RYAN PLATTS – 12253388 – ryan.platts@ucdconnect.ie
REFERENCE QUESTION 3: REPORT
The reference question for this client was "I need a specific, peer-reviewed article about
seismic activity on the Kliuchevskoi volcano on Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula in the early
1980s. I've been told that this article is in English and was written by the current seismology
specialist at the Volcanology Institute in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Russia. I think the
expert's name may be Tukarov." The subject matter and the specific information needed are
already provided. The student knows which article they need. This makes the question similar
to a ‘physical’ or ‘material’ question because it is a request for a specific item. This limited the
need to peruse multiple documents, but it did increase the likelihood of not finding the specific
source.
The article the client asked for is the following: Tokarev, P. I. (1985). Prediction of lateral
eruption of Klyuchevskoy volcano in March 1983. Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal
Research, 25(1-2), 173-180.
The article I found which lead to finding the requested article was the following: Gorelchik,
Valentina I. (1989). Seismological study of the Kliuchevskoi flank eruption of 1983. Journal of
Volcanology and Geothermal Research 38(3-4), 269-280.
I decided to run a preliminary search online to refine my eventual hard-copy search.
I was unsure of the accuracy of the information given in the question, particularly the author’s
name, as the client did not seem confident of accuracy. I ran a search on ProQuest in the
Sciences databases section for “Kliuchevskoi seismology”, intentionally avoiding reference to
the author or the Institute. This gave me the Gorelchik article. The accompanying information
linked her to the Volcanology Institute, so I decided to find a print copy in the Science,
Agriculture and Engineering Journals section of UCD Library. I did not feel confident that this
source was the correct one, however, the author’s name being very different to the client’s
suggestion. Word of mouth then indicated that “Kliuchevsko” could be spelled differently.
Accordingly I found the alternative spelling “Klyuchevskoy” and decided to search for the
term within the ProQuest database of the Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research
(the journal which the Gorelchik article was featured in), in which I found the Tokarev article. I
then realised that this was the article required
The best source for answering this question would have been the ProQuest database and a
dictionary of Russian linguistic and grammatical conventions. This would have provided
reliable evidence for the possibility and the likelihood of different spellings which was the key
element in eventually finding the source.
The success of the search hinged on word of mouth, which is by no means reliable. In future I
would need to source reliable information for all aspects of the search process. The success of
this search was more a question of luck than of strategy, which is unacceptable and should be
rectified in future.
To the client I would advise that both the intended Tokarev article and the Gorelchik article
may be of use and worth perusing. In future I would suggest being aware of the possibility of
different conventions and translations when dealing with unfamiliar or foreign languages. I
would also caution against accepting the assumption of accuracy when receiving information.
RYAN PLATTS – 12253388 – ryan.platts@ucdconnect.ie
APPENDIX – Sources
TOKAREV:
RYAN PLATTS – 12253388 – ryan.platts@ucdconnect.ie
GORELCHIK:
RYAN PLATTS – 12253388 – ryan.platts@ucdconnect.ie
BIBLIOGRAPHY
RYAN PLATTS – 12253388 – ryan.platts@ucdconnect.ie
Gorelchik, Valentina I. (1989). Seismological study of the Kliuchevskoi flank eruption of
1983. Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research 38(3-4), 269-280.
Tokarev, P. I. (1985). Prediction of lateral eruption of Klyuchevskoy volcano in March 1983.
Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, 25(1-2), 173-180.