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Thumb index
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<p>A thumb index, also called a cut-in index or an index notch, is a round cut-out in the pages of <a href="/facts/Dictionaries/klg2kL06">dictionaries</a>, <a href="/facts/Encyclopedia/fRsmb4q6">encyclopedias</a>, <a href="/facts/Bible/SqkRTKCh">Bibles</a> and other large <a href="/facts/Religious_text/H2HjQEYv">religious books</a>, and various sectioned, often <a href="/facts/Alphabetic/vqfRpS3E">alphabetic</a>, <a href="/facts/Reference_work/7Fq2pIYG">reference works</a>, used to locate entries starting at a particular <a href="/facts/Letter_(alphabet)/uRnrbGIJ">letter</a> or section. The individual notches are called thumb cuts. </p><p>Several ways to achieve this indexing effect were invented and patented in the 1970s by Arthur S. Friedman, a printing engineer in New York. </p>