A Practical Introduction to Non-Bibliographic Database Searching.

This guide comprises four reports on the Laboratory Animal Data Bank (LADB), the National Institute of Health Environmental Protection Agency (NIH/EPA) Chemical Information System (CIS), nonbibliographic databases for the social sciences, and the Toxicology Data Bank (TDB) and Registry of Toxic Effects of Chemical Substances (RTECS). The first report describes LADB, which is designed to provide animal scientists with information on different species and strains of laboratory animals. Four annotated search examples demonstrate particular LADB features in the recall or manipulation of data. The second paper examines major files available on the NIH/EPA CIS system, which is used to identify chemical compounds and obtain information on their toxic effects. Explanations of system commands, specific search examples, and a complete list of CIS files are provided. Focusing on nonbibliographic databases which provide business, industrial, and economic information, the third report discusses Disclosure, the Economic Information Systems (EIC) files, and the Predicasts Terminal System (PTS) family of statistical databases. Two search examples are given for each file group. The final paper compares TDB and RTECS, both of which provide chemical toxicity data. Examples of a chemical unit record and three sample searches are presented for each of the two databases. (ESR)