1. Introduction
This guide is intended to help Harvard students and faculty find periodical articles on the history of science, medicine, and technology. The HOLLIS Catalog does not include periodical articles. Articles are found via periodical indexes. This guide lists electronic and print periodical indexes for the history of science, medicine, and technology. The index of first resort is usually History of Science, Technology and Medicine (HSTM). It has some unusual features, so you may wish to read the Search Guide. There are many other indexes, some print and some electronic, which are more specialized, include book reviews, and/or cover the earlier literature. Online resources are available through Harvard Libraries (Harvard ID and PIN required) unless otherwise indicated.
Basic Index
History of Science, Technology and Medicine [HSTM], 1975- .Includes books, book chapters, and journal articles. Includes medicine and social science as well as science and technology. Electronic equivalent of four printed indexes:
Since HSTM is an amalgamation of four separate indexes with four different subject term systems, study the results of keyword searches to be sure that you know the proper subject terms for your topic in each of the, possibly four, relevant component databases. For example, the Wellcome Bibliography uses "Contraception" but the Isis Current Bibliography uses "Birth control".
Limiting by Time Period
Note the different terms used by the three indexes:
Isis Current Bibliography of the History of Science and its Cultural Influences: Pre-history, Antiquity, Middle Ages, Renaissance (15th and 16th), 17th century, 18th century, 19th century, 20th century
Current Bibliography in the History of Technology: Prehistory, Antiquity, Middle Ages, Renaissance, 17th century, 18th century, 19th century, 20th century
Wellcome Bibliography of the History of Medicine: Ancient, Greek and Roman, Medieval, 13th century , 14th century , 15th century , 16th century, 17th century, 18th century, 19th century, 20th century
Book Reviews
General sources include: Academic Search Premier, the Web of Science and Periodicals Index Online (for pre-1995 books). Additional general sources for book reviews. Some of the specialized indexes and bibliographies listed in this guide carry book reviews.
The best specialized source is:
ISIS cumulative bibliography; a bibliography of the history of science formed from ISIS critical bibliographies, 1913-95. 14 v.
LOCATION: History of Science:
LOCATION: Widener: RR 5002.36
LOCATION: Wolbach Obs (HCO): Ref Biblio. Cat. Q125.Z99 I87 (Incomplete)
In the 1913-1965 series, citations for books include reviews; in later series books reviews are at the back of the last volume.
For post-1995 reviews check the individual issues of the Current Bibliography, shelved with Isis. Book reviews are listed at the end of each issue.
LOCATION: Countway Medicine: Serial, 1913- .
LOCATION: Hilles: Periodicals, 1944- .
LOCATION: History of Science: Per I 50, 1913-
LOCATION: Lamont: Periodicals, 1913-2001
LOCATION: Widener: Sci 65.55
Citations for book reviews can often be found in the JSTOR version
- Choose <Search JSTOR>
- Choose <Advanced Search>
- At <These Types:> check <Other items>
- Enter Isis at <These Journal Titles>
- Enter book title in the "The exact phrase" field. Reviews of books lacking distinctive titles may be difficult to separate from other occurrences of the search phrase. If the author name is more distinctive than the title, search the author name using the inverted first initial only, e.g., "Righini G."
Bibliographies
To find bibliographies of books and articles in the HOLLIS Catalog, in Expanded Search do a variety of keyword searches (Keywords Anywhere) plus the standard term "bibliography" (Subject words). Notice the Subjects on pertinent records for terms for additional searches. Examples: <Relativity> and <bibliography> <Albert Einstein> and <bibliography>.