Established in 1947, Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) is a multi-program national laboratory operated by Brookhaven Science Associates for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Brookhaven is located on Long Island, in Upton, New York-- See a map (PDF)-- and plays a lead role in the DOE Science and Technology mission. The Laboratory's role for the DOE is to produce excellent science and advanced technology with the cooperation, support, and appropriate involvement of our scientific and local communities. Five Nobel Prizes have been awarded for discoveries made at the Lab. The fundamental elements of the Laboratory's role in support of the four DOE strategic missions are the following:

• To conceive, design, construct, and operate complex, leading edge, user-oriented facilities in response to the needs of the DOE and the international community of users.
• To carry out basic and applied research in long-term, high-risk programs at the frontier of science.
• To develop advanced technologies that address national needs and to transfer them to other organizations and to the commercial sector.
• To disseminate technical knowledge, to educate new generations of scientists and engineers, to maintain technical capabilities in the nation's workforce, and to encourage scientific awareness in the general public.

Brookhaven's Research Library serves the Laboratory's 3,000 employees including scientists, engineers, technicians and support staff; and more than 4,000 guest researchers annually. The Library's collection includes monographs, journals, e-journals and information databases that cover scientific and technical information in a diversity of disciplines. Collection development decisions are made with the recommendation and concurrence of a Research Library Advisory Committee, whose members represent the needs of the Laboratory's scientific programs.

The Research Library provides Technical Services, which include the acquisition and cataloging of all library materials for the Laboratory. The centralized acquisition of material offers Brookhaven staff the advantages of a site-wide catalog for the sharing of information resources. The centralized catalog contains records of all library materials, whether they were acquired for the Library or for use within a research program. Technical Services also acquires all serial subscriptions for the Laboratory and performs related services, such as renewals, prediction and claiming, and the negotiation of site licenses for electronic resources.

The Library's new Library System is Sirsi Unicorn. Brookhaven's transition to Unicorn, from its earlier system, Basis TechLib Plus, will be completed by the end of this year. Building on the capabilities of Unicorn, the Research Library plans to acquire additional technology to provide greater capabilities for searching of electronic resources.

The Research Library hosts a large number of students and teachers each year, in support of local and regional educational programs. We welcome visitors and users from the local community. Those wishing to visit the Library may contact us for an appointment.

(2003)