Subject Specialist Librarian: John Dupuis
Policy Written by: Brian Wilks (retired)

Description of Current Collection and Academic Programmes Supported
The Department of Physics and Astronomy offers undergraduate, graduate and doctorate level programmes in a wide variety of subject areas. At the undergraduate level which has a physics and astronomy stream, as well as an applied physics stream, programmes cover classical physics and applications, and at the upper levels concentrate on experimental physics, theoretical physics, or astronomy and astrophysics. The department, in conjunction with the Departments of Computer Science, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences and Mathematics and Statistics also participates in the Space and Communications programme.

At the graduate and doctoral levels, fields of research activity within the Department are in the general areas of astronomy and astrophysics, atomic and molecular physics processes, chemical and condensed matter physics, earth, atmospheric and space physics, modern optics and spectroscopy, and particle physics. The research program is also interdisciplinary in nature through research centres such as the Centre for Research in Earth and Space Science, the Institute for Space and Terrestrial Science, and the Centre for Research in Atmospheric Chemistry.

To support these programmes, the Libraries' collections attempt to cover subjects up to the research level, and include all major source materials, reference works, monographs and journals. Material relating to the history of physics, as well as the history of space and communication, is also collected.

Related Collections at York
Materials on the economic and legal aspects of space exploration are normally selected by the Economics and Law Subject Specialist Librarians and are housed in their respective branches. Most government documents relating to the areas of physics and space are kept in the Business and Government Publications Library.

Languages
English language works predominate but works in other languages are acquired on request.

Geographical Areas
There is no specific geographic area of coverage.

Chronological Coverage
There are no specific chronological limits, but the majority of physics purchases focus on current or recent output.

Date of Publications
Current or recent works predominate. Retrospective purchases include: periodical backruns that are acquired as needed; retrospective runs of abstracting services; review literature; historical works; and treatises that summarize the various disciplines of physics.

Duplication
Duplicates are not purchased unless there is a perceived need for them. These are generally purchased for and housed in the Reserve collection.

Types of Materials
In the purchase of monographs, hard copy is preferred, otherwise soft cover or microform is obtained. Microform is the preferred format for backruns of periodicals. CD-ROMs accompanying books are kept at the circulation desk. Relevant government document deposit material is automatically added (government report literature is added on a request basis only).

Electronic Data Files, CD-ROM, Microcomputer Software
The Steacie Science Library has two relevant indexing and abstracting services at the research level in CD-ROM format: INSPEC and Science Citation Index. When acquiring CD-ROM versions, the print equivalent is cancelled. The Steacie Science Library also provides access to all relevant bibliographic science databases through Dialog Information Services.

Relegation and Weeding
Superseded editions and out-of-date textbooks are weeded unless they are of historical value. Relegation to the storage annex is done during periodic inventories for volumes that have not circulated within the preceding five years.

Resources Elsewhere in the Toronto Region
Additional resources in these areas may be found at the University of Toronto Libraries and at the Atmospheric Environment Service, Toronto.

Collecting Levels

Subject: Last Updated: 1999