Kenneth F. Kister (born November 3, 1935) is an academic, professor of

library science Library science (often termed library studies, bibliothecography, and library economy) is an interdisciplinary or multidisciplinary field that applies the practices, perspectives, and tools of management, information technology, education, and ...

and authority in the field of reference and information sources.http://lmri.ucsb.edu/pipermail/reformanet/2004-April/012158.html, available on

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

: https://web.archive.org/web/20060919200833/http://lists.isber.ucsb.edu/pipermail/reformanet/2004-April/012158.html

Career

As an academic he taught in the 1960s on "Intellectual Freedom and Censorship". As an author, he edited ''Kister's Best Encyclopedias'' and ''Kister's Best Dictionaries'', and has written on the history of librarianship. He is also the biographer of influential librarian and editor

Eric Moon Eric Edward Moon (6 March 1923 – 31 July 2016) was a librarian and editor who had a shaping influence on American librarianship in the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s as editor-in-chief of ''Library Journal'', president of the American Librar ...

Encyclopedias

Kister in 1994 gave a qualitative and quantitative comparison of ''

Collier's Encyclopedia ''Collier's Encyclopedia'' is a discontinued general encyclopedia first published in 1949 by P. F. Collier and Son in the United States. With ''Encyclopedia Americana'' and ''Encyclopædia Britannica, Collier's Encyclopedia'' became one of the th ...

'' with two comparable encyclopaedias, ''

Encyclopædia Britannica The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various time ...

'' and the ''

Encyclopedia Americana ''Encyclopedia Americana'' is a general encyclopedia written in American English. It was the first major multivolume encyclopedia that was published in the United States. With ''Collier's Encyclopedia'' and ''Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclo ...

''. For the ''quantitative'' analysis, ten articles were selected at random (

circumcision Circumcision is a surgical procedure, procedure that removes the foreskin from the human penis. In the most common form of the operation, the foreskin is extended with forceps, then a circumcision device may be placed, after which the foreskin ...

Charles Drew Charles Drew may refer to: * Charles R. Drew (1904–1950), American physician, surgeon, and medical researcher * Charles Drew (cricketer) (1888–1960), Australian cricketer * Charles Drew (surgeon) (1916–1987), cardiothoracic surgeon * Charles ...

Galileo Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei (15 February 1564 – 8 January 1642) was an Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer, sometimes described as a polymath. Commonly referred to as Galileo, his name was pronounced (, ). He was ...

Philip Glass Philip Glass (born January 31, 1937) is an American composer and pianist. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential composers of the late 20th century. Glass's work has been associated with minimal music, minimalism, being built up fr ...

heart disease Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels. CVD includes coronary artery diseases (CAD) such as angina and myocardial infarction (commonly known as a heart attack). Other CVDs include stroke, hea ...

, IQ,

panda bear The giant panda (''Ailuropoda melanoleuca''), also known as the panda bear (or simply the panda), is a bear species endemic to China. It is characterised by its bold black-and-white coat and rotund body. The name "giant panda" is sometimes ...

sexual harassment Sexual harassment is a type of harassment involving the use of explicit or implicit sexual overtones, including the unwelcome and inappropriate promises of rewards in exchange for sexual favors. Sexual harassment includes a range of actions fro ...

Shroud of Turin The Shroud of Turin ( it, Sindone di Torino), also known as the Holy Shroud ( it, Sacra Sindone, links=no or ), is a length of linen cloth bearing the negative image of a man. Some describe the image as depicting Jesus of Nazareth and bel ...

and

Uzbekistan Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked cou ...

) and letter grades (A–D, F) were awarded in four categories: coverage, accuracy, clarity, and recency. In all four categories and for all three encyclopaedias, the four average grades fell between B− and B+, chiefly because not one encyclopaedia had an article on

in 1994. In the accuracy category, ''Collier's'' received one ''D'' and seven ''A''s. ''Encyclopedia Americana'' received eight ''A''s, and the ''Britannica'' received one ''D'' and eight ''A''s; thus, ''Collier's'' received an average score of 92% for accuracy to ''Americana'''s 95% and ''Britannica''’s 92%. In the timeliness category, ''Collier's'' averaged an 85% to ''Americana'' 90% and ''Britannica''’ 86%. After a more thorough ''qualitative'' comparison of all three encyclopedias, Kister recommended ''Collier's Encyclopedia'' primarily on the strength of its writing, presentation and navigation.

Books

* ''Kister's Atlas Buying Guide: General English-Language World Atlases Available in North America.'' Phoenix: The Oryx Press, 1984. * ''Kister's Best Dictionaries for Adults & Young People: A Comparative Guide.'' Phoenix: The Oryx Press, 1992. * ''Kister's Best Encyclopedias: A Comparative Guide to General and Specialized Encyclopedias,'' Second Edition. Phoenix: The Oryx Press, 1994. :"in-depth evaluations of 77 general encyclopedias, including electronic products; reviews of some 800 subject-specific encyclopedias (covering 29 subjects); and reviews of 44 foreign language encyclopedias covering nine languages." * ''Eric Moon: The Life and Library Times.'' Jefferson: McFarland & Company, Inc., 2002. :"..well written, impeccably documented, and extensively indexed. It should be in the collections of academic libraries throughout the United States and the United Kingdom, particularly those serving institutions with graduate programs in library and information science." * ''Florida on the Boil: Recommended Novels and Short-Story Collections Set in the Sunshine State.'' Philadelphia: Xlibris, 2007.

References

1935 births Living people American librarians American biographers {{Library-bio-stub