Categories in Charles A. Cutter's Systems of Subject Cataloging and Bibliographical Classification

Categories are considered to be an essential element in the design of many knowledge organization systems (KOS), particularly those following the categorial approach of faceted analysis. Standard narratives of knowledge organization (KO) identify S.R. Ranganthan as the founder of the categorial approach to KO. However, they also acknowledge that elements of a categorial approach to KO can be found in a number of earlier KOSs created in the late 19th and early 20th centuries by such pioneers of KO as Paul Otlet, James D. Brown, and Julius O. Kaiser. This paper seeks to expand the list of precursors to the categorial approach by examining the rôle of categories in two KOSs created by Charles Ammi Cutter: the system of subject cataloging outlined in the Rules for a Dictionary Catalog (RDC) and the bibliographical classification known as the Expansive Classification (EC). In the RDC, Cutter divided subjects into three categories—concrete individual, concrete general, and abstract general—which were articulated into a classificatory, hierarchical structure that provided the framework for his principle of specific entry. Cutter also established a “significance order” of precedence for these categories, which functioned as a decision tree for selecting the most specific subject headings under which books treating of complex subjects should be entered. In the EC, Cutter divided the classification into schedules for subjects, a list of bibliographical forms, and an auxiliary table of place names (the Local List), with each of these divisions sharply distinguished from the other by notational means; moreover, he established a mechanism for class synthesis, whereby classes in the classification could take the forms Subject–Place or Place–Subject. Both KOSs were designed to allow maximal treatment of concrete, specific classes and so manifest the underlying unity of Cutter’s vision of KO. The pervasive, but implicit and untheorized, use of categorial structures in both the RDC and EC justifies the inclusion of Cutter among the precursors of the categorial approach to KO

E. Wyndham Hulme's Classification of the Attributes of Books: On an Early Model of a Core Bibliographical Entity

Modelling bibliographical entities is a prominent activity within knowledge organization today. Current models of bibliographic entities, such as Functional Requirements for Bibliographical Records (FRBR) and the Bibliographic Framework (BIBFRAME), take inspiration from data-modelling methods developed by computer scientists from the mid-1970s on. Thus, it would seem that the modelling of bibliographic entities is an activity of very recent vintage. However, it is possible to find examples of bibliographical models from earlier periods of knowledge organization. The purpose of this paper is to draw attention to one such model, outlined by the early 20th-century British classification theorist E. Wyndham Hulme in his essay on “Principles of Book Classification” (1911–1912). There, Hulme set forth a classification of various attributes by which books can conceivably be classified. These he first divided into accidental and inseparable attributes. Accidental attributes were subdivided into edition-level and copy-level attributes and inseparable attitudes, into physical and non-physical attributes. Comparison of Hulme’s classification of attributes with those of FRBR and BIBFRAME 2.0 reveals that the different classes of attributes in Hulme’s classification correspond to groups of attributes associated with different bibliographical entities in those models. These later models assume the existence of different bibliographic entities in an abstraction hierarchy among which attributes are distributed, whereas Hulme posited only a single entity— the book—, whose various aspects he clustered into different classes of attributes. Thus, Hulme’s model offers an interesting alternative to current assumptions about how to conceptualize the relationship between attributes and entities in the bibliographical universe

Classical Pragmatism and its Varieties: On a Pluriform Metatheoretical Perspective for Knowledge Organization

Pragmatism is a metatheoretical perspective within knowledge organization (KO) deriving from an American philosophical tradition active since the late 19th century. Its core feature is commitment to the evaluation of the adequacy of concepts and beliefs through the empirical test of practice: this entails epistemological antifoundationalism, fallibilism, contingency, social embeddedness, and pluralism. This article reviews three variants of Pragmatism historically influential in philosophy—Pierce’s scientifically oriented pragmaticism, James’s subjectivist practicalism; and Dewey’s socially-directed instrumentalism—and indicates points of contact with KO theories propounded by Bliss, Shera, and Hjørland. KO applications of classical Pragmatism have tended to converge toward a socially pluralist model characteristic of Dewey. Recently, Rorty’s epistemologically radical brand of Neopragmatism has found adherents within KO: whether it provides a more advantageous metatheoretical framework than classical Pragmatism remains to be seen

Evolutionary Order in the Classification Theories of C. A. Cutter and E. C. Richardson: Its Nature and Limits

In recent years, evolutionary order has been used as the favored mode of determining class sequence by classificationists using integrative levels as a theoretical framework for classification design. Although current advocates of evolutionary order are based in Europe, use of the concept in library and information science (LIS) can be traced back to two North American pioneers in classification theory, C. A. Cutter (1837–1903) and E. C. Richardson (1860–1939). Working in the heyday of evolutionism and influenced by the developmental classifications of the sciences of Auguste Comte and Herbert Spencer, Cutter and Richardson introduced evolutionary order as an explicit principle into LIS classification theory, defining it as encompassing a conceptual progression from the general to the specific, the simple to the complex, and the past to the present. This idea proved influential, being appropriated by later theoreticians like H. E. Bliss; it also reinforced the realist tendency of early LIS classification theory. However, for Cutter and Richardson, application of evolutionary order to bibliothecal classifications proved problematic. Cutter applied the concept inconsistently; Richardson viewed it as theoretically ideal, but subject to so many exceptions for pragmatic reasons that it could not be attained in practice. Cutter’s and Richardson’s use of evolutionary order reveals the tension between enunciating a principle of classificatory ordering in theory and applying it in practice

Concretes, countries, and processes in Julius O. Kaiser's Theory of Systematic Indexing: A case study in the definition of general categories

Although general categories are an important feature of many KOSs, they are difficult to define. If we are to understand the factors that render category definition difficult, we should consider how designers of past KOSs have defined the categories in their systems. This paper presents, as a case study, an analysis of the formulation of categories in J. Kaiser’s theory of systematic indexing, which was designed for the indexing of commercial literature. Kaiser’s theory posited three categories: concretes, countries, and processes. Close examination of his writings reveals semantic tensions in the definition of each category. Concretes were defined both in general terms as things-in-the-world and in domain specific terms as commodities; Countries were defined as political units but included geographical regions that were not politically unified; and Processes were defined alternately as conditions of concretes or actions associated with them. Tensions also appear in the categorial scheme comprising these categories, of which there were dyadic (Concrete-Process) and triadic (Concrete-Country-Process), the former of which was grounded on a theoretical model and the latter, on pragmatic, domain-specific considerations. Kaiser’s attempts to harmonize these models by deriving countries from concretes faltered because of his narrow construal of concretes. The tensions in Kaiser’s definition of categories are due to semantic overdetermination, while those associated with his categorial scheme are ascribable to the general tension between theory and practice

Imperialism and Indexing: The Case of Julius O. Kaiser's Systematic Indexing

The late 19th and early 20th centuries were a time when a number of pioneering knowledge organization systems (KOSs) originated. They were also a time when various forms of imperialism influenced social, political, and economic life in the countries where these KOSs were developed. Adopting a case study approach, this paper examines the influence of imperialism on one pioneering KOS of this period – Julius Otto Kaiser’s method of Systematic Indexing (SI). The study describes the institutional milieux in which Kaiser originated SI and gave it its canonical form – the Philadelphia Commercial Museum (PCM) and the Joseph Chamberlain’s Tariff Commission (TC). Evidence is presented to show that both institutions were involved in projects of economic imperialism and that these projects affected their knowledge organization (KO) practices. Then follows an examination of the semantic content and syntactic structure of SI for traces of imperialist influence. Analysis reveals that most traces of imperialist thought in the semantic content of SI occur in its treatment of countries as subjects and that this treatment does not differ significantly from that found in other contemporary KOSs. Evidence is presented that the syntactic structure of complex subject headings in SI was influenced by KO practices at the PCM, which were animated by the economic imperialist assumptions, but that similar structures can be found in another contemporary KOS with no manifest ties to imperialism. It is concluded that the motivations for certain semantic elements of SI reflect by imperialist presuppositions but that its syntactic features are not uniquely or inherently associated with imperialist ideology. Depending upon the analytical perspective that one adopts, then, SI both is and – paradoxically – is not an imperialist KOS

Intellection and Intuition: On the Epistemology of S.R. Ranganathan

The Indian librarian and library theorist S.R. Ranganathan (1892-1970) is generally recognized as a seminal figure in the development of facet analysis and its application to classification theory. In recent years, commentators on the epistemology of knowledge organization have claimed that the methods of facet analysis reflect a fundamentally rationalist approach to classification. Yet, for all the interest in the epistemological bases of Ranganathan’s classification theory, little attention has been paid to his theory of how human beings acquire knowledge of the world – i.e., his epistemology proper – or to the question whether this theory reflects a rationalist outlook. This paper examines Ranganathan’s statements on the origins of knowledge to assess if they are congruent with rationalist epistemology. Ranganathan recognized two different modes of knowledge – intellection (i.e., intellectual operations on sense data) and intuition (i.e., direct cognition of things-in-themselves) -- and it is in virtue of the latter that his epistemology can be considered to fall within the ambit of rationalism. Intuition as a source of knowledge plays a role in Ranganathan’s classification theory, most notably in his model of scientific method underlying classification development, his vision of the organization of classification design, and his conceptualization of seminal mnemonics and a reduced number of fundamental categories as important elements in the design of classification notation. Not only does intuition subtend the rationalism of Ranganathan’s epistemology but it also serves as a bridge to another often-neglected aspect of his thought, namely his valorization of mysticism. Indeed, Ranganathan’s theory of knowledge is best characterized as mystical rationalis

S.R. Ranganathan's Ontology of the Book: On a Bibliographical Conceptual Model avant la lettre

This paper examines a conceptual model of the book advanced in the mid-20th century by the eminent Indian librarian and classification theorist S.R. Ranganathan (1892-1972), who formulated it with the aid of an ontological model drawn from Hindu philosophical thought. The analysis of this model, which has hitherto received only sporadic discussion in KO literature, unfolds in three parts. First, the paper outlines Ranganathan’s model, explains its Hindu philosophical background, and traces its development, showing that, in fact, it comprised two distinct versions – a triadic (i.e., three-entity) and a dyadic (i.e., two-entity) one – which were fully compatible to one another and which Ranganathan used in different contexts. Next, the structure of Ranganathan’s model, in both its triadic and dyadic forms, is compared with those of the contemporary bibliographic conceptual models most widely used today, IFLA-LRM (and its predecessor, FRBR) and BIBFRAME. It is shown that Ranganathan’s model bears some striking resemblances to these current models: in particular, the triadic version of Ranganathan’s model shares affinities with FRBR and IFLA-LRM, while the dyadic version is closer to BIBFRAME. Then follows a discussion of significant structural divergences between Ranganathan’s model and its latter-day counterparts, and an explanation for these differences is adduced. The paper concludes with a brief consideration of the surprising lack of historical connection between Ranganathan’s conceptual model of the book avant la lettre and current bibliographic conceptual models, as well as a reflection on the enduring relevance of Ranganathan’s model for today

Data fusion of video camera and Laser Range Finder (LRF) for obstacle avoidance

Many people are involved in car accidents yearly, according to the World Health Organization about 1.25 million people die every year as a result of road traffic crashes. [1] This number is expected to increase if no immediate actions are taken. A collision avoidance system is designed to reduce the severity of an accident by detecting any imminent crash using sensors such as radar, camera and laser range finder. Most of current systems rely on only one sensor for detection. However, using only one sensor is proven to be insufficient in providing full information of the nature of the obstacle and crash. This arises the need for systems that fuse the data of two sensors to provide better result for object detection

Epistemological and Methodological Eclecticism in the Construction of Knowledge Organization Systems (KOSs) The Case of Analytico-synthetic KOSs.

International audienceIn recent years, Hjørland has developed a typology of basic epistemological approaches to KO that identifies four basic positions--empiricism, rationalism, historicism/hermeneutics, and pragmatism--with which to characterize the epistemological bases and methodological orientation of KOSs. Although scholars of KO have noted that the design of a single KOS may incorporate epistemological-methodological features from more than one of these approaches, studies of concrete examples of epistemologico-methodological eclecticism have been rare. In this paper, we consider the phenomenon of epistemologico-methodological eclecticism in one theoretically significant family of KOSs--namely analytico-synthetic, or faceted, KOSs--by examining two cases--Julius Otto Kaiser's method of Systematic Indexing (SI) and Brian Vickery's method of facet analysis (FA) for document classifi-cation. We show that both of these systems combined classical features of rationalism with elements of empiricism and pragmatism and argue that such eclecticism is the norm, rather than the exception, for such KOSs in general