The Library for Natural Science of the Russian Academy of Sciences embraces publications from the Library of German Chemical Society (Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker). The Library was established all at the same time as the Society, in 1867. The outstanding collection of chemical literature was being developed over decades. The Library was receiving books and journals from Russia owing to close ties between Russian, Soviet and German colleagues. By the beginning of the World War II, the collection comprised 300 periodical titles, along with monographs, reference books, dissertations and chemical patents. After the war, the library was displaced to the USSR and transferred to the special libraries of the Academy’s of Sciences institutions. In 1956, the monographs were returned to the Society in the Federal Republic of Germany. Today, they are deposited in Humboldt University in Berlin. The periodicals are stored in the RAS Library for Natural Sciences. The publications have played significant role in Soviet chemistry information support and are still relevant. The favorable storage environment is maintained.

The author reviews the All-Russia Scientific Conference “The Seventh Grot Readings” held at Samara Regional Universal Scientific Library on November 17–18, 2022. Researchers of Ac. S. P. Korolev Samara National Research University acted as co-organizers and enthusiastic participants of the conference. The author discusses in brief the history of the Grot Readings and reviews the key topics. Since the first conference in 2008, it has become the significant event for Samara Region. It is to promote historical, local, philological, library and bibliographical studies and to maintain scientific communication within the country. In 2022, researchers and specialists from 22 Russian regions attended the conference. Three Sections of the Seventh Grot Readings are discussed, namely: History of Russia in 19-th–21-st centuries, History and Contemporaneity in Literature, and Book Culture, along with the key topics of the papers presented at each of the sections. The author analyzes the development of Grot Readings as a scientific research site and its potential for Samara Regional Universal Scientific Library and Samara Region, on the whole.

The author explores the array of doctoral dissertations in the area of forest engineering, forestry technologies and machines, submitted in the period of 1955-2022 (190 dissertations). The bibliometrical analysis enabled to specify 5 time periods differing in their dynamics (1955–1962; 1963–1970; 1971–1989; 1990–1999; 2000–2022). Before 1993, there were two defense hubs, namely Moscow and Leningrad (now St. Petersburg); after 1993, regional hubs emerged. In 1993-2022, 68% dissertations were defended in the regions outside Moscow and St. Petersburg; 14% dissertations were defended in two disciplines. On average, 16 years were passing between scientist’s candidate and doctoral dissertations, however, since 1994, this difference may make less than 10 years — 24% papers in 2009–2022. In 1955—1982, the keywords “study”, “problems”, “basics” dominated in the titles, and since 1986 – “feasibility”, “increase”, and “improvement”. After 2006–2008, the number of titles including “feasibility” decreased, and the word combination “refining the theory (method)” became popular. Since 1986, the vector of studies changed from process and system studies toward their modernization and enhancement. Through classification by the research subject, 42 topical areas were specified, and then divided into two groups. Within the group one, the papers can be bundled (over 3 dissertations) and make subject fields where their own systematization is possible. In the group two, the dissertations make the individual studies (103 papers) that can hardly be consolidated into the array. Within several topical fields, the cyclicism is observed — the dissertations are defended regularly. The content analysis of dissertation titles coupled with bibliometrical methods, reveals the more regular pattern within the individual specialty. The obtained findings will be demanded by researchers and professionals engaged in scientometrical and bibliometrical research.

The purpose of the article is to analyze the ratio of charged and free services provided by central libraries of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation (i. e. republican, territorial and regional libraries). The problem of library charged user services is examined through the optics of professional library community and the government. The authors attempt to expand theoretical foundations of library services with the new ideas of national economists focusing on the humanitarian sector and, in particular, those developing the theory of patronized goods. The theoretical analysis is complemented with the large-scale empirical study of services presented at the official websites of 77 central libraries in the RF constituent entities. The findings demonstrate that the charged services dominate while the share of free services has drastically decreased. The charged services in these libraries exceed the free ones by a factor 8.4. The authors conclude that massive and mechanistic implementation of charged services is a dangerous challenge for the libraries as it exposes them to a risk of abandoning the principle of common availability of libraries and, in long run, of users exodus.

Purpose. The authors analyze the trends in the national flow of book publications in science for the period 2012–2021 and its impact upon scientific library collections.

Sources and methods. The study is based on the statistical data of large information systems, i.e. the Russian Book Chamber and scientific electronic library eLibrary.ru), and State Public Scientific and Technological Library of the Russian Academy Siberian Branch (RAS SB SPSTL). The data of the Higher School of Economics characterize scientific focuses of Russian researchers.

Findings and conclusions. The data on the flow of scientific book publications were analyzed to confirm that after 2014, the volume of science publications has been continuously decreasing. It is especially true for academic book publishing. The trend for a disproportion in the discipline structure of scientific book flow, and for scattering information on scientific book publications, is revealed. It is due to the lack of coordination between scientific content creators and institutions intended to acquire complete data on scientific document flow. Science information support and knowledge generation require special infrastructure necessarily embracing scientific and academic libraries.

The open science initiatives, growing number of open resources (digital collections, institutional repositories, open educational resources, scientific data, etc.), changing user information needs and preferences hang like a sword of Damocles over the libraries and threaten with the absence of demand for science and education support. The purpose of the study is to identify librarians’ awareness of the world open access resources (OAR) and their role in developing library and information products and services. The author analyzes OAR structure, Russian librarians’ awareness of 50 largest OAR structured by document type (books and articles, dissertation, preprints, data sets, learning materials, patents and standards, encyclopedias and dictionaries, scientific information retrieval systems). She also emphasizes the problems of mastering global OAR by Russian academic librarians, their interest toward practical use of OAR in library and information user services. The findings of the study demonstrate the possibility for the libraries to build their value in the market of information OAR and to become essential part of the modern science information ecosystem, to assist in managing scientific content and document retrieval, and to provide subject-oriented teaching and consulting of users.

The author discusses use of cognitive management in libraries and examines the possibilities of artificial intellect (AI) technologies for library and information processes (LIP). The systemic functional method is used for the analysis. The article is based on the research work in the area of libraries digital transformation and will be of interest to library managers. The author examines the key vectors of cognitive management: а) library collection management and preservation; b) library bibliographic user services; and c) research in libraries. These vectors correspond to the LIP functions as fixed in the professional standard “Specialists in library information work”. The author characterizes in brief the potential problems, risks and regional specifics of AI application in public libraries. Library managers have to be aware of the problems and to make AI systems implementation effective and ethical. AI may revolutionize the libraries and their user services. Meanwhile, the consequences of such implementation have to be analyzed: algorithm accuracy and reliability, possible bias, as well as the impact it may have on the library personnel.