Computerized access to scientific information

Information has no doubt become a strategic resource In every conceivable area. The scientist has always felt the need to be well Informed about new knowledge, advances and research. However, the amount of Information available is so vast that the scientist would be overwhelmed If such Information were not preserved and organized In the efficient way only computers can afford. 

Large libraries have been replaced by small massive digital memory storage units governed by a central computer linked to a vast terminal network. These are the so-called data banks or data bases , a homogeneous collection of information Items stored on magnetic media and accessible by computers. They differ from other Information media In three essential aspects, namely  

The use of data banks usually involves a chain of five links, namely  

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