tags:: [[internet]][[history]][[accessibility]][[communication]][[library]][[kumar]][[atomicnote]]
Access to libraries is a field that has widened over time, playing a large role in controlling literacy rates of the general population. Until the dispersion of mass-produced literature, books were reserved for monks and the elite nobility, thus limiting education for the middle class. Kumar explains, “These monasteries played a major role in education as they were the primary places for preservation and production in the middle ages” (Kumar: 2013, pg. 2). In other words, the Church had complete control over who deserved to learn. However; as libraries’ stocks grew, and the Church’s hold on literacy began slipping, libraries started opening to the public, and education finally started becoming accessible. Technology as a whole consistently evolves to become more accessible to others, from electricity to the Dewey Decimal System. No modern system appears out of a vaccuum, so it is critical to understand the gradual development from point A to point B.
@kumarClayTabletsWeb2013sourcenote
Those in power have the ability to shape the stories of others, much like the role of the Church… HiddenFigures
The Dewey Decimal system facilitated easier navigation of libraries, allowing non-academic figures the ability to access more knowledge @wiegandAmherstMethodOrigins1998SourceNote
Even in the age of the Internet, some don’t have access to infinite knowledge: @thoratColonialTopographies2019sourcenote DigitalDivide