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As Phase IV of a comprehensive evaluation of the NASA-affiliated Langley Research Center's (LaRC) scientific and technical information (STI) program, a study was conducted to assess the usage, importance, and perceived quality of Langley-generated STI among academic and industrial research personnel, and to determine ways in which that information could be made more accessible to potential users. To obtain feedback on the STI program's effectiveness, a survey questionnaire prepared jointly by the evaluation project director and Continental Research was sent to 497 academic and industrial engineers and scientists who agreed to participate in the study. Of these, 381 returned the questionnaires by the deadline, computer tabulations were performed, and the responses were summarized. Analysis of the data revealed that NASA STI was important to the research conducted by the majority of the survey respondents, although a significant lack of familiarity with selected NASA STI products and services among the survey population was indicated. Survey data are categorized by topic and presented in 13 tables. Included are recommendations, a reference list and six appendices, among which are the project plan for the review of LaRC STI services and a copy of the survey instrument. (Author/JL)

1Boy Crusoe

By Allan Eric

Also published as" A Yankee Crusoe" . A 15 year old hard working and studious farm boy finds the lure of adventure on the seas as a merchant seaman more than he can resist. This is his story. " I was born in a little town in the State of Maine, near the close of the Civil War. My boyhood life did not differ materially from that of the average farmer's son in the remote country districts of New England--except, perhaps, that I read more and thought more. Hard work on the rugged soil, two terms each year in the little yellow country schoolhouse, a day's fishing now and then filled the early years of my life full to over-flowing. " What he gets is enough excitement and adventure to overflow his wildest dreams. How he experiences disaster and uses his wits and knowledge to overcome every problem makes for a great read. - Summary by Phil Chenevert