALOG: do not use

Encyclopedias Works containing informational articles on subjects in every field of knowledge, usually arranged in alphabetical order, or a similar work limited to a special field or subject. (From The ALA Glossary of Library and Information Science, 1983)

English Abstract

Ephemera Works consisting of transient everyday items, usually printed on paper, that are produced for a specific limited use and then often thrown away. (From Genre Terms: A Thesaurus for Use in Rare Book and Special Collections Cataloguing, 2d ed & The ALA Glossary of Library and Information Science, 1983)

Essays Works consisting of collections of papers or interpretive literary compositions not previously published.

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Eulogies Works consisting of speeches or writings in praise of a person or thing, especially a set oration in honor of a deceased person. They differ from FUNERAL SERMONS which are delivered at ceremonies for the deceased prior to their burial or cremation. (From Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed)

Evaluation Studies Works consisting of studies determining the effectiveness or utility of processes, personnel, and equipment.

Examination Questions Works consisting of compilations of questions and answers pertaining to a particular subject, used for study and review.

Exhibitions Public displays or items representative of a given subject.

Festschrift Work consisting of a collection of essays or other writings contributed by students, teachers, colleagues, and associates to honor a person or institution, usually on the occasion of an anniversary celebration or other event of importance.

Fictional Works Works consisting of creative writing, not presented as factual.

Forms Works consisting of or containing a substantial number of blank forms.

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Formularies Works that consist of lists of drugs or collections of recipes, formulas, and prescriptions for the compounding of medicinal preparations.

Funeral Sermons Works consisting of sermons delivered at ceremonies for a dead person prior to burial or cremation. (From Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed)

Government Publications Works consisting of documents issued by local, regional, or national governments or by their agencies or subdivisions.

Guidebooks Works consisting of publications for travelers that give information about a city, region, or country, or similar handbooks about buildings, museums, etc. (The ALA Glossary of Library and Information Science, 1983)

Guideline Work consisting of a set of statements, directions, or principles presenting current or future rules or policy. Guidelines may be developed by government agencies at any level, institutions, organizations such as professional societies or governing boards, or by the convening of expert panels. The text may be cursive or in outline form, but it is generally a comprehensive guide to problems and approaches in any discipline or activity. This concept relates to the general conduct and administration of health care activities rather than to specific decisions for a particular clinical condition. For that aspect, PRACTICE GUIDELINE is available.

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Handbooks Works consisting of concise reference works in which facts and information pertaining to a certain subject or field are arranged for ready reference and consultation rather than for continuous reading and study.

Herbals Works such as books on herbs or plants usually describing their medicinal value. (Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed)

Historical Article An article or portion of an article giving an account of past events or circumstances significant in a field of study, a profession, a discovery, an invention, etc. The concept of history is very wide, ranging from the dawn of time to the present. This publication type is often checked in conjunction with BIOGRAPHY.

Humor Works consisting of jokes and facetiae relating to a subject.

In Vitro Studies using excised tissues.

Incunabula Books printed before 1501.

Indexes Works providing an analytical subject approach to materials in a field of knowledge.

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Instructional Films and Videos Works consisting of nonfiction films and video designed to teach, instruct, or train. (From Moving Image Materials: Genre Terms, 1988)

Interactive Tutorial Video recordings or other files in which the progress of the instruction or content is determined by user response.

Interview Work consisting of a conversation with an individual regarding his or her background and other personal and professional details, opinions on specific subjects posed by the interviewer, etc.

Introductory Journal Article Prefactory summary to a special issue or section of a journal devoted to a specific topic. This introductory text can be of varying length and substance.

Journal Article The predominant publication type for articles and other items indexed for NLM databases.

Juvenile Literature Works produced for children through age 15 or through the ninth grade.

Laboratory Manuals

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Works containing concise background information and directions for activities, including conducting experiments or diagnostic tests in the laboratory.

Lecture Notes Works consisting of notes taken at the delivery or reading of a speech before an audience or class, usually given to instruct. (From Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed)

Lectures Works consisting of speeches read or delivered before an audience or class, especially for instruction or to set forth some subject. They are differentiated from ADDRESSES [PUBLICATION TYPE] which are less didactic and more informational, entertaining, inspirational, or polemic. (From Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed)

Legal Cases Works consisting of collections of law reports or the published reports of decided cases and documents or filings related to those cases.

Legislation Works consisting of the text of proposed or enacted legislation that may be in the form of bills, laws, statutes, ordinances, or government regulations.

Letter Work consisting of written or printed communication between individuals or between persons and representatives of corporate bodies. The correspondence may be personal or professional. In medical and other scientific publications the letter is usually from one or more authors to the editor of the journal or book

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publishing the item being commented upon or discussed. LETTER is often accompanied by COMMENT.

Manuscripts Works prepared by hand including handwritten or typescript drafts of prepublication papers or works not otherwise reproduced in multiple copies.

Maps Works consisting of representations, normally to scale and on a flat medium, of a selection of material or abstract features on the surface of the earth. They may be used also in delineating the heavens and celestial bodies. (From Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules, 2d ed, p619)

Meeting Abstracts For individual abstracts of presentations at meetings, congresses, conferences, symposia, colloquia, seminars, workshops, round tables, and other professional gatherings.

Meta-Analysis Works consisting of studies using a quantitative method of combining the results of independent studies (usually drawn from the published literature) and synthesizing summaries and conclusions which may be used to evaluate therapeutic effectiveness, plan new studies, etc. It is often an overview of clinical trials. It is usually called a meta-analysis by the author or sponsoring body and should be differentiated from reviews of literature.

Monograph Work that is any publication that is not a serial or integrating resource. In cataloging usage, It is usually on a single subject or related subjects and is

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complete in itself, whether constructed of chapters, sections, or parts. While any article encountered in indexing journals can be, strictly speaking, a monograph, as a publication type, a monograph will refer to a cataloging item.

Multicenter Study Work consisting of a controlled study executed by several cooperating institutions.

News Works consisting of an announcement or statement of recent or current events of new data and matters of interest in the field of medicine or science. In some publications, such as "Nature" or "Science," the news reports are substantively written and herald medical and scientific data of vital or controversial importance.

Newspaper Article Work consisting of a news item appearing in a general-interest newspaper or other general news periodical, containing information of current and timely interest in the field of medicine or science. This publication type should not be confused with NEWS Publication Type, reserved for news reports published in various medical or other scientific journals, such as "Nature".

Nurses' Instruction Works consisting of materials developed for a nursing audience.

Outlines Works consisting of brief statements of the principal elements of a subject, usually arranged by heads and subheads.

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Overall A single citation covering papers or abstracts presented at a meeting. The publication type may be used for a single citation with or without the additional indexing or cataloging of individual papers. The individual papers, however, are not labeled OVERALL.

Patents Works consisting of documents granted by a government giving exclusive rights to an inventor or assignee to manufacture, use, or sell an invention for a certain number of years.

Patient Education Handout Works consisting of a handout or self-contained informative material used to explain a procedure or a condition or the contents of a specific article in a biomedical journal and written in non-technical language for the patient or consumer.

Periodical Index Work consisting of a subject approach to the contents of a periodical issuing an annual, biennial, quinquennial, decennial, etc., index. The heading is used for the overall body of articles published by a periodical in the same sense that BIBLIOGRAPHY is useful when published as a single article.

Periodicals Publications intended to be issued on an ongoing basis, generally more frequently than annually, containing separate articles, stories, or writings.

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Personal Narratives Works consisting of accounts of individual experience in relation to a particular field or of participation in related activities.

Pharmacopoeias Authoritative works containing lists of drugs and preparations, their description, formulation, analytic composition, main chemical properties, standards for strength, purity, and dosage, chemical tests for determining identity, etc. They have the status of a standard.

Photographs Still images produced from radiation-sensitive materials (sensitive to light, electron beams, or nuclear radiation), generally by means of the chemical action of light on a sensitive film, paper, glass, or metal. Photographs may be positive or negative, opaque or transparent.

Phrases Works consisting of common terms, phrases, idioms, and typical conversations, e.g., between health professional and patients. These are often intended for use by non-native speakers of a language.

Pictorial Works Works consisting exclusively or mainly of pictures but not technical drawings.

Poetry Works that consist of literary and oral genre expressing meaning via symbolism and following formal or informal patterns.

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Popular Works Works written for non-professional or lay audiences.

Portraits Works consisting of graphic representations, especially of the face, of real persons, usually posed, living or dead. They are pictures whose purpose is the portrayal of an individual or group of individuals, not pictures which merely include people as part of an event or scene. (From Thesaurus for Graphic Materials II, p540, 1995)

Postcards Cards on which a message may be written or printed for mailing without an envelope. Art & Architectural Thesaurus Online www.getty.edu/research/conducting_research/vocabularies/aat/ accessed 12/18/2008

Posters Works consisting of single or multi-sheet notices made to attract attention to events, activities, causes, goods, or services. They are for posting, usually in a public place and are chiefly pictorial. They are intended to make an immediate impression from a distance. Posters do not include poster presentations at conferences and meetings. (From Thesaurus for Graphic Materials II: Genre and Physical Characteristic Headings, 1995)

Practice Guideline Work consisting of a set of directions or principles to assist the health care practitioner with patient care decisions about appropriate diagnostic, therapeutic, or other clinical procedures for specific clinical circumstances. Practice guidelines may be developed by government agencies at any level, institutions, organizations such as professional societies or governing boards, or by the convening of expert panels. They can provide a foundation for assessing and evaluating the quality and effectiveness of health care in terms of measuring improved health, reduction of

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variation in services or procedures performed, and reduction of variation in outcomes of health care delivered.

Price Lists Works consisting of lists giving the prices of items for sale, including drugs, equipment, books, etc. Price lists are less detailed than catalogs and not as long.

Problems and Exercises Works consisting of collections of practice questions and drills, generally for instructional or review use.

Programmed Instruction Works consisting of sequenced self-correction texts.

Programs Works consisting of lists of the events, pieces, performers, speakers, etc., of an entertainment, ceremony, or the like. (From: Genre Terms: A Thesaurus for Use in Rare Book and Special Collections Cataloging, 2d ed)

Prospectuses Works consisting of advertisements separately printed and distributed by a publisher to describe and solicit orders for a recent or forthcoming publication. In the case of books, they may include sample pages. (From: ALA Glossary of Library and Information Science, 1983)

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Published Erratum Work consisting of an acknowledgment of an error, issued by a publisher, editor, or author. It customarily cites the source where the error occurred, giving complete bibliographic data for retrieval. In the case of books and monographs, author, title, imprint, paging, and other helpful references will be given; in the case of journal articles, the author, title, paging, and journal reference will be shown. An erratum notice is variously cited as Errata or Corrigenda.

Randomized Controlled Trial Work consisting of a clinical trial that involves at least one test treatment and one control treatment, concurrent enrollment and follow-up of the test- and controltreated groups, and in which the treatments to be administered are selected by a random process, such as the use of a random-numbers table.

Research Support, American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural A designation for publications of research resulting from extramural research funded by the National Institutes of Health.

Research Support, N.I.H., Intramural A designation for publications of research resulting from intramural research at the National Institutes of Health.

Resource Guides Works listing and describing various sources of information, from multiple media or in different formats, on a given subject.

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Retracted Publication Work consisting of the designation of an article or book as retracted in whole or in part by an author or authors or an authorized representative. It identifies a citation previously published and now retracted through a formal issuance from the author, publisher, or other authorized agent, and is distinguished from RETRACTION OF PUBLICATION, which identifies the citation retracting the original published item.

Retraction of Publication Work consisting of a statement issued by one or more authors of an article or a book, withdrawing or disavowing acknowledgment of their participation in performing research or writing the results of their study. In indexing, the retraction is sent to the editor of the publication in which the article appeared and is published under the rubric "retraction" or in the form of a letter. This publication type designates the author's statement of retraction: it should be differentiated from RETRACTED PUBLICATION which labels the retracted publication.

Review An article or book published after examination of published material on a subject. It may be comprehensive to various degrees and the time range of material scrutinized may be broad or narrow, but the reviews most often desired are reviews of the current literature. The textual material examined may be equally broad and can encompass, in medicine specifically, clinical material as well as experimental research or case reports. State-of-the-art reviews tend to address more current matters. A review of the literature must be differentiated from HISTORICAL ARTICLE on the same subject, but a review of historical literature is also within the scope of this publication type.

Scientific Integrity Review Work consisting of reports by the United States Office of Research Integrity, identifying questionable research published in articles or books. Notification of the questionable data is carried in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts.

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Sermons Works consisting of discourses for the purpose of religious instruction or exhortation, especially one based on a text of Scripture and delivered by a member of the clergy, as part of a religious service. (From: Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed)

Statistics Works consisting of presentations of numerical data on particular subjects.

Study Characteristics

Support of Research Organizational source for funding of research activity.

Tables Presentations of nonstatistical data in tabular form.

Technical Report Work consisting of a formal report giving details of the investigation and results of a medical or other scientific problem. When issued by a government agency or comparable official body, its contents may be classified, unclassified, or declassified with regard to security clearance. This publication type may also cover a scientific paper or article that records the current state or current position of scientific research and development. If so labeled by the editor or publisher, this publication type may be properly used for journal articles.

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Terminology Work consisting of lists of the technical terms or expressions used in a specific field. These lists may or may not be formally adopted or sanctioned by usage.

Textbooks Books intended for use in the study of specific subjects, containing systematic presentation of the principles and essential knowledge of the subjects.

Twin Study Work consisting of reporting using a method of detecting genetic causes in human traits and genetic factors in behavior using sets of twins.

Unedited Footage Work consisting of untitled raw motion picture and video footage which has not been edited or assembled into a finished work. (From: Moving Image Materials: Genre Terms, 1988)

Union Lists Works consisting of records of the holdings or items owned by two or more libraries.

Unpublished Works Works that have not been formally published.

Validation Studies Works consisting of research using processes by which the reliability and relevance of a procedure for a specific purpose are established.

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Video-Audio Media Used with articles which include video files or clips, or for articles which are entirely video.

Webcasts Content from transmission of live or pre-recorded audio or video via connection or download from the INTERNET.

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