The Conference on the History and Heritage of Science Information Systems offers a unique occasion to explore the nature, development, and influence of all types of science information systems worldwide. Co-sponsored by the Chemical Heritage Foundation of Philadelphia, the American Society for Information Science (ASIS), the ASIS SIG History and Foundations of Information Science (SIG/HFIS), the University of Pittsburgh School of Information Science, and the International Federation for Information and Documentation, the conference will bring together historians of science and technology, and historians and key pioneers in information science. This conference will provide an unparalleled opportunity for these scholars and pioneers to interact.

Presentations by leading historians, information specialists, and other renowned professionals will set the stage for analytical assessments of specific products, programs, policies, and issues in scientific information systems.

The seed for this innovative conference was planted in 1996 when Eugene Garfield, founder and chairman emeritus of the Institute for Scientific Information, established the Garfield Fellowship in the History of Science Information through the Chemical Heritage Foundation. Garfield's objectives for establishing the fellowship were to develop public awareness of the importance of scientific information and to draw the attention of professional information scientists to the rich heritage of their field.

During 1997 Robert V. Williams, the first Garfield Fellow, conducted oral history interviews with pioneers of information science, developed a chronology of chemical information, and gathered ideas for the conference. The rationale for the conference was strengthened by the many ASIS activities that have, over the past few years, greatly increased the visibility of the history of information science.

A special thanks to the Conference Planning Committee members:

• Robert V. Williams, Committee Chair and Professor, College of Library and Information Science, University of South Carolina
• Mary Ellen Bowden, Senior Research Historian, Chemical Heritage Foundation
• Michael Buckland, President, American Society for Information Science, and Professor, School of Information Management and Systems, University of California, Berkeley
• Colin Burke, Professor, History Department, University of Maryland, Baltimore
• Toni Carbo, Dean, School of Information Sciences, University of Pittsburgh
• Irene Farkas-Conn, President, Arthur L. Conn & Associates Ltd.
• Eugene Garfield, Founder and Chairman Emeritus, Institute of Scientific Information, and President and Editor-in-Chief, The Scientist
• Trudi Bellardo Hahn, User Education Manager, User Education Services, University Libraries, University of Maryland, College Park
• Boyd Rayward, Visiting Professor, Graduate School of Library and Information Science, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• Marie Stewart, Director of External Relations, Chemical Heritage Foundation
• Arnold Thackray, President, Chemical Heritage Foundation

Conference Paper Presentation Abstracts