RDA: an innovation in cataloguing

With effect from 31 March 2013, Resource Description and Access (RDA) has become the cataloguing content standard used by the British Library and the Library of Congress. Concurrent with these institutions, other libraries, principally in the English-speaking world, have also adopted, or are planning to adopt, RDA. This article will discuss what RDA is, how and why it is an innovation in cataloguing, and will then examine its adoption by libraries. It will also address implications for library catalogues. Particular emphasis will be placed on the pattern of adoption, applying Everett Rogers' categorization to libraries as they implement RDA

Random dispersion approximation for the Hubbard model

We use the Random Dispersion Approximation (RDA) to study the Mott-Hubbard transition in the Hubbard model at half band filling. The RDA becomes exact for the Hubbard model in infinite dimensions. We implement the RDA on finite chains and employ the Lanczos exact diagonalization method in real space to calculate the ground-state energy, the average double occupancy, the charge gap, the momentum distribution, and the quasi-particle weight. We find a satisfactory agreement with perturbative results in the weak- and strong-coupling limits. A straightforward extrapolation of the RDA data for $L\leq 14$ lattice results in a continuous Mott-Hubbard transition at $U_{\rm c}\approx W$. We discuss the significance of a possible signature of a coexistence region between insulating and metallic ground states in the RDA that would correspond to the scenario of a discontinuous Mott-Hubbard transition as found in numerical investigations of the Dynamical Mean-Field Theory for the Hubbard model.Comment: 10 pages, 11 figure

Nutrient adequacy of elderly in Guna Budi Bakti Nursing Home: a pilot study in Medan City-Indonesia

Health condition in the elderly is determined by the quality and quantity of food and nutrient being consumed. However, the nutrient adequacy among elderly people at nursing home in Indonesia has rarely been investigated. Therefore, a cross sectional study was conducted to determine nutrient adequacy in Guna Budi Bakti nursing home in the city of Medan. Elderly food intake was assessed by three days food weighing method and compared to the Indonesian Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDA). Energy intake reached >100% of RDA. Although the majority of subject able to meet 70% of RDA for protein and vitamin A, a proportion of subject could not meet the recommendation of protein (26.6%) and vitamin A (28.3%). Calcium and ferum intake were approximately 20% of RDA Furthermore, there is a need for a balanced food to planned and provided at the nursing home in the stud

The Extended Regularized Dual Averaging Method for Composite Optimization

We present a new algorithm, extended regularized dual averaging (XRDA), for solving composite optimization problems, which are a generalization of the regularized dual averaging (RDA) method. The main novelty of the method is that it allows more flexible control of the backward step size. For instance, the backward step size for RDA grows without bound, while XRDA the backward step size can be kept bounded

On the Persistence of Homogeneous Matter

Some recent philosophical debate about persistence has focussed on an argument against perdurantism that discusses rotating perfectly homogeneous discs (the `rotating discs argument'; RDA). The argument has been mostly discussed by metaphysicians, though it appeals to ideas from classical mechanics, especially about rotation. In contrast, I assess the RDA from the perspective of the philosophy of physics. After introducing the argument and emphasizing the relevance of physics (Sections 1 to 3), I review some metaphysicians' replies to the argument (Section 4). Thereafter, I argue for three main conclusions. They all arise from the fact, emphasized in Section 2, that classical mechanics (non-relativistic as well as relativistic) is both more subtle, and more problematic, than philosophers generally realize. The main conclusion is that the RDA can be defeated (Section 6 onwards). Namely, by the perdurantist taking objects in classical mechanics (whether point-particles or continuous bodies) to have only temporally extended, i.e. non-instantaneous, temporal parts: which immediately blocks the RDA. Admittedly, this version of perdurantism defines persistence in a weaker sense of `definition' than {\em pointilliste} versions that aim to define persistence assuming only instantaneous temporal parts. But I argue that temporally extended temporal parts are supported by both classical and quantum mechanics.Comment: 100 pages, no figures; an extract of this paper is at: physics/040602

What is Resource Description and Access (RDA) and How Will It Impact Our Libraries?

Current Status of RDA • The implementation of RDA will begin no earlier than January 1, 2013 • Text of RDA needs revision • RDA Toolkit navigation needs improvemen

What\u27s Gender Got to Do With It? A Critique of RDA Rule 9.7

The interpretation of RDA Rule 9.7 regarding gender when identifying persons by Library of Congress (LC) and the Program for Cooperative Cataloging (PCC) reinforce regressive conceptions of gender identity. The rule instructs catalogers to record gender when identifying persons, and although RDA gives catalogers the flexibility to record more than two gender labels, LC limits Name Authority Cooperative Program (NACO) catalogers to a binary label: male, female or not known. In this article, the authors challenge gender as a descriptive attribute for personal names, critique how LC is instructing NACO catalogers to record elements about gender, and make recommendations to address describing persons in LC authority records

RDA content in multiple languages

L'articolo offre un riepilogo della presenza dei contenuti di RDA in lingue diverse dall'inglese nel RDA Toolkit, nel RDA Registry, e nell'editor di dati RIMMF, e di come sono strutturate le diverse versioni. Viene inoltre illustrata la politica di traduzione e vengono segnalati i benefici della traduzione del contenuto di RDA in diverse lingue.A summary of the presence of RDA content in languages other than English in RDA Toolkit, in the RDA Registry, in the RIMMF data editor, and as separate translations is given.  Translation policy is explained and the benefits of translation on the content of RDA are noted