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Article: THE HISTORY OF THE BOOK; Long Before Gutenberg, Somebody Had to Invent Chapters, Page Numbers, Even Word Spacing
- Article from:
- The Washington Post
- Article date:
- April 10, 1996
- Author:
CopyrightThis material is published under license from the Washington Post. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Washington Post. (Hide copyright information)
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On every side, the digital future bears down, demanding that we
read not the printed page but the glowing screen. Many people feel
that the book is an information technology being marginalized, if
not replaced. Such change may excite or frighten us, but the book as
a medium has survived many technological upheavals and likely will
continue to do so.
As a medium of communication, the book arose almost 2,000 years
ago in response to social and technological pressures, replacing an
earlier technology -- writing on scrolls, which had dominated the
field for 3,000 years.
By 3000 B.C., writing was being used to keep business records,
promulgate laws and codify divine revelation in Mesopotamia and ...