Archivist Records Management & Preservation Flashcards

The 'vital records' program in an organization is designed to protect records that are:

Answer: Essential to resume critical operations after a disaster

Vital records programs identify and protect records necessary for an organization to continue essential functions during and after an emergency.

When an archivist encounters nitrate film in a collection, the immediate priority is to:

Answer: Isolate the film and arrange transfer to a specialized facility

Cellulose nitrate film is highly flammable and chemically unstable; it must be isolated and transferred to a facility equipped for hazardous film storage.

The Society of American Archivists (SAA) Core Values statement identifies 'access' as a core value, balanced against which other core value?

Answer: Privacy and confidentiality

SAA's Core Values explicitly pair access with privacy, recognizing that archivists must balance open access against the privacy rights of individuals represented in records.

In the context of arrangement, 'original order' should be maintained unless:

Answer: The original order was imposed by a previous archivist with no relationship to the creator

Original order reflects the creator's working relationships and context, but if the 'order' was artificially imposed by a non-creator intermediary, it has no evidential value and may be rearranged.

A fixity check in digital preservation uses a cryptographic hash value (such as MD5 or SHA-256) to:

Answer: Verify that a digital file has not been altered or corrupted since ingest

Comparing a stored hash value against a newly computed hash detects any bit-level changes to a file, confirming its integrity over time.

The concept of 'minimal processing' (also known as MPLP - More Product, Less Process) advocates for:

Answer: Reducing per-item description in favor of folder- or box-level control to provide broader access

MPLP, developed by Mark Greene and Dennis Meissner, advocates for reducing granular processing to eliminate backlogs and provide faster access to more collections.

Which preservation action would be most appropriate for a water-damaged photograph showing active mold growth?

Answer: Freeze the photograph to arrest mold growth pending proper treatment

Freezing halts active mold growth and biological activity, allowing time to arrange proper conservation treatment without causing further damage.