Still Waters in a Rough Sea

Last Wednesday, I was watching David M. Levy's presentation on DVD entitled "The Experience of Reading," a part of the Library of Congress series "The Digital Future." Levy's presentation was both thought provoking and invigorating.

David Levy is a Professor in the Information School at the University of Washington. He is the author of Scrolling Forward: Making Sense of Documents in the Digital Age [review]

Of particular interest was Dr. Levy's viewpoint that the digital maelstrom may be changing the way we read (more shallowly rather than more deeply), and that contemplative time and space are essential to good scholarship and good mental health. Discussions of Library as Place need to incorporate the traditional environmental value of libraries: quiet places to study, think and reflect. Highly recommended.