Patent Application
20140158040
None.
Not applicable
Not Applicable
This embodiment of my acronym expansion list relates to a place-marker for a book or periodical (commonly called a bookmark) generally, and to its use as a printed acronym reference guide.
Bookmarks are as old as books. They've surely been in use since the first bound documents were printed. Everyone can recall strings or fabric ribbons bound into large volumes such as the Bible, Koran or Torah, used to mark a passage of text.
Many enhancements on the simple idea of marking a place in a book have been previously patented. Patents U.S. Pat. No. 2,543,182 to Lang (1949 May 24), U.S. Pat. No. 8,307,776 to Brooks (2012 Nov. 13), U.S. Pat. No. 4,898,115 to Bowlay-Williams (1990 Feb. 6), U.S. Pat. No. 1,338,861 to Frame (1920 May 4), and U.S. Pat. No. 5,515,809 to Weinberg (1996 May 14) describe simple to elaborate means of marking not only a specific page, but also a specific line on a page. Unfortunately, their function is limited to marking a location in the text.
Additionally, patents U.S. Pat. No. 6,056,492 to Hudson (2000 Feb. 2), U.S. Pat. No. 4,614,364 to Bortner (1986 Sep. 30), U.S. Pat. No. 5,713,606 to Kleinberg et al (1998 Feb. 3) and U.S. Pat. No. 2,590,615 to Heckendorn (1952 Mar. 25) are examples of detachable bookmarks. In these previous embodiments the bookmark is incorporated into the jacket or binding of a book, is detachable by the end user and has the added utility of providing coupons, special offers or contact information possibly of interest to the book reader. These previous patents attempt to increase the utility of a simple bookmark by addressing practical needs beyond simply marking a page. However, none of them addresses a specific need experienced by many readers; referencing the meaning of an acronym encountered in a document being read.
Consider the challenge for an individual reading a technical, legal or scientific document if the reader is not an expert in the field being discussed. The number of new terms presented, and the particular usage of common terms in the specialized context of a complex subject can be overwhelming. Despite these problems, acronyms are essential mnemonic devices and need to be more fully utilized but become a particular challenge when encountered in great number.
Especially challenging are the acronyms that are prevalent in many technical documents. Most writers of non-fiction use acronyms; they practice “acronymity”. After birthing their literary offspring, they often leave them as orphans. The reader may remember the acronym upon first introduction, but upon subsequent readings may find herself searching in the index; a needless waste of time.
An additional problem is presented by acronyms adopted from a foreign language. The letters of the acronym may not directly correspond to the initial letters of the phrase the acronym represents. An example would be the Spanish acronym FARC. Though commonly referred to in English as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, FARC represents the equivalent Spanish phrase Fuerzas Armadas Revoluciones de Colombia, a famous or perhaps infamous organization. Similarly, PRI represents the Spanish phrase Partido Revolucionario Institucional, but commonly referred to in English as the Institutional Revolutionary Party.
My embodiment is directed at providing a new additional use for the common bookmark by making it also a quickly accessible reference guide. It is a pre-printed acronym expansion list, more particularly described as an alphabetical listing of acronyms used within a particular printed text, a full spelling of the phrase each acronym represents and a reference to the page location of first introduction.
10 separable card
12 printed volume
14 perforations
16 area for acronyms
18 area for associated phrases
20 area for page references
22 releasable adhesive
24 printed dust jacket
26 foreign language acronym expansion
All described embodiments, as illustrated in
In operation a reader simply removes the acronym expansion list 10 from its printed volume 12 and uses it as a conventional bookmark. When the reader encounters an unfamiliar acronym in the printed volume 12 the reader may reference the acronym expansion list 10 for an acronym in question and, if desired, use the acronym expansion list 10 to mark the present reading page while turning to a referenced page.
There are various possibilities for including an acronym expansion list in a printed volume 12.
My acronym expansion list may also be printed on permanently attached pages of a printed volume 12 in addition to or in lieu of being printed on a separable card 10.
Another feature of my acronym expansion list, not illustrated in the drawing figures, is the optional use of color coding to immediately distinguish one pre-printed list of acronyms from acronym lists for other sections of the printed volume.
Readers, novices or experts of any subject, will benefit from this quick reference. For example; while it is common knowledge that DNA is our genetic stuff, biology and medical students are required to know how to spell deoxyribonucleic acid; they will also have to remember acronyms for the base pairs AT and GC (adenosine—thymine and guanine—cytosine) that form the double helix. My embodiment, which I have trademarked, will be a boon to students.
My acronym expansion list may be embodied in other forms without departing from the spirit or essential attributes thereof. Accordingly, reference should be made to the following claims, rather than to the foregoing specification, as indicating the scope of the invention.
