Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How are author names formatted in Biological Abstracts?
A: Author names are presented exactly as they appear in the source publication, including full first names. However, it is still advisable to search for an author by truncating after the first initial when possible. John E. Chandler may be represented in the database as Chandler, J. E. or Chandler, John, or Chandler John E. Moreover, he may have published under any of those names. In this example, it is advisable to search for Chandler as follows:
AU = Chandler J*
Please see Biological Abstracts Help within the product for more information.
Q: What is a Major Concept?
A: Major Concepts are broad subject areas covered in the source document. Major Concepts broader terms indicate the broader subject area(s) versus narrower terms that are more focused in scope.
You can perform a search on major concepts in the "Major Concepts" field on the General Search page or by using the field tag MC on the Advanced Search page. Use the Major Concepts Search Aid to find codes to add to your search.
Q: What is a biosystematic code?
A: Biosystematic codes are used to classify organisms. They are found in a Biological Abstracts full record in the Taxonomic Data table in the column titled "Organism Classifier." In the table, the code may be followed by an asterisk (*), which is used to indicate the reporting of a new Taxon within the source item. In some instances, the asterisk may be replaced with -NEW.
You can perform a search on biosystematic codes in the "Taxonomic Data" field on the General Search page or by using the field tag TA on the Advanced Search page. Use the Organism Classifiers Search Aid to find codes to add to your search.
Q: What information is in the Sequence (SQ) field?
A: The Sequence (SQ) field includes databank accession numbers for proteins and nucleic acids and associated relational data including the data repository name.
Q: What information is in the Geopolitical Locations (GE) field?
A: The Geopolitical Locations (GE) field is used for any land, water body or man-made structure that is the focus of an indexed document. GE distinguishes ecological descriptors (e.g., rainforest, ocean, desert) from geopolitical descriptors (e.g., Atlantic Ocean, Great Basin, Mt. St. Helens). Geopolitical terms are captured from the title, abstract and text of an item.
Up to 20 separate GE items are created in any single indexing item. If more than 20 individual geopolitical terms are provided in an indexed document, the terms are grouped into specific categories to be indexed as key terms. For example, if 25 U.S. states are listed, “USA” is indexed as the GE key term instead of the specific 25 states.
Q: What types of information does Biological Abstracts index?
A: Biological Abstracts is a comprehensive database that directs you to information covered in life sciences journals. More than 5,200 biological and medical research journals from around the world are indexed in the database. Its coverage dates back to 1969. Nearly 90% of the records include informative abstracts written by the author.
It is updated every two months with nearly 370,000 new citations added each year. By the end of 2004, there were 8,787,322 citations in Biological Abstracts.
Q: What information is in the Geological Time (GT) field?
A: The Geological Time (GT) field contains geologic time terms and associated geologic period modifiers. The key terms and geologic period modifiers are strictly controlled. The terms are from approximately 850 age, period, epoch, and eon controlled vocabulary terms. Geologic time period terms are captured from the title, abstract and text.
Q: How can I find a biosystematic code to add to my search?
A: To find a biosystematic code to add to your search, use the Organism Classifiers Search Aid. You can access it from the General Search or Advanced Search page. Once you are on the Search Aid screen, you can enter a word in the field provided and search for it or browse the hierarchical index of terms. The number to the right of each term is that term's biosystematic code. When you find the term you want to add to your search, simply click on the Add button to the left of the term and then click on OK.
Q: What information is in the Diseases (DS) field?
A: The Diseases (DS) field is used for all relevant diseases. This field contains the disease and the classification of the sisease (if applicable). Human, animal, and plant diseases are found in this field.
A disease is any deviation from or interruption of the normal structure or function of any part, organ, or system (or combination thereof). It may also be a morbid entity characterized usually by at least two of these criteria: recognized etiologic agent(s), identifiable group of signs and symptoms, or consistent anatomical alteration. Disease terms may include symptoms if they meet the above definition.
Terms representing normal variation in physiological or behavioral processes do not constitute diseases and are not placed within the DS Term Type.
Q: What is a CAS Registry Number®?
A: A CAS Registry Number® is a five-to-nine digit number assigned to chemicals mentioned in the source publication. Some chemicals may have multiple registry numbers.
You can perform a search on a CAS Registry Number in the "Chemical and Biochemical" field on the General Search page or by using the field tag CA on the Advanced Search page.
Q: How do I find Major Concept terms to add to my search?
A: To find a Major Concept term to add to your search, use the Major Concepts Search Aid. You can access it from the General Search or Advanced Search page. Once you're on the Search Aid screen, you can enter a word in the field provided and search for it or browse the hierarchical index of terms. When you find the term you want to add to your search, simply click on the Add button to the left of the term and then click on OK.
Q: What training is available for Biological Abstracts?
A: A range of user aids and training materials are available in the Customer Support Center on this website.
http://www.thomsonscientific.com/crc/
On site training is also available at:
http://thomsonscientific.com/crc/training/
Q: What information is in the Chemicals and Biochemicals (CH) field?
A: The Chemicals and Biochemicals (CB) field is used for all relevant terms referring to chemicals or biochemicals studied in an indexed document. CB terms are captured from the title, abstract and text of an indexing item. Up to 20 separate CB items may be created in any single indexing item. If more than 20 individual chemical or biochemical terms are provided in an indexed document, the terms are grouped into specific categories to be indexed as key terms (e.g., heavy metal, insecticide).
Q: What information is in the Gene Name (GN) field?
A: A gene name is any designation, symbol, or term representing a specific gene or gene family. The GN Term Type is used for all relevant terms referring to gene names studied in a document. This includes: gene symbols, gene families and gene clusters. Gene name terms are captured from the title, abstract and text. The term “gene” by itself or a non-specific gene description (tumor suppressor genes, early immediate genes, and candidate genes) is placed within the Chemicals and Biochemicals (CB) Term Type.
Q: What is the maximum number of records retrieved by a search?
A: Up to 100,000 records can be returned by a search. If the search retrieved more than 100,000 records, the number of results will be shown as >100,000 and only the first 100,000 records will be displayed.
Q: What is a concept code?
A: Concept codes are five-digit codes representing broad subject areas in the life sciences. A definition (concept heading) of the code follows the numeric code. You may search by code or heading.
You can perform a search on concept codes in the "Concept Code/Heading" field on the General Search page or by using the field tag CC on the Advanced Search page. Use the Concept Code Search Aid to find codes to add to your search.
Q: How can I find Concept codes to add to my search?
A: To find a concept code to add to your search, use the Concept Code Search Aid. You can access it from the General Search or Advanced Search page. Once you're on the Search Aid screen, you can enter a word in the field provided and search for it or browse an alphabetical list of headings. When you find the term you want to add to your search, simply click on the Add button to the left of the term and then click on OK.
Q: What is the BIOSIS Digital Archive for Biological Abstracts and BIOSIS Previews?
A: These new backfiles contain the digitized content of the print Biological Abstracts volumes 1-49, 1926-1968. These volumes have been digitized and re-indexed to match current BIOSIS indexing. The bibliographic data (authors, titles, source data, abstracts) found in Archive records are presented largely as published in the original print volumes.
Q: Have the abstract numbers in the print volumes been preserved in the Archive, and are they searchable?
A: Yes, they have been preserved and are searchable. The abstract number, in combination with the year of BA publication and the BA volume number is the basis of the accession number in the digitized file. For example, accession number PREV19290300006236 is abstract number 6236 from BA Volume 3, published in 1929. Accession numbers have the prefix PREV in BIOSIS Previews or BACD in Biological Abstracts. They can be searched in the Identifying Codes field.
Q: Are there any differences that may affect my search strategy when searching the Archive in conjunction with the 1969+ file?
A: For the most part, searching all date segments is seamless, but there are several points that should be considered in your search strategy.
