pumpkinstrokemarrow

First association was to the thing called greats by some universities. But Mr G. fairly quickly establishes that this is the name for classics - Latin and Greek - based degree courses. So that does not fit this bill.

I then ask Mr G. about library classification schemes. Where I learn that the Library of Congress has an alphabetic classification scheme - but not one that uses GRE for the two books in hand. That classification schemes are apt to reflect the preoccupations of their inventors. So some classification schemes go to great lengths to classify books about religion. Then there is something called the Bliss classification scheme, which appears to be alphabetic but not necessarily three letters - which I guess the Surrey libraries scheme to be. But I cannot find out to much about Bliss as, while being a not for profit gang, they are into selling the books containing the classification. Quite big books too by the look of their web site (http://www.blissclassification.org.uk/). And so not into posting their classification on the internet.

Along the way I learn that there are plenty of GRE acronyms. For example graduate record examination and genetic routing encapsulation. Not helpful.

So, on the basis of half an hour with Mr G., unable to find out what GRE might mean to a Surrey librarian. An interesting example of the limitations of the world wide web. It is of course possible that the answer is blindingly obvious to some or even most people. Always was a bit prone to blunders.