Michael, I think you are very likely right. Reading and writing won’t disappear entirely, but visual literacy will take the lead.

Carrie, this won’t be happening any time soon, thank goodness!

Vasilly, literature will turn into something else we haven’t even imagined yet. However, I am rather attached to what we have

Sylvia, you are right. Books won’t completely disappear but they will become even more of a specialty item than they currently are which is very sad to think about.

Bloglily, you are right, it is about rich communication and he does talk about the change as being something new and wonderful. In the student papers they say they all thought it scary and terrible when they first began thinking about it but were slowly converted. I find it both scary and fascinating at the same time.

Maggie, some days it does seem we are heading for a dark ages doesn’t it? It is somehow easier to imagine the collapse of society than a burgeoning one with technology taking us places we can barely imagine.

Litlove, your comment about barricading the building made me giggle. I picture 1960s-like sit-ins where we take over the library to keep the books from being removed. We must be sure to bring enough food, we know we’ll have lots of great things to read!

llgb, ah don’t cry. If it ever happens it won’t be for a long, long time and by then we will either be dead or so senile that it won’t matter anyway.

Eric, yes, thank you for mentioning Ilium! I saw it mentioned somewhere when I was reading more about post literacy. It is on my TBR pile and now I am even more interested in reading it.

Lisa, you are right. Books will be available but perhaps not as a mass means of story telling or communication. With all the books being published these days, that might not be such a bad thing after all. It will make it easier to figure out what to read!

Inkslinger, yes there are some fascinating possibilities aren’t there? The sort of irony is that I am inspired to read more about the subject!

Verbivore, very wisely and well said. You are right to point out that literature is in transition and blogging is part of it. We all find the kind of reading we do in books so comforting but that doesn’t mean what comes next won’t be equally as comforting. It is just really hard to imagine how it could be better than what we have.

Jeane, the thought of books disappearing is terribly distressing.

Dorothy, I am with you on that. What I would love is the best of both–beautiful books and the new and wonderful and unimaginable possibilities.

cipriano, sorry! I hope you didn’t have any nightmares!

Jeff, I don’t think Ripley is an idiot. The idea is not his and what he is talking about is something in the distant future so everything is speculation based on the theories and technology we have today. What things will look like 100 years from now we can’t say.

Danielle, I think you are right. People will never stop telling stories, it is just how we tell them that will change. I do think though that fewer and fewer people know how to be alone. Look how many people walk down the street with earbuds stuck in their ears or are talking on a cell phone.

wil, LOL! I have had Kurzweil’s book on my shelf for some time but haven’t gotten around to reading it yet. The Singularity seems plausible while at the same time completely bogus. It is interesting to think about though and is fed by my enjoyment of science fiction. And forget the moon, I Mars is where the real estate market is hot right now

Grad, you make a good point about pleasure. There are many things that we still do because it is pleasurable and as long as there are people around to enjoy books, there will continue to books to read.

Biblibio, I’m not worried books will be disappearing any time soon. But since I plan to live to be at least 500 so I can make it through my TB pile, I’m just doing a little worrying in advance.

Daphne, it is all speculation but I don’t think it is groundless. If you look at the slides, I bet you will end up being interested in the reading list he’s got in them. I know I am!

Emily, you are an optimistic storyteller and I like that. Now, how do we get people like you in charge of the world so things can be done in a balanced and sane way?