Some Implications for Library Management of Scattering and Obsolesence. University of Lancaster Library Occasional Papers, No. 1.

A research project is being conducted to construct a mathematical model of the operations of an academic library to be used in making managerial decisions. As part of this project, this report examines Bradford's Law of Scattering and the fall-off of use of documents as they age. A series of mathematical analyses indicate how these two laws can be used together to indicate optimal decisions in the management of collections of journals. These decisions include the number of titles to be taken, the length of time retained, and the choice of binding policies. Imaginary petroleum libraries in various circumstances are used to illustrate the conclusions. (Author/JB)