HOW ARE BOOKS ARRANGED IN THE LIBRARY?

To find the books that contain the information you need, you begin your search in the catalogue area, using whichever catalogue system your library uses: cards, microfiche, or computer. In the case of Ritalin, you should look in the subject catalogue under words like Ritalin, drugs, hyperactivity, behaviour disorders, even under its chemical name, methylphenidate. Remember that you found all of these “key words” by looking in the dictionary when you first started your research. When you find something that looks interesting in a catalogue, you will also find a call number associated with it.

A call numbers look like this:

640.7

F593t

1974

640 indicates the broad subject area of the book (Domestic Economy)

.7 narrows the broad subject area (Home Economics)

F593t represents the author’s last name (Henrietta Fleck)

1974 is the date the book was published.

Every non-fiction book in a library carries a call number on its spine. The books are then shelved in numerical order. If, for example, the call number in the catalogue is 821.32, look first for the section of shelves that has the books in the 800 range. Then, move along the shelves reading the call numbers until you find the 820s. Now you are getting a lot closer. Look for the 821s and then the book itself, filed numerically as 821.32.

Another way to find the books you want is to learn something about the Dewey Decimal System and the Library of Congress System. Sometimes it is more effective to go directly to section you want and look at the titles until you see something interesting.
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