JSTOR facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
JSTOR

Type of site	Digital library
Available in	English (includes content in other languages)
Owner	Ithaka Harbors, Inc.
Created by	Andrew W. Mellon Foundation
Founder(s)	William G. Bowen
Registration	Yes
Launched	1994; 31 years ago (1994)
Current status	Active
OCLC number	46609535

JSTOR (pronounced JAY-stor) is an online library. It holds many academic journals, books, and old documents. It started in 1994. At first, it had digital copies of old academic journals. Now, it also has books, other original documents, and newer journal issues. These cover subjects like history, literature, and social studies. You can search through almost 2,000 journals. Most people access JSTOR by paying a subscription. However, some parts are free to the public. JSTOR is part of a non-profit group called Ithaka Harbors, Inc.. This group helps universities and researchers use technology.

How JSTOR Started

JSTOR was created in 1994 by William G. Bowen. He used to be the president of Princeton University. Libraries, especially university libraries, had a big problem. They had too many academic journals. It was very expensive and took up too much space to keep all the paper copies.

JSTOR offered a solution. By turning many journals into digital files, libraries could save space. They knew the journals would still be available online for a long time. It also made it much easier to find information. People could search for words in the articles using a computer.

At first, Mr. Bowen thought about using CD-ROMs to share the information. But Ira Fuchs, a computer expert at Princeton, suggested using computer networks instead. This way, more people could access the information easily. JSTOR began in 1995 at seven libraries. It started with ten journals about economics and history.

JSTOR got better based on what early users said. Soon, you could search everything using a regular web browser. Special software made sure pictures and graphs looked clear.

Expanding JSTOR's Collection

After its first success, Mr. Bowen and his team wanted to add more journals. They worked with the Royal Society of London. They agreed to digitize the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society. This is a very old science journal, going all the way back to 1665! All these old volumes were added to JSTOR by 2000.

In 1999, JSTOR partnered with a group called Jisc in the UK. They made a copy of the JSTOR database at the University of Manchester. This allowed over 20 universities in the UK to access JSTOR.

The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation provided money to start JSTOR. Until 2009, JSTOR was its own non-profit organization. Then, it joined with Ithaka Harbors, Inc.. This group helps the academic world use new technology. In 2019, JSTOR made about $79 million.

What You Can Find on JSTOR

More than 900 publishers provide content to JSTOR. The database has over 12 million journal articles. These articles cover more than 75 different subjects. Each item has a special number that helps create a unique web address for it.

JSTOR also has a special service called Data for Research. This allows researchers to study the words and phrases used in the articles. They can get information about how often words appear. This helps them analyze large amounts of text.

There's also a special part called JSTOR Plant Science. This section is for people who study plants. It has information about plant specimens, scientific names, and related research. This content comes from a project called the Global Plants Initiative.

In 2012, JSTOR started adding books. They added 15,000 new and older books to their site. These books are linked to reviews and mentions in journal articles.

In 2014, JSTOR launched JSTOR Daily. This is an online magazine. It helps share academic research with more people. Its articles often explain the background of current events using JSTOR's content.

Special Collections

Reveal Digital is a collection hosted by JSTOR. It includes documents from groups that were often overlooked in the 20th century. This content is free to access. It includes things like zines (small, self-published magazines), prison newspapers, and documents from student movements.

How to Access JSTOR

JSTOR is mainly used by universities, public libraries, research centers, museums, and schools. Over 7,000 institutions in more than 150 countries have access. JSTOR also has a program that lets subscribing institutions give access to their former students. This program officially started in 2013. You can also buy individual subscriptions to some journals directly from the publisher.

People have asked if JSTOR could be made completely free for everyone. One estimate suggested it would cost about $250 million to do this.

The Aaron Swartz Incident

In late 2010 and early 2011, a computer programmer named Aaron Swartz used MIT's computer network. He downloaded a very large number of articles from JSTOR's collection. When JSTOR found out, they stopped the download.

Later, in 2011, government authorities charged Mr. Swartz with crimes related to data theft. They said he planned to share the papers online for free. Mr. Swartz said he was not guilty. The case was still ongoing when he passed away in January 2013.

Understanding Limitations

Most journals on JSTOR have a "moving wall." This means there's a delay between the newest issue of a journal and the latest issue available on JSTOR. This delay is usually three to five years. It's an agreement between JSTOR and the journal's publisher. Publishers can ask to change this delay or stop having their journals on JSTOR.

Since 2010, JSTOR has started adding current issues of some journals through its Current Scholarship Program.

Making More Content Free

Starting in September 2011, JSTOR made some of its older content free to the public. This "Early Journal Content" program includes over 500,000 documents. These are from more than 200 journals published before 1923 in the United States, and before 1870 in other countries. JSTOR had been working on this for some time.

In January 2012, JSTOR started a program called "Register & Read." This allows individuals to register for free and read a limited number of archived articles. After a trial period, in January 2013, JSTOR expanded this program. Now, registered readers can read up to six articles online each month. However, they cannot print or download the articles.

By 2013, over 8,000 institutions in more than 160 countries had access to JSTOR.

As of 2014, JSTOR has a special program with Wikipedia. This program gives established Wikipedia editors reading access to JSTOR, similar to a university library.

How JSTOR Is Used

In 2012, people used JSTOR for almost 152 million searches. They viewed over 113 million articles and downloaded 73.5 million articles. Researchers use JSTOR to study how language changes over time. They also use it to look at differences in academic publishing, like how often men and women are listed as authors.

See also

In Spanish: JSTOR para niños