Melvil Dewey originally created ten general categories that most books could be sorted into. The ten areas are listed below with their corresponding numbers.


000 - Generalities, Computer Science, and Information
100 - Philosophy and Psychology
200 - Religion
300 - Social Sciences (anthropology, archeology, sociology)
400 - Language
500 - Natural Sciences (biology, astronomy, etc.) and Mathematics
600 - Technology (applied sciences)
700 - The Arts
800 - Literature and Rhetoric
900 - Geography and History

, Each of the ten areas contain 99 divisions - more specific categories that fall under the larger areas. Additional decimals indicate the even even smaller sections, which are even more specific. Decimals are added if the topic is even more specific. An example of this specification process is below:


500 Natural Sciences and Mathematics
  590 Zoology
    595 Arthropods
      595.7 Insects
        595.78 Lepidoptera
          595.789 Butterflies

, The Dewey Decimal System is great when you're browsing. If you wanted a book on Ethics, for example, you would go to 170. Once you were there you could scan the shelves for a book on an area of Ethics that interested you. This is infinitely more convenient than alphabetical arrangement, in which you might find a book on turtles next to one about turbulence in politics.
 If your library is large and you would rather not spend a whole day browsing books on the Arts, you could go online for a guide to the various general categories, divisions, and sections. Websites with Dewey Decimal System guides include OCLC, The University of Illinois, IPL.
Know the ten general areas of content.
Understand divisions and sections.
Browse using the system.
Look online to learn the categories.
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