Melvil Dewey s Ingenious Notational System

1. Melvil Dewey�sIngenious Notational System North American Symposium on Knowledge Organization June 19, 2009 Rebecca Green Dewey Decimal Classification Dewey biographer Wayne Wiegand (1998, 181) argues that Dewey�s scheme �joined strong points from [systems designed by] Cutter, Harris, Shurtleff, and Schwartz. Dewey�s contribution to classification was in joining and adjusting them, not in creating anything new.� Henry Ford�s insights clarify Wiegand�s observation: ��I invented nothing new,� he once declared. �I simply assembled into a car the discoveries of other men behind whom were centuries of work, and the discoveries of still other men who preceded them. Had I worked fifty or even ten or even five years before I would have failed. So it is with every new thing. Progress happens when all the factors that make for it are ready, and then it is inevitable. To teach that a comparatively few men are responsible for the great forward steps of mankind is the worst sort of nonsense�� (Greenleaf 1961, 138). In the same light, this paper discusses the contributions of the DDC�s notational system without meaning to imply that they arise exclusively from the mind of Melvil Dewey. Dewey biographer Wayne Wiegand (1998, 181) argues that Dewey�s scheme �joined strong points from [systems designed by] Cutter, Harris, Shurtleff, and Schwartz. Dewey�s contribution to classification was in joining and adjusting them, not in creating anything new.� Henry Ford�s insights clarify Wiegand�s observation: ��I invented nothing new,� he once declared. �I simply assembled into a car the discoveries of other men behind whom were centuries of work, and the discoveries of still other men who preceded them. Had I worked fifty or even ten or even five years before I would have failed. So it is with every new thing. Progress happens when all the factors that make for it are ready, and then it is inevitable. To teach that a comparatively few men are responsible for the great forward steps of mankind is the worst sort of nonsense�� (Greenleaf 1961, 138). In the same light, this paper discusses the contributions of the DDC�s notational system without meaning to imply that they arise exclusively from the mind of Melvil Dewey.

2. Roadmap Shelf arrangement vs. subject collocation Decimal notation Hierarchical organization Number building Language-independent representation Potential for customization

3. Shelf arrangement in the 1800s Institution-specific, using, e.g., accession order, broad subject classes, size, author name Duplication of effort Initial classification Reclassification Notation could specify exact location of item, or Final element of order might be governed by something like author name, or In the end, one might be relegated to scanning the shelves Some library shelving arrangements of the 1800s were a lot like today�s bookstores! Notation could specify exact location of item, or Final element of order might be governed by something like author name, or In the end, one might be relegated to scanning the shelves Some library shelving arrangements of the 1800s were a lot like today�s bookstores!

4. Eureka! The insight Use classification scheme to establish relatively fine-grained subject representation Use decimal notation to govern order of shelf arrangement Immediate benefits derived from the insight Institution-independent relative location Cooperative classification Linear sequence + hierarchical organization

5. OSI model applied to shelf arrangement Shelf arrangement as bottom/physical layer of model Each layer provides services to layer above Support access to / use of intellectual/artistic content of collection as top/application layer of model OSI = Open Systems InterconnectionOSI = Open Systems Interconnection

6. Decimal notation (1) DDC 1,1876 Every class admitted of division into 9 subclasses (represented 1-9), plus 0 to represent no division �No difficulty found in . . . omitting the initial zero;� some 2-digit numbers (e.g., 51 [051]) Also some 4-digit numbers (e.g., 5545 [554.5]) Notation incorporated decimal point �as if it were written after the first figure�

7. Decimal notation (2) DDC 2, 1885 Leading zeroes retained Decimal point between third and fourth digits Effect Notation more expressive Filing order same whether interpreted numerically or alphanumerically

8. Hierarchical organization (1) New subjects can be accommodated by notational expansion, e.g., 005.75 Specific types of data files and databases 005.753 Temporal, spatial, constraint databases

9. Hierarchical organization (2) Interoperable expansions 2�455 5 Pisa province (Eng) Provincia di Pisa (It) 2�455 51 Pisa (Eng) Comune di Pisa (It) 2�455 52 Nordovest della provincia di Pisa (It) 2�455 523 San Guiliano Terme (It)

10. Hierarchical organization (3) Flexible granularity 320.5 Political ideologies 320.53* Collectivism and fascism 320.532 Communism 320.532 2 Marxism-Leninism *Abridged edition stops here

11. Hierarchical organization (4) Expressivity of notation Specificity Psychology 150 Emotions of children 155.4124 Relationships among subjects Oats 633.13 Rye 633.14 Corn 633.15 Barley 633.16

12. Number building (1) Mnemonicity China T2�51, 951 Chinese language T6�951, 495.1 Chinese literature 895.1 Chinese religions 299.51 Chinese Communist Party 324.251075 Chinese calendar 529.32951 Batty (1976, 3) suggests that with the process of number building, seen in rudimentary form in even the first edition, Dewey made one of his greatest contributions. He describes the model thus: �the recognition of the characteristic aspects of the subject, the separate listing of those aspects in general-to-specific order, the availability of the detail from general aspect to divide the specific aspects further, the consequent assembly order of specific aspects divided by general aspects, and the mnemonic effect of the consistent use of simple notation from the two aspects.� And it all takes place within and dovetails with hierarchically expressive notation. Batty (1976, 3) suggests that with the process of number building, seen in rudimentary form in even the first edition, Dewey made one of his greatest contributions. He describes the model thus: �the recognition of the characteristic aspects of the subject, the separate listing of those aspects in general-to-specific order, the availability of the detail from general aspect to divide the specific aspects further, the consequent assembly order of specific aspects divided by general aspects, and the mnemonic effect of the consistent use of simple notation from the two aspects.� And it all takes place within and dovetails with hierarchically expressive notation.

13. Number building (2) Intrafacet relationships Ceramic arts of Jews 738.089924 738 Ceramic arts 089 Ethnic and national groups (from Table 1) 924 Jews (from Table 5 as instructed under T1�08905-T1�08999: Add to base number T1�089 notation T5�05-T5�9 from Table 5)

14. Number building (3) Intrafacet relationships�cont. French masters 759.4074 759 (Painting and paintings) Historical, geographic, persons treatment 4 France (from Table 2, as instructed at 759.3-759.8 Miscellaneous parts of Europe: Add to base number 759 the numbers following �4 in notation 43-48 from Table 2) 074 Exhibitions (from Table 1)

15. Language-independent representation (1) 713 Landscape architecture of trafficways Arquitectura paisaj�stica de las v�as de tr�fico Am�nagement paysager des voies de communication Landschaftsgestaltung f�r Verkehrswege Landskapsarkitektur for trafikk�rer First line can be understood by speakers of all the languages represented on slideFirst line can be understood by speakers of all the languages represented on slide

16. Language-independent representation (2) 713 ????te?t????? t?p??? ??a a?t???e? �etaf???? ??????????? ??????????? ???????????? ????? ???????? ??? ?? ???? ?????? ? ???? ???????? ?????? ????? First line can be understood by speakers of all the languages represented on slideFirst line can be understood by speakers of all the languages represented on slide

17. Potential for customization (1) Choice of level of specificity Shelf arrangement Full vs. abridged edition Local practice Search Truncated search plus wildcard operator

18. Potential for customization (2) Search by subject component, using 085 - Synthesized Classification Number Components (MARC bibliographic format) 085 ## $b759 $a759.3 $c759.8 $z2 $r4 $t4 $u759.4 085 ## $b759.4 $z1 $t074 $u759.4074 Search on 75* and 2�44* for French painting and paintings

19. Potential for customization (3) Display using personal citation order Standard citation order in Table 1: place + time Europe, 19th century 1�094034 Europe, 20th century 1�09404 Asia, 19th century 1�095034 Asia, 20th century 1�09504 Africa, 19th century 1�096034 Africa, 20th century 1�09604

20. Potential for customization (4) Display using personal citation order Reverse citation order: time + place Europe, 19th century 1�094 + 034 Asia, 19th century 1�095 + 034 Africa, 19th century 1�096 + 034 Europe, 20th century 1�094 + 04 Asia, 20th century 1�095 + 04 Africa, 20th century 1�096 + 04