How to Fill a Library With People Instead of Books – Next City

How to Fill a Library With People Instead of Books

Brisbane | 08/05/2013 11:10am | 1
Nancy Scola | Next City

TEDxBrisbane, hosted at the State Library of Queensland’s The Edge space. Credit: TedXBrisbane

A new study by researchers in Queensland, Australia, examines the role of libraries as hotbeds for collaboration, and why people engage — and don’t engage — in the commingling of ideas and experiences these environments are designed to foster.
The paper, titled "Library as Co-Working Spaces: Understanding User Motivations and Perceived Barriers to Social Learning," appears in the latest issue of the journal Library Hi Tech.

Marcus Foth and Mark Bilandzic spent five months conducting field research at The Edge, a "‘bookless’ library space" in Brisbane. A project of the State Library of Queensland, The Edge is, the authors write, "explicitly dedicated to co-working, social learning, peer collaboration, and creativity around digital culture and technology." Read more...