Wholly new forms of encyclopedias will appear, ready-made with a mesh of associative trails running through them, ready to be dropped into the memex and there amplified. The lawyer has at his touch the associated opinions and decisions of his whole experience, and of the experience of friends and authorities. The patent attorney has on call the millions of issued patents, with familiar trails to every point of his client's interest. The physician, puzzled by its patient's reactions, strikes the trail established in studying an earlier similar case, and runs rapidly through analogous case histories, with side references to the classics for the pertinent anatomy and histology. The chemist, struggling with the synthesis of an organic compound, has all the chemical literature before him in his laboratory, with trails following the analogies of compounds, and side trails to their physical and chemical behavior.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- New encyclopedias with associative trails will help professionals like lawyers and doctors access related records quickly. This system supports rapid comparison and reference.
- In plain terms
- Associative trails in libraries help professionals find related info fast.
- What can you take from it?
- Create associative trails to speed up professional research.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- How do you connect ideas?
- What helps you find answers?
Another view
Associative trails can be subjective and hard to standardize.
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