[LINK] Internet leading to cultural 'black hole': Library

[Eric Scheid]

On 20/4/09 3:21 PM, "ARTHUR,Evan (Dr)" <Evan.ARTHUR at deewr.gov.au> wrote:

> When I did presentations on digital preservation issues in my last job, I
> liked to say, reasonably accurately, that I could read the archives of the
> Athenian State, carved in pentelic marble in nice clear Attic script 2,500
> years ago.

And what of all those lovely scrolls from the Library of Alexandria?

This relates to a question I had a month or so ago - why is it that
archeologists always have to *dig* to get to the past? Is there some great
global dust cloud slowly falling on everything, burying everything?

The answer is similar in nature to the one Willie Sutton gave when asked why
he robbed banks. And also why modern people don't realise that the typical
architecture of ancient Rome and Athens was really quite shoddy.

e.