Analyzing criteria for selecting data intended for long-term preservation at the scientific library

The spiraling information flows and information preservation demand indepth analysis of criteria to separate valuable data from those with no value, to determine preservation time, and to identify the entries. The purpose of the study is to explore into the selection criteria and to specify those necessary and sufficient to be used by scientific libraries to evaluate and differentiate incoming information. Based on the analysis, the author specifies the criteria for scientific data acquisition and evaluation in the context of time and format diversity; the criteria were grouped based on utilization: for resource selection, data evaluation and inclusion into the database to be stored. The procedures for each criteria and related librarian competences are reviewed. The author specifies the criteria most relevant to scientific literature selection (scientific/historical value, legal assessment) and the secondary ones (completeness, duplication, etc.). The related librarian competences are identified. The author also examines challenges that hinder application of individual criteria and proposes the solutions.The study findings can be useful for librarians, archivists, and information specialists to acquire and analyze the data for further digital preservation.The study is completed within the Library’s for Natural Sciences of the Russian Academy of Sciences R&D project “Improvement of methods of long-term preservation of scientific information as the basis of knowledge in the natural sciences”.