Arranging Key Documentation Books by Publication Date

The question asks us to arrange four important books in the field of documentation in reverse chronological order based on their publication dates. Reverse chronological order means listing the most recently published item first and the oldest item last.

To solve this, we first need to identify the publication year for each of the listed documents:

1. A. Documentation and its Facets by S R Ranganathan
2. B. Documentation by S C Bradford
3. C. Traite de Documentation by Paul Otlet
4. D. Documentation and Organization of Knowledge by J H Shera

Determining Publication Years of Documentation Works

Let's find the publication year for each of these foundational texts on documentation:

• C. Traite de Documentation by Paul Otlet was published in 1934. Paul Otlet is considered one of the pioneers of documentation.
• B. Documentation by S C Bradford was published in 1948. Bradford significantly contributed to the understanding of documentation and scientific information flow.
• A. Documentation and its Facets by S R Ranganathan was published in 1963. Ranganathan, known as the father of library science in India, also made significant contributions to documentation theory.
• D. Documentation and Organization of Knowledge by J H Shera was published in 1966. Jesse Shera was a prominent American library scientist and educator who wrote extensively on the theoretical basis of documentation and information science.

We can summarize these publication dates in a table for clarity:

Arranging in Reverse Chronological Order

Reverse chronological order means listing from the newest publication to the oldest. Based on the publication years (1966, 1963, 1948, 1934), the order from most recent to oldest is:

1. 1966: D. Documentation and Organization of Knowledge by J H Shera
2. 1963: A. Documentation and its Facets by S R Ranganathan
3. 1948: B. Documentation by S C Bradford
4. 1934: C. Traite de Documentation by Paul Otlet

Thus, the correct reverse chronological order is D, A, B, C.

Comparing with Options

Let's check the given options against our determined order (D, A, B, C):

• Option 1: B, A, D, C (1948, 1963, 1966, 1934) - Incorrect order.
• Option 2: A, B, C, D (1963, 1948, 1934, 1966) - Incorrect order.
• Option 3: D, A, B, C (1966, 1963, 1948, 1934) - Correct order.
• Option 4: C, B, A, D (1934, 1948, 1963, 1966) - This is chronological order, not reverse chronological.

The arrangement D, A, B, C correctly represents the books in reverse chronological order of their publication.

Revision Table: Documentation Publication Dates

Additional Information on Documentation Pioneers

These authors are pivotal figures in the history and development of documentation and early information science. Their works laid the groundwork for modern library and information services.

• Paul Otlet: A Belgian lawyer and bibliographer, often called the "father of documentation". His work on the Universal Decimal Classification (UDC) and the Mundaneum project aimed to collect and organize all world knowledge. His Traite de Documentation is a foundational text defining the field.
• S C Bradford: An English librarian known for Bradford's Law of Scattering, which describes how articles on a subject are scattered across journals. His book Documentation is based on lectures given at the University of London.
• S R Ranganathan: An Indian mathematician and librarian, his Five Laws of Library Science are fundamental principles. He developed the Colon Classification system. His book Documentation and its Facets explores various aspects of documentation work.
• J H Shera: An American library scientist and educator. His work often focused on the theoretical underpinnings of library science and documentation, emphasizing the social epistemology aspect – how knowledge is created, communicated, and used in society. His book Documentation and Organization of Knowledge reflects these interests.

Understanding the chronology of these publications helps trace the evolution of thought in documentation from its early conceptualization to its development as a formal discipline connected to knowledge organization.