The National Library of China (NLC) has gained access to the Cambridge Journals Digital Archive (CJDA) Complete Collection.
The complete CJDA comprises 207 journals published from 1770 to 2010 and will provide substantial support to research institutes and universities throughout China.
The broad subject areas within the archive were an important factor for the NLC, as the collection contains wide ranging research within the humanities, social sciences, mathematics and physics subject areas.
The quality of the research available within the collection was also a significant factor in the decision, as the archives continue to have high academic value.
For scientific and technical journals such as the Journal of Fluid Mechanics, theJournal of Materials Research, and the Journal of Agricultural Science, many articles of historical importance are still cited by academics, professors and deans at top universities in China. For example the article ‘Does the chimpanzee have a theory of mind?’, published in the first volume of Behavioral and Brain Sciences in 1978, was cited an astonishing 69 times in 2011, accounting for over 10% of its overall citations by March 2012.
Many leading librarians and scholars supported the acquisition, with specific recommendations being submitted to the NLC from over a dozen chief librarians and deans.
Peter Philips, Chief Executive of Cambridge University Press, said: “This deal is important because it will save money for many universities, and it will provide researchers in China with access to some of the best academic research available anywhere in the world.”
Li Chen, Deputy Chief Librarian of the NLC, said: “The NLC recognizes that Cambridge University Press is a not-for-profit organization and appreciates its efforts in providing quality academic resources to the world.
One of the missions of the NLC is the collection and preservation of foreign publications, especially in humanities and social sciences, and providing such information to the public. The quality of the academic resources provided by Cambridge University Press conforms to the key collection criteria of the NLC. We believe this agreement will not only deepen the cooperation between Cambridge University Press and the NLC, but will also greatly benefit teaching and research in China.”
Cambridge University Press and the National Library of China are now due to hold joint seminars on using the archive for regional libraries and universities in several major provincial capitals in China.
