As I visited the ERAU Hunt Library website I thought,
"Ok, how can I use this as a resource for my studies?" Well I came up with a better question. "How could I not use it?!" From a purely educational perspective I was
really impressed at the level of customization I could perform when doing a
search. Much easier than the days of old
when you went to the library and used the Dewey Decimal System. Once you combed through the card catalog to
find what you were looking for you then had to search through the library for
the book you needed and hoped it was in the right place. A lot of readers may not be familiar with the
Dewey Decimal System so I took a look back to the Stone Age and found this
article Dewey Decimal System.
(2004). In Chambers
Dictionary of Eponyms. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.libproxy.db.erau.edu/login?url=http://www.credoreference.com.ezproxy.libproxy.db.erau.edu/entry/cde/dewey_decimal_system using the Hunt Library.
During my reflection of the Dark Ages, I came across this
picture to further illustrate the manner of which research was once done by:
Technology has come such a long way that today I don’t even
have to step foot into a library to gain relevant information on a
subject. I can just access my desktop,
laptop, tablet, or phone. Has technology
hindered the way we once did research? I
feel that while it has made life easier in terms of our physical limits (i.e.
not being able to access a library due to your location or the hours it may be
available to you) I think technology has made us lazy. For example, I need to write a report about
Buddhism, let me Google it. I’m sure the
Wikipedia page will tell me everything there is to know about it. But what did I truly learn about Buddhism? Do I have a better understanding of Buddhism
as a field because of its Wikipedia page?
The answer would be no.
Fortunately it has come to light for me that I have been “learning” in a
manner that hasn’t helped me in everyday life.
For instance now that I am learning to be a critical thinker I am
applying what I am learning and it is significantly impacting me. If I wanted to truly learn about Buddhism as
a discipline I would seek to have a better understanding of the logic of Buddhism. I can analyze Buddhism in terms of the
elements of reasoning. As I learned in
our reading, a good place for me to begin to think in terms of the logic of
Buddhism would be by studying its vocabulary.
Nosich (2012) said “Learning the vocabulary in a field is a means to an
end. It is an essential means for
learning to reason better in the field.” (p. 99). Once I have greater understanding of the discipline
it will allow me to have an understanding of its fundamental and powerful
concepts, thus giving me a greater understanding of Buddhism.
I used Google to search for leadership and here is what I
found https://www.google.com/#q=leadership
Retrieved from Google Inc. 2013. What immediately
jumped out at me as opposed to using the Hunt Library was that Google is a
business and the Hunt Library is a collection of books, articles, and digital content. While Google as a search engine is designed
to help you find information, that information is organized extremely
broadly. And being that Google is a
business the pages are inundated with ads.
I did a little research into how Google works. When I use Google it uses my location to give
me information based on my geographical location. If I do a search for cars it will tell me
what dealerships are in my vicinity. In
doing so Google lets businesses find its customers. There are a wide range of services that
derive income for Google that businesses can use such as AdWords, Google
Analytics, and every day advertisements.
The Hunt Library offers services Google does not. I can ask a librarian via chat any questions
I might have about obtaining information.
I can email the library if I need help.
I can call and actually speak to a real person if need be. Or… here is a crazy notion. I can physically walk into the Hunt Library
on campus and utilize all the resources Embry Riddle has made available to its
students. Call me old fashioned but I
quite like being inside of a library.
When I lived in downtown Orlando I would go to the library
occasionally. When I went to UCF I lived
in the library. I enjoy going to local
libraries from time to time as these buildings in concept I think are going the
way of the dinosaur in terms of where we are now with technology.
I received an iPad for Christmas last year and I love
it! I have a hard time putting it down
because of all of the “magical” things it allows me to do. I even bought a few books to read on it
because: A.) I didn’t have to go anywhere to buy it. It was an instant gratifying transaction. B.) It
wasn’t sitting on a shelf collecting dust.
C.) I didn’t have a heavy
cumbersome book to lug around. But do
you know what I discovered? I missed the
feel of a real book. I missed my
association with the physical touch of a book.
I missed turning its pages. Yes,
technology is an amazing tool in the 21st century but I think it is
important to not forget how simple the pleasure of picking up a book and
thumbing through its pages can be.
Needless to say, I no longer download books but instead prefer to
actually visit a bookstore and browse around.
