LibGuides: Using MathSciNet: Math Dept. Faculty Author IDs

What are Author IDs?

Uniquely Identifying Mathematical Authors in the Mathematical Reviews's Database

For each author a separate "author-individual" record is maintained in the MR Database, containing each published name variant associated with an author, institutional affiliations, mathematical subject classifications assigned to the author-individual's papers, coauthors, and references to papers indexed in the MR Database. Each record is headed by a "preferred name", which usually represents the fullest published form of an author's name that will distinguish the author-individual from others who publish using similar names; on occasion an unpublished full name is used as a preferred name if necessary to identify the author-individual uniquely.

MR's author identification employs a number of machine algorithms to compare a name string that appears on a paper, the institutional affiliation listed for the author, and the classification for the paper assigned by the MR editors against author-individuals already in the MR Database and find the best possible (ideally exact) match on all three elements. The programs are successful roughly eighty percent of the time. For the remaining twenty percent the program makes its "best guess" on a potential match to an author-individual in the database, using preset algorithms to rank possible matches. It is on this remaining twenty percent that the MR staff spends most of its time: the keyboarded name string is checked for typos or a mistaken name break; the intent of the journal in name presentation is carefully checked (journals do make errors in the presentation of first name/family name); alternate spellings are examined; bibliographies are checked for self-citations; coauthors are checked for a possible match. When all possibilities available via the paper at hand are exhausted, staff use internet and web-based tools to search for authors, e.g. searching for full names at university/department websites or for CV's with lists of publications. Authors are contacted by e-mail or paper mail if necessary.

- From MathSciNet "Uniquely Identifying Mathematical Authors in the Mathematical Reviews's Database"