My work has taken me from historical research to involvement in electronic publishing ventures to the directorship of the Harvard University Libraries. Robert Darnton More Quotes by Robert Darnton More Quotes From Robert Darnton Digital data are more fragile than printed material. Robert Darnton digital data materials I arrived from Harvard, where I had studied philosophy and the history of ideas, with a bias toward literature and formal thought. Robert Darnton literature philosophy ideas The notion of 'history from below' hit the history profession in England very hard around the time I came to Oxford in the early 1960s. Robert Darnton 1960s england oxford As a graduate student at Oxford in 1963, I began writing about books in revolutionary France, helping to found the discipline of book history. I was in my academic corner writing about Enlightenment ideals when the Internet exploded the world of academic communication in the 1990s. Robert Darnton communication writing book In 2002, Google began an ambitious project to digitize every book in the world. It was intended as a search project: type in a query, and Google would show you snippets. They asked university libraries for books, which they would scan for free. At Harvard we didn't permit them to take works under copyright, but other libraries gave them everything. Robert Darnton library google book I would not minimize the digital divide, which separates the computerized world from the rest, nor would I underestimate the importance of traditional books. Robert Darnton digital-divide book world The peasant of early modern France inhabited a world of step-mothers and orphans, of inexorable, unending toil, and of brutal emotions, both raw and repressed.The human condition has changed so much since then that we can hardly imagine the way it appeared to people whose lives really were nasty, brutish, and short. This is why we need to reread Mother Goose. Robert Darnton toil mother people The fact that I spend a lot of time in the 18th century doesn't mean I'm not concerned with the 21st. Robert Darnton century mean facts The American revolutionaries believed in the power of the word. But they had only word of mouth and the printing press. We have the Internet. Robert Darnton american-revolution revolutionary mouths It's important to make clear to all the schools at Harvard the central role of the library. Robert Darnton library important school I worked for a brief spell as a journalist, but soon I discovered that I didn't want to be a journalist - I wanted to be a historian. Robert Darnton historian journalist want As president of the American Historical Association, I started a programme to make dissertations into e-books in 1999. Before I knew it, I was involved in other electronic projects. Harvard invited me to become director of the libraries in 2007. Robert Darnton historical president book We are living in one of those rare moments in history when things may come apart and be put back together again in ways that will determine the future for decades or more, despite the endless innovations of technology. Robert Darnton future technology together history All of us are citizens in a republic much larger than the Republic of America. It is the Republic of Letters, a realm of the mind that extends everywhere, without police, national boundaries, or disciplinary frontiers. Robert Darnton without police mind america It simply is not true that everything is now on the Internet, but it is true that the digital resources available through the Internet have enormous potential for education and even for self-empowerment of individuals. Robert Darnton true digital internet education I was very fortunate to be elected to the Society of Fellows at Harvard, which is, in effect, a small research center where you are given three years to do whatever work you want. Robert Darnton you society research work Thanks to modern technology, we now can deliver every text in every research library to every citizen in our country, and to everyone in the world. If we fail to do so, we are not living up to our civic duty. Robert Darnton library technology research world We need librarians who can handle this tremendous jumble of information that is in cyberspace. Robert Darnton need who handle information People think that when you use Google you're finding exactly what you need, but really, you need expert help. Robert Darnton finding think you people People sometimes announce that we have entered 'the information age' as if information did not exist in other times. I think that every age was an age of information, each in its own way and according to the available media. Robert Darnton age sometimes people way
