In almost every profession a few publications continuously lead the way in providing the most useful and comprehensive picture of the field. ARIST is just such a publication, providing an annual source of ideas, trends and references to the literature of the information science field. The reader is able to survey the broad panorama of information activities at various levels and in a variety of circumstances with a thoroughness that would be impossible through individual research alone. The ever-increasing profusion of published literature underscores the importance of this periodic report on the state of information science. The Annual Review of Information Science and Technology is published by Elsevier Science Publishers on behalf of the American Society for Information Science. Professor Williams has served as editor since Volume 11 (1976). She is Director of the Information Retrieval Research Laboratory and Professor of Information Science in the Coordinated Science Laboratory, at the University of Illinois, and the author or editor of many highly respected publications in the information field.