R.G. Crawford and Mary‐Ellen Edwards
This paper presents the design of a prototype system that provides a simple interface between the Dialog Information Retrieval Service and the end user, via an Apple Macintosh…
Abstract
This paper presents the design of a prototype system that provides a simple interface between the Dialog Information Retrieval Service and the end user, via an Apple Macintosh. This Drug‐Interface automatically connects to the Dialog Information Retrieval Service via available networks, aids the user in formulating and/or revising a search strategy, sends the query to Dialog, displays the results of the search and downloads the relevant pieces into a Macintosh data file named by the user. The user can accomplish all of these tasks without any keystrokes, through the use of a mouse. The prototype system was built specifically to facilitate retrieval of drug related information, involving access to three different databases on Dialog.
In this article I propose to deal only with that legislation which is of a permanent nature and is not likely to be repealed or amended for at least some time to come. Ministry of…
Abstract
In this article I propose to deal only with that legislation which is of a permanent nature and is not likely to be repealed or amended for at least some time to come. Ministry of Food Orders such as those which deal with price controls will be ignored. Most legislation from the public health point of view is dealt with by the Food and Drugs Act, an Act which consolidated, with a few amendments, some of the legislation relating to foods, drugs, markets, slaughterhouses and knackers' yards. Section 9 of the Act makes it an offence for any person (a) to sell or offer or expose for sale or have in his possession for the purpose of sale or of preparation for sale, or (b) to deposit with or consign to any person for the sale or preparation for sale any food which is intended for but unfit for human consumption. It is a defence, however, to prove that the food in question was not intended for human consumption, or at the time it was fit for human consumption, or he did not know and could not, with reasonable diligence, have ascertained that it was unfit for human consumption. It does not matter whether the meat or other foodstuff was originally consigned by the Ministry of Food or purchased in the open market unless the butcher can avail himself of the special defences just mentioned. An authorised officer of the local authority, who is either the medical officer of health, sanitary inspector or veterinary inspector specially appointed for that purpose by the local authority, may, if such food appears to him to be unfit for food, remove it to be dealt with by any Justice of the Peace, and may then report the matter to the local authority, who may institute proceedings against that person. Every piece of meat or other article of foodstuff seized may be dealt with as a separate offence, and for each offence a penalty of £50 may be imposed. The butcher, therefore, if he has any meat, offal, or other foodstuff which he thinks may be diseased or otherwise unsound, should immediately withdraw it from sale and call in the local inspector. Butchers must be registered under Section 14 of the Food and Drugs Act, 1938 (not to be confused with a licence issued by the local Food Office), with the local authority, if they carry out on their premises the manufacture or preparation of sausages or potted, pressed, cooked or preserved foods. Failure to be registered renders the butcher liable to prosecution A point of interest arises in this connection. Does a butcher who boils down fat become a fat‐boiler and render his business to be classed as an offensive trade? Legally, he does, but in practice, unless he carries it on on a large scale, it is overlooked. A butcher should make himself familiar with the Imported Meat (Marking) Order, 1941, for any butcher who sells imported meat, as nearly every butcher does, makes himself liable to prosecution unless the following provisions are complied with. This Order prohibits the sale or exposure for sale of any imported (chilled or frozen) beef, mutton, lamb, pork, or edible offals, unless a label or ticket bearing the word “Imported” is affixed to every slab, tray or rail which contains such imported meat, so as to be visible to the purchaser. Where a butcher sends or delivers imported meat to another person, the requirements of this Order are complied with if the invoice or delivery note attached to or accompanying the meat has the word “Imported” marked on it. If the meat itself is clearly marked with the country of origin, e.g., New Zealand or Argentina, it is not necessary to specially label the meat, provided the purchaser is present in the shop at the time of the sale. The provisions of the Public Health (Preservatives, etc., in Food) Regulations, 1925–40, prohibit the use of any preservative or colouring matter in any article of food. However, it is provided by the first Schedule to these regulations that sausages or sausage meat may contain 450 parts per million of sulphur dioxide. Butchers whose premises are in Scotland are allowed, during the months of June, July, August and September, to put 450 parts per million of sulphur dioxide in minced meat. Where the article of food does contain preservative, it must bear a label stating that “these sausages, etc., contain preservative”; the letters being not less than ? in. in height, or there must be a notice in the shop to the effect that the sausages contain preservative.
Mary Ellen Brown, Tracey Rizzuto and Pallavi Singh
Communities are best able to tackle complex social problems when solutions are achieved collaboratively. Inter-organizational partnerships are strongest and provide the greatest…
Abstract
Purpose
Communities are best able to tackle complex social problems when solutions are achieved collaboratively. Inter-organizational partnerships are strongest and provide the greatest benefit to communities when the relationships are mutually compatible. The purpose of this paper is to introduce an evidence-informed approach to identifying and forming mutually compatible collaborations among organizations responsible for promoting community well-being and carrying out community-level interventions.
Design/methodology/approach
A three-stage case study examines the utility of a novel measurement tool for identifying opportunities for strategic collaboration. The strategic compatibility assessment (SCA) was designed to identify inter-organizational collaborative capacities within and across sectors as a means to motivate collaborative behaviors that are essential to community change initiatives that advance the collective impact.
Findings
The findings of this paper indicate the SCA is an effective tool for fostering mutually beneficial collaborative partnerships. A high degree of content, face and practical validity was evidenced in two independent studies of SCA, and organizations using the SCA tool reported a moderate-to-high degree of collaborative behavior in a post-intervention assessment of SCA outcomes. These findings provide field-based support for the SCA to promote cross-sector collaboration for community-level interventions.
Originality/value
The SCA tool describes the degree of collaboration among organizations that operate within a neighborhood; identifies potential points of mutual compatibility within the network; and creates pathways for leveraging collaborative behavior to promote community capitals. The aim of this research is to examine the potential of the SCA tool to shift the non-profit sector climate away from one characterized by competition toward one rich with collaboration.
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Since the tragic events of 9/11, faith has become an important discourse in society as a whole. This article explores aspects of that discourse in our multicultural society with…
Abstract
Since the tragic events of 9/11, faith has become an important discourse in society as a whole. This article explores aspects of that discourse in our multicultural society with special reference to mental health and well‐being, and describes a conference set up by NIMHE/Staffordshire University and the National Forum on Spirituality and Mental Health to explore how belief systems can affect people's well‐being and their recovery from mental illness.
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The competence of academic librarians promises to be a foremost issue for academic librarianship in the twenty‐first century. New subject specialties, unprecedented information…
Abstract
The competence of academic librarians promises to be a foremost issue for academic librarianship in the twenty‐first century. New subject specialties, unprecedented information technologies, and increasingly interdisciplinary university curricula and research mean ever‐faster outdating of the library science degree. Currently, within ten to 12 years of receiving their diplomas, academic librarians are estimated to be half as competent to meet professional demands as they were at graduation. Continuing education is, therefore, ever more vital in maintaining a staff of library professionals who are capable of providing continually relevant service to library users.
Life studies are a rich source for further research on the role of the Afro‐American woman in society. They are especially useful to gain a better understanding of the…
Abstract
Life studies are a rich source for further research on the role of the Afro‐American woman in society. They are especially useful to gain a better understanding of the Afro‐American experience and to show the joys, sorrows, needs, and ideals of the Afro‐American woman as she struggles from day to day.
It was a rough crossing and the last thing we wished to be reminded of was food. The word had an almost repulsive sound. The stomach, however, is a long‐suffering organ. The cruel…
Abstract
It was a rough crossing and the last thing we wished to be reminded of was food. The word had an almost repulsive sound. The stomach, however, is a long‐suffering organ. The cruel writhings of its muscle layers, at loggerheads with each other, gradually ceased and the organ returned to its pre‐crossing quiescence.
To report on the SLA Annual Conference held in June 2006 in Baltimore MD.
Abstract
Purpose
To report on the SLA Annual Conference held in June 2006 in Baltimore MD.
Design/methodology/approach
Provides a review of some of the events of the conference.
Findings
The annual conference aims to provide attendees continuing professional education, vendor presentations, invited papers and social events. Exhibits from library vendors include technology, information materials and services.
Originality/value
A conference report of interest to information professionals in academia, corporate and governmental information centers and libraries.
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It is an amazing fact that this country is one of the few that have not adopted a comprehensive system of food standards, but has relied on the administration of general…
Abstract
It is an amazing fact that this country is one of the few that have not adopted a comprehensive system of food standards, but has relied on the administration of general provisions as to the purity of food; and it has been evident to officers engaged in enforcing these provisions that they were inadequate to deal effectively with all the cases in which foodstuffs of inferior quality were offered for sale to the public. Local authorities and courts of law have probably done their best within the limits of their legislative power to prevent as far as possible the sale of such foodstuffs, particularly where public health was endangered or there has been gross adulteration, but the subtlety of food adulteration in recent years has given rise to so much controversy as to how far the existing legislation has been contravened that the Minister of Health should be asked at the earliest opportunity to exercise the powers given to him in Section 8 of the Food and Drugs Act, 1938, to draft regulations as to the importation, preparation, storage, sale, delivery, etc., of food, and to include in such regulations a comprehensive system of food standards. There is ample evidence available for the consideration of any committee which might be appointed to draft the regulations. In 1901 a Departmental Committee of the Local Government Board, which had for two years been inquiring into the use of preservatives and colouring matter in food, recommended inter alia the prohibition of formaldehyde or copper salts in food, the limitation of boric acid to 0·25 per cent. in food, and the amount of salicylic acid not to exceed one grain per pound in solid food and one grain per pint in liquid food. There is also the Final Report of the Departmental Committee, 1924, which led to the introduction of the Public Health (Preservatives, etc., in Food) Regulations, 1925–27, which contained provisions limiting the use of preservatives to certain articles of food, prescribing the preservatives which could be used (sulphur dioxide and benzoic acid in specified amounts) and prohibiting the use of a number of metallic, vegetable and coal‐tar colouring matters. More recent still is the Report of the Departmental Committee appointed in 1933 to consider whether it was desirable that the law relating to the composition and description of articles of food should be altered so as to enable definitions or standards to be prescribed, or declarations of composition to be required for articles of food other than liquid milk, and if so to recommend what alterations of the law were required. As a food officer I was impressed on reading this report at the very wide field covered by the Committee in its search for evidence on the many aspects of the problem, and commend its perusal to all who are interested in the subject of food standards. Professional associations, traders' associations, associations of local authorities, scientists, doctors, public analysts, sanitary inspectors and trade representatives submitted their respective views. The report extends over several pages, but, briefly, the Committee were of opinion that it was not practicable to extend standards of definitions to all articles of food, that housewives would not benefit by a multitude of standards, definitions or declarations of composition, as in a large number of cases they were getting articles of the nature, substance and quality demanded, and that no standards or definitions should be laid down and no declaration of composition required without giving the manufacturers or other persons concerned the fullest opportunity of hearing the proposals and submitting their observations. The Committee also recommended that the contamination of articles of food by arsenic, lead, tin, or other impurities which may be contaminated in the process of collection or preparation should be treated as a special question. A further recommendation that specific claims made in advertisements should be deemed to be part of the package label has since been provided for in the Food and Drugs Act, 1938 (Section 6). In their evidence before the Departmental Committee in 1933, the Society of Public Analysts advocated the institution of a comprehensive system of standards and definitions, which would ultimately embrace all articles of food, and as this goes much further than the recommendation of the Committee, the views of public analysts on any new draft regulations will no doubt be awaited with considerable interest. In any case, their observations should be of considerable value when food standards are under consideration. Many suggestions for standards have emanated from commercial interests, and the Chief Medical Officer to the Ministry of Health, in his report for 1938, referring to these suggestions, stated “there is often discernible a desire to stifle competition, and that frequently the grade or qualities to which objection is taken are sound, wholesome articles of food, the suppression of which would be a distinct loss to the poorer class of consumers. New standards should therefore apply to all grades and not only to the higher‐grade articles. In fact, if any preference is to be shown it should be in respect of the cheaper grades. Where there is doubt of the efficiency of applying a standard, the desire should rest not on whether it will create difficulties in manufacture, although, of course, this aspect must be considered, but whether it is in the public interest that a standard should be laid down.” The Chief Medical Officer is to be commended for this timely warning, and it should be borne in mind by those drafting new regulations. It should be ensured that public welfare and not commercial interests should receive first consideration in a matter of this kind. There are many articles of food to which standards of composition are already applicable, including butter, margarine, condensed milk, dried milk, whisky, spirits, etc. There are also presumptive standards for milk and skimmed milk, and semi‐official standards for jam, vinegar and shredded suet. I am aware that under emergency powers the Ministry of Food have introduced standards for numerous articles of food, but these have been primarily introduced in connection with food rationing and other difficulties in connection with war‐time control of the principal foodstuffs. They are no doubt related to the availability of supplies of the various constituents, and therefore subject to alteration from lime to time, as instanced by the reduction in the percentage of meat to be contained in sausages. Except, therefore, as an experiment, these standards cannot be regarded as a satisfactory system, and will probably be revoked immediately the national situation justifies such a course being taken. We should not, therefore, be unduly influenced by these war‐time standards. Despite the desire of public analysis and food officers to have legal standards for all articles of food, it may be found impracticable to fix standards of composition for such articles as meat, fish, fruit, vegetables, eggs, etc., as they are prepared with the minimum of handling and are less likely to be adulterated. There are, however, many articles of food for which at present there are no legal standards as to their nature, substance or quality, and to which such standards might easily be made applicable, such as meat‐paste or fish‐paste, for which you have no guarantee of the percentage of meat or fish present. Just before the war there was a popular demand for cheese‐spreads, some of which contained up to 35 per cent. fat, but in the absence of legal standards varieties of cheese‐spreads may contain much less fat. There is no legal standard for cheese, with the result that whether it is made from skim milk or new milk it may still be sold as cheese. Mixtures of cocoa with starch and sugar may be sold as cocoa, if the fact that they are mixtures (without disclosing the percentage of cocoa) is disclosed on the label. In America milk chocolate must contain a minimum of 12 per cent. milk solids, but there is no such standard in this country. Although there is a bacteriological standard for ice‐cream in the Isle of Man, to the effect that when examined within twenty‐four hours of sale it shall not contain more than one hundred thousand bacteria per cubic centimetre, and no Baccilus coli in one‐tenth of a cubic centimetre, there is no such standard in this country. It has been suggested that ice‐cream should be made from milk, cream and sugar, with or without eggs, and contain a minimum of 8 per cent. of milk fat. An article sold as honey should be solely the product of the honey bee and not a chemically prepared substance. The latter might be designated as “artificial honey,” and labelled accordingly. Fruit juices should be what the name implies, and be manufactured and sold in compliance with statutory requirements. There should be standards for cordials, squashes, jams and preserves. Meat extracts should be made from good muscle fibre and its total creatine content slated on the label. If low‐grade meat is used, including offal, the fact should be disclosed on the label. With regard to statutory declarations on labels, the printing should be of such size that it is easily legible. It should neither be impossible nor impracticable to introduce legal standards for custard powders, baking powders, blancmange powders, pudding mixtures, cake mixtures, and many other foodstuffs which are ordinarily consumed by the public, not forgetting sweets and confectionery, wines and cocktails, milk shakes, and soft drinks. The ramp which went on during 1940–42 in connection with the sale of “food substitutes” was a striking example of the need for statutory standards of composition. It is often contended that if housewives only purchased goods prepared by reputable firms they would receive satisfaction, and while to a large extent this may be true, the fact remains that inferior articles still find their way into shops. There is, of course, the possibility that shopkeepers may be tempted by the offer of a larger margin of profit on goods supplied by firms of less repute. Some shopkeepers even fail to obtain a warranty that the goods supplied to them conform to the requirements of the Food and Drugs Act and Regulations. It is not sufficient for the Departmental Committee to state “that in a large number of cases housewives get articles of the nature, substance and quality demanded,” and leave it at that. An effort should be made to apply standards to every article of food to which the application of such standards is possible. Housewives should no longer be tempted or misled by catch advertisements, attractive labels or wrappings, or the inducement of free gifts. To give some idea of the need for a wider application of standards, a few cases dealt with during the past three years, some of which came under my own personal investigation, are set out below, with the Public Analyst's comments: 1.—Egg substitute.—Contained no true substitute for eggs; consisted of a solution of synthetic gum, probably made by treating cotton with some chemical; containing only 3·8 per cent. solid matter, the rest being water; had no food value.
Roberta A. Scull and Barbara S. Kavanaugh
Bobbie Scull's bibliography of federal government bibliographies was begun in 1971 as an annual informational publication primarily intended for the faculty at Louisiana State…
Abstract
Bobbie Scull's bibliography of federal government bibliographies was begun in 1971 as an annual informational publication primarily intended for the faculty at Louisiana State University. Later she distributed it to libraries all over the state of Louisiana. In 1973 RSR began to publish these lists on an annual basis. This is the fourth such appearance. In the meantime these bibliographies were cumulated and published in two volumes: Bibliography of U.S. Government Bibliographies 1968–73 and 1974–76. (Pierian Press, 1975, 1979). RSR is proud to continue the annual supplements which are now computer produced at LSU. Although this supplement appears in Volume 8:1 (1980) in the future they will appear in the final issue of the year.