Friday, February 6, 1998
Professor feels Internet no threat to libraries
EDUCATION: Borgman’s lecture addresses concerns that books will
be replaced by technology
By J. Sharon Yee
Daily Bruin Contributor
With the sudden emergence of new, innovative information
technologies within the past decade, there has been much
speculation about the future of libraries.
But Professor Christine L. Borgman disputes this
misconception.
"People have a naive assumption that it’s going to replace
libraries," she said Thursday in front of an audience of both
faculty and students. "But in actuality, libraries themselves are
heavy users of new information technology."
Borgman, a professor in the Department of Library and
Information Science (DLIS), challenged the misconceptions of
digital technology in today’s information age.
She compared the rampant enthusiasm toward cybertechnology to
the frenzy that surrounded the introduction of the television in
the 1950s, when people predicted that TV would replace radio as the
dominant medium.
"People have the inclination to react quickly and assume that
new technologies automatically replace old ones," Borgman added,
explaining how both radio and TV co-exist today by simply taking on
different formats and responsibilities.
A visiting professor at England’s Loughborough University until
1999, Borgman was named UC Presidential Chair in Information
Studies last August and will hold the position for the next five
years.
Her research focuses largely on issues involving human-computer
interaction, digital libraries and scholarly communication.
Libraries are social institutions charged with the mission of
collecting, preserving, organizing and disseminating knowledge and
of transmitting the intellectual heritage of the past to present
and future generations, Borgman explained in a 1995 issue of
American Libraries magazine.
"In the current enthusiasm for the information superhighway, the
larger purpose of libraries risks being lost," she continued.
Borgman, who completed her graduate studies at Michigan State
and Stanford, sees many popular misconceptions about the
capabilities and possibilities of computer technologies like the
Internet.
One myth is the idea that utilization of the Internet provides a
vast amount of knowledge at no cost to the individual.
While this may seem true, the information found may not always
be the most reliable source depending on who funds and creates the
websites, Borgman said.
Ultimately, someone, whether it be corporations, the government,
or private citizens, pays for the technology, mostly in the form of
labor, printing and copyright costs.
It is also physically impossible to transfer such a vast amount
of information to the Internet.
"To try and scan the millions of volumes of books – 6 million
alone at UCLA – in the United States would take more than our
lifetime, and that wouldn’t even include literature from other
countries," Cloonan added.
As convenient as finding research on the Internet may be,
Borgman reminded the audience that when it comes to having the real
thing, people will not accept anything less.
Examples of such experiences include reading in the bathtub or
receiving personal attention from librarians.
Additionally, for "a vast majority of artifacts and classic
literature, while containing the same words, no one would prefer
the electronic equivalent," she said.
Similar to current library on-line catalogs, the creation and
continuing improvement of electronic databases presents the
challenge Borgman referred to as the "paradox of information
retrieval."
She then explained this paradox as the difficulty of creating
useful key words.
"Access to information is ultimately a human communication
problem," she said. "People are constantly using different words to
mean the same thing and use the same words to mean different
things."
Rather than electronic technology replacing libraries, Borgman
views the two as having a "symbiotic relationship," where "new
technology supplements the old technology."
"The Internet is not going to replace libraries any sooner than
computers are going to replace teachers," she concluded.
Borgman sees the future of the Internet continuing to expand in
commercial areas, with libraries extending their range of media to
serve the needs of faculty and students.
Others speculated on the future of libraries.
"Public libraries are always finding ways of being part of the
community and are continually responsive to cultural change,"
Cloonan said.
"(They) will become more specialized as the government and other
agencies slowly begin funding institutions that focus on specific
areas of expertise," said Lynn Boyden, a 1997 graduate from the
Graduate School of Education and Information Studies.
Those in attendance reacted very favorably to Borgman’s
speech.
"I enjoyed how she presented the human element and cultural
aspects of technology," said Elizabeth Martinez, former executive
director of the American Library Association.
"It was great to hear (Borgman) recognize libraries as important
institutions in society and that they will continue to be in the
21st century," she added.