Biographical NotesTable of Contents
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Biographical Notes
From Describing Archives: A Content Standard:
"Record information relevant to the understanding of the life, activities, and relationships of the person or family, applying rules 2.7.12 to 2.7.21 as necessary."
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Example of a scope and content note:
Correspondence (Series I) consists of letters and related records generated by Wohl in her professional appointments at Boston Children’s Hospital, her professional service, and her writing and publishing activities. (Mary Ellen Wohl papers, processed by Rebecca Thayer)
Example of a biographical note:
Wohl joined Children’s Hospital (now Boston Children’s Hospital) in 1962 as a Fellow in Medicine. She also had a research fellowship in physiology at the Harvard School of Public Health (now Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health), Boston, Massachusetts from 1962 to 1965. She joined Harvard Medical School in 1965 as an Instructor in Pediatrics, ultimately becoming Professor of Pediatrics in 1992. Wohl served at Children’s Hospital in various capacities, notably Associate in the Pulmonary Laboratory from 1965 to 1978, Director of the Cystic Fibrosis Program from 1985 to 2002, and Chief of Division of Respiratory Diseases from 1980 to 2002. She became Division Chief, Emerita in 2002. The same year, she became Associate Director of the General Clinical Research Center at Children’s Hospital. (Mary Ellen Wohl papers, processed by Rebecca Thayer)
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For the scope and content, employ the formatting described below (DACS 3.1):
Paragraph 1
This paragraph should correspond to MARC 520, the nutshell summary of collection contents.
Examples:
- The David G. Nathan papers, 1949-2007 (inclusive), 1980-2007 (bulk), are a product of Nathan’s professional appointments at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Children’s Hospital Boston, and Harvard Medical School, his involvement in professional societies and committees, and his research and publishing activities.
- The Frederick P. Li papers, 1961-2016 (inclusive), are the product of Li’s research and professional activities during his education and career at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute as Head of the Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Control, the Harvard School of Public Heath as Professor of Clinical Cancer Epidemiology, and the National Cancer Institute as Head of the Clinical Studies Section of the Clinical Epidemiology Branch.
For a Level 1 finding aid, this nutshell summary can, with the addition of a very brief description of the record formats and topics (or, in some cases, of a single item), constitute the entire scope and content note.
Examples:
- Mary Searle Cummings World War I scrapbooks: Consists of two scrapbooks created by Mary Searle Cummings representing her service as a nurse with the Harvard Unit in England and France during World War I. Scrapbooks include photographs, travel documents, greeting cards and other ephemera, newspapers and other print publications.
- Mark Clement draft writing titled “The Medical Treatment of Cancer: Introduction”: Consists of a typed draft of The Medical Treatment of Cancer: Introduction, written by Mark Clement on 06 November 1937 in Hampstead, London, England. The manuscript describes the problem of cancer and the available treatments, and proposes dietary and medical treatments. The rest of the work is outlined following the Introduction
- Herman M. Kalckar papers: Collection consists of a folder of material related to Herman M. Kalckar's work on an international milk teeth radiation census, described in his article, "An International Milk Teeth Radiation Census" (Nature, August 1958 (182, pp. 283-284)). Collection contains reprinted publications, reports, unpublished manuscripts, correspondence, and one human tooth.
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2 and additional paragraphs, should serve to expand upon the summary as needed. They should address the following:
How records were created/what they are a product of
Examples:
- The Augustus A. White papers, 1951-2010, are the product of White's activities as an orthopedic surgeon, Harvard Medical School faculty member, and author and researcher.
- The Alan F. Guttmacher Papers are the product of Guttmacher's administrative and professional activities as the President of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, from 1962 to 1974 as well as his work in private practice and research as a family planning advocate and administrator, obstetrician, and gynecologist. The collection also contains personal and family correspondence and papers.
- The Samuel A. Levine papers, 1908-1994 and 2016-2017 (inclusive) consist primarily of papers, photographs, and film created during and after the life of cardiologist Samuel A. Levine and collected by Levine and family members, including his wife Rosalind W. Levine, son Herbert J. Levine, daughter-in-law Sandra Levine, and grandson Jonathan H. Scheff.
- The Harvard Fatigue Laboratory Records, 1916-1952 (inclusive), 1941-1947 (bulk), consist of correspondence, research records, reports, writings and publications, photographs, and filmstrips that are the product of the Lab's research and administrative activities from 1916 to 1952. The bulk of the records date from 1941 to1947, when William H. Forbes was Acting Director, and consist of research records from projects undertaken for the United States military during World War II.
The major record types found in collection starting with the “bulk” and proceeding to records that appear throughout the collection but in a lower volume. Do not mention occasional record types at the collection level, unless they are of very high researcher interest. (One exception to this practice is the presence of digital files, which should always be mentioned in the collection level scope note).
Examples:
- Bernard Lown papers: The bulk of the papers contain executive and administrative records from IPPNW created during his tenure as Co-President, and include correspondence, Executive Committee records including issues and projects records, subject resource files, meeting records, affiliates records and financial records.
- Irene Kochevar papers: The records consist primarily of grant applications to the National Institutes of Health, as well as grant applications to the United States Department of Defense and other organizations. Other record types include research notes; correspondence with scientific collaborators; correspondence with administrators; scientific images (photographs, slides, and micrographs) and figures; brochures about grant opportunities; patent applications, with related legal correspondence; photographs; and other materials.
- Maxwell Finland papers: Also included are articles, certificates, clippings, correspondence, memoranda, notes, patient records, plaques, reports, film reels, videotapes, and photographs from Finland's research concerning a range of subjects related to infectious diseases, but most often clinical evaluations of new antibiotics.
The major topics/activities/events/research addressed by the records
Examples:
- Tessa Hedley-Whyte papers: Files created for presentations, writings, and lectures focus on topics such as: cholesterol; myelin; the kidneys; infantile neuroaxonal dystrophy; cytomegalic inclusion disease; Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS); dexamethasone; pituitary adenomas; and the Epstein-Barr virus. The collection also contains data and other records of grants for the Massachusetts Alzheimer Disease Research Center, Mental Retardation and Human Development Program, the Mental Retardation Research Program, the National Institutes of Health, and the National Multiple Sclerosis Societyon topics such as: Alzheimer's disease; myelin; cholesterol; the blood brain barrier; strokes; and diabetes.
- Fredrick Stare papers: Frequent topics reflected in the collection include: nutrition education; nutrition labeling and consumer information; nutrition misinformation and quackery; fad diets; food groups and balanced nutrition; various food components, including fat, sugar, and protein; food irradiation; food additives and fortification; pesticides and organic foods; vitamins; "health" foods and nutraceuticals; weight and weight loss; nutrition-related disease and illness; and fluoridation.
- Dept of Env. Health Sciences: Topics of the publications include asbestos exposure, design of respirators for workers in coal mining and other industries, effects of gases including carbon monoxide, and radiological health.
The scope of records/papers/collection with regards to/in context with their creator:
Example:
- The Boston Hospital for Women records include those created during the time period in which Boston Hospital for Women was a separate record keeping entity—after the merger between its parent hospitals, the Boston Lying-in Hospital and the Free Hospital for Women, in 1966, and before its full integration into the Brigham and Women’s Hospital starting in 1980.
Include straightforward descriptions of material that might be challenging or difficult for researchers to encounter. (If the content is limited to a series or file, only note at the appropriate level of description).
Example:
- James Burnett Shields papers: Please note that these diaries include offensive slurs towards African-Americans as well as to Italian Soldiers fighting in Europe.
Any notable records that are missing, and why, if known:
Example:
- Though Eisenberg was heavily involved in human rights work, especially through Physicians for Human Rights, this collection contains little documentation of her work in this area.
Use the following format: "Records [or Papers or Collection] are/is entirely in English. [Or other language statement.]"
Examples:
- Samuel Levine papers: Materials are primarily in English. There are several items in Hebrew, Spanish, and Swedish, as noted in Series I.
- Chester Pierce papers: Papers are predominantly in English. Some papers are in Spanish.
- Salpetriere Hospital records: Records are predominantly in French, with some German and English.
- Judah Folkman papers: Papers are predominately in English. Occasional scientific paper reprints and newspaper clippings are in French, German, Italian, Japanese, and Russian.
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