There are a few things I found out, discovered, learned recently that I thought I would share with you today.
First, while I was suffering from the worst of my cold, home in bed and miserable, wonderful reader Jule sent me an email to let me know that library I was trying to remember where the books are arranged by association, is the Warburg Library. Aby Warburg was a German art historian and cultural theorist who created a private library of cultural studies in Hamburg. Warburg died in 1929 and the library was rescued from Nazi Germany in 1933 and moved to the University of London. The 350,000 books are housed in their own building that has become known as the Warburg Institute. The collection has been added to over the years but the organization has remained the same.
The library takes up four floors. The categorization is a progression from the visual image to language to orientation to action, a scheme that Warburg saw as the progression of human awareness.
A few years ago, the University of London in an attempt to save money, tried to force the library to surrender its building and disperse the collection into the University’s regular library collections. The New York Review of Books had an essay about it it 2010. I tried to find updated information but I drew a blank. Since the Warburg Institute still exists, I assume the issues have been solved but I don’t have confirmation of that.
Not long ago I was trolling the library catalog looking for books of letters. Does anyone else do this, enter keywords or do subject searches and just browse the catalog? In my browsing I found a book called A Calendar of the Letters of Willa Cather. What an odd title. It turns out the book is a brief summary of each of Cather’s letters, an index, and a biographical directory. There is no book of actual Willa Cather letters available because Cather put a clause in her will forbidding publication of her letters and other papers. However, her letters and papers will become public domain in 2017 so in four years someone will be able to publish them. Doesn’t that make you really want to know what’s in the letters?
There was a study just published showing that while people say they prefer to read print books for adults over 60 it is actually easier to read on a tablet or ereader. Researchers found that the brains of older adults did not have to work as hard to read on a digital device. The thought is that a digital device provides better text contrast and backlighting which made them easier to read than a print book. Very interesting.
I thought I had more but that appears to be it. That will just have to do for tonight.
One big advantage tablets and e-readers have for older readers is the ease with which you can vary the size of the type.
severalfourmany, yes, that is a nice feature even for people who aren’t so old
I was thinking about a Kindle for my mom… I’ll have her try mine next time I see her.
wherethereisjoy, my mom got a Kindle about two years ago now and she loves it. I don’t think she has bought a print book since.
On the other hand, I was reading some research recently saying that we retain things better if they are harder to read (in a difficult font, or a bit blurred). So maybe that’s why we prefer the paper copy!
biblioglobal, well that’s interesting! I wonder if they measured how long it took for people to get a headache and stop reading though?
This is a fun post for us librarian-types. Funny. Years and years ago, when the ebook reader was first being mentioned, my father (who is computer phobic) announced that if that was the way of books, he was afraid he’d have to give up reading. Then, I told him that he’d be able to adjust the print size, and, for the first time ever, he said, “Well, maybe I could learn to use one of those if it could do that for me.”
I think decrepitude will be the reason I will feel the need to go Ebook! No question that the ability to adjust print size is a huge plus.
pv, that’s a funny story about your father. I must say being able to change the font size is a plus. I don’t have to worry about reading glasses on my public transit commute.
Stefanie,
I have a problem with looking at my laptop screen for longer than, let’s say, half an hour. I’ll see things in double when I look away. I’ve even gone to an optometrist to check about this, and was told the 20/20/20 rule: for every 20 mins. I look at the screen, I should look away to a 20 ft. distance for 20 sec. What a hassle! Reading a paper book is much more smoothing to my eyes. Guess I’ll be one of the last ones to turn to eReading, although i’ve several apps on my iPhone just for this purpose.
‘soothing’ to the eye, I meant to say.
Arti, heh, don’t you wish you could edit your own comments sometimes? I can’t read for a long time on backlit screens but I can read for hours on my eink Kindle so I think it depends on what kind of device a person reads on. ah, the 20/20/20 rule! I never manage it. Do you?
Ooh, Willa Cather’s letters…. I’m not much of a letter reader, but I think I would make an exception for her! And I do hope you are feeling much better now – colds can really drag a person down! Sending hugs.
Litlove, won’t it be interesting to see what’s in Cather’s letters? If she didn’t want them read I wonder that she didn’t burn them. I bet they turn out to be about the most mundane things. And thanks for the good wishes. I am well enough to be functional and almost completely well.
That’s quite a lot for someone who had been sick in bed!
Maybe it has to do with working in a library, but I also do keyword and subject searches of our catalog, and also of Worldcat (the world’s libraries at your fingertips!), just browsing on a subject. It’s amazing the things you can find and I heartily recommend it! I wold love to read Willa Cather’s letters, too. It would be hard to be a public figure like that–wanting to maintain privacy but knowing too how much interest there is in the personal. Hope you are feeling much better!
Danielle, I am so glad you browse your library catalog and WorldCat too. I was starting to feel a bit weird since no one else admitted to doing the same. Maybe it does come from working in a library. Four years to Cather’s letters seems a long time to wait and then they have to be collected and edited and published. I hope someone has plans to do it! I am feeling much better, thanks!