I don't have time for a long diary entry, but I wanted to make sure everyone's aware of this story. It seems that the University of Texas is planning to close down its library in order to create a 24-hour digital information center.
Here's the article:
My thoughts below....
The idea is, obviously, to bring students into the "digital age", where any and all information is accessible at one's fingertips.
As a student, and as someone who has worked in the technology field for 7 years, I find this to be a tragic and disturbing development, and one that an academic institution has no business undertaking. Books are, have always been, and must continue to be one of the cornerstones of learning. While the digital age does, of course, facilitate information gathering and research when used correctly, it cannot be a replacement for traditional, books-oriented libraries.
Why do I say this? Can colleges not simply provide the same resources online? Can they not simply refer students to other, research oriented libraries, on or off campus? Well, yes, they can. But sole reliance on digital technology has an unsettling effect, one that we see with IM's, and googles, and the internet in general--it fosters an assumption that information is all there, in front of you, and easy to get. Even as it has the power to facilitate research, it can hinder the drive to undertake that research. It decreases attention spans for many people. I see it in myself, as well as friends of mine--the quality of information, as well as the degree to which I care about it, definitely goes down when I rely on digital information. I actually do believe that this new reliance on instantaneous media is beginning to cripple the intellect of our country--depth of knowledge is less important, sound-bites and fast-edits and 3 line texts in languages that barely resemble English are. Don't get me wrong, this technology stuff is amazing, but complete reliance on it is unhealthy, if not dangerous.
How in hell can a major university sacrifice its own culture of books? According to the article one of the reasons is that the line between undergraduate and research facilities is becoming blurred, and undergrad libraries are becoming unnecessary adjuncts that people don't really use. I don't buy this as an excuse--colleges need to stem these trends away from library use--not foster them. Yes, undergraduates SHOULD use and be familiar with research libraries--but they're not built to cater to them. College student need a college library to learn--one with books, and inforamtion facilities, and 24 hour internet access, and every possible learning tool available. Closing a college library sends an anti-academic message, not one that encourages learning. In the midst of the popularity of the digital age, many students may not even realize they're being deprived. And that is the greatest tragedy.