I was going to point out the same thing concerning the nuclear power mod. Every Working Stiff crate and truck I have looted has had at least one copy of each of the schematics. They also never open the book to show they've been read before.
Never thought about it with the survivor notes but they seem to be everywhere at all times. For something that helps you craft the book or schematic you are desperate to find it is nice, but it might also be nice to have to hunt for them a bit more. I'd definitely like it if there was also a way to keep them out of the quest rewards too. 1 survivor note does not equal most of the reward options a quest could possible give. (It was particularly disappointing to complete a quest and get the reward of 2400 Dukes and my choice of survivor note, survivor note, survivor note, or survivor note. LOL)