Experts seek cure for books Scottish scientists develop a nose for revealing really healthy reads
By Jasper Hamill DESPITE FEARS the internet could kill off the printed word, death by natural causes may be a greater threat to our literary heritage and Scottish scientists are searching for the cure.
A researcher from Strathclyde University has teamed up with the British Library to design a method of "smelling" the chemicals given off by decaying paper, hoping the technique will lead to an easy way to test the "health" of valuable or ancient books and ensure their survival.
Helped along by a team of scientists who are bottling the atmosphere of the British Library in small test tubes, Jim Levicki, a postdoctorate researcher at the university's department of pure and applied chemistry, is working to isolate these chemical markers of
degradation - the smell of which will be familiar to anyone who has inhaled the musty air of old bookshops.
He said: "The problem is that libraries have massive collections of old books, historical documents or newspapers, and very little is known about how they break down over time. People want to preserve them but there is very little known about the science of how they decay.
"We're starting from the bottom up to find out exactly what happens to books when they age. We lose part of our history and cultural heritage through the decay of these things. Look at what happened when the library of Alexandria burned down. This is the same process, but slower."
Levicki has designed a unique machine - bearing a gold panel dedicating it to his engineer grandfather, James Stuart - in which a book is left for 48 hours, to
give off its odours. The chemicals that make up the smells are then distilled, isolated and examined using a mass spectrometer.
When the results are finalised, it is hoped a portable chemical "nose" will be designed that could, for example, sit on the end of the robot arms that fetch books from the British Library's archive or be placed along the shelves to warn of the signs of degradation.
Some previous methods of maintaining books have been almost comical in their ineptitude. Librarians last century tried to dip books in baths of chemicals or even laminate them, failing to realise the plastic only lasts around 20 years before it starts to resemble yellowed sticky tape.
Compounding the problem is that many of the industrial processes devised to satisfy the enormous demand for books from the 19th to 20th century were flawed. Many modern tomes are printed on acidic paper, hastening their own demise.
Magazines and newspapers are even more fallible, with some newspaper archives in such disrepair that their odour of acetic acid - used as vinegar - is as "overpowering as a chip shop". As a written record, these can be as important as books.
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Posted by: I'm no really here on 11:52pm Sat 12 Apr 08
[quote]Magazines and newspapers are even more fallible....As a written record, these can be as important as books.[/quote] But they are not written, they are printed.
I know that for historic reasons it is important to preserve some specific books, but the article appears to confuse books and their contents.
[quote]..may be a greater threat to our literary heritage[/quote] Our literary heritage will disappear if we don't have physical books? Who told you to write that Jasper?
Magazines and newspapers are even more fallible....As a written record, these can be as important as books.
But they are not written, they are printed.
I know that for historic reasons it is important to preserve some specific books, but the article appears to confuse books and their contents.
..may be a greater threat to our literary heritage
Our literary heritage will disappear if we don't have physical books? Who told you to write that Jasper?
Posted by: I'm no really here on 12:06am Sun 13 Apr 08
If I download electronic versions of newspapers and print them out, they are exact copies of the newspaper. Are they of less "value" than a newpaper bought in a shop? If I don't print them out, but keep them on my computer, are they devalued even more?
This is a silly article.
If I download electronic versions of newspapers and print them out, they are exact copies of the newspaper. Are they of less "value" than a newpaper bought in a shop? If I don't print them out, but keep them on my computer, are they devalued even more?
This is a silly article.
Posted by: Vespa, virtual library on 6:26am Sun 13 Apr 08
digitise the contents - never heard of Project Gutenberg?
digitise the contents - never heard of Project Gutenberg?
Posted by: Rustic, USA on 1:07pm Sat 19 Apr 08
You may examine the digital contents of Audubon's double elephant folio, and print them: [italic]Birds of America[/italic]. Humans are physical, sensual, spiritual, rational & crazed beings. Some small portion of humanity will hold physical books, certain books, in spiritual regard. Books will not disappear, too, because humans have a packrat mentality, many of us do. This is scare mongering much like one sees at intervals in the Classical Music field. Someone yells that Classical Music is dieing. Same argument to that. Some infinitessimal speck of people will keep them alive.
You may examine the digital contents of Audubon's double elephant folio, and print them:
Birds of America. Humans are physical, sensual, spiritual, rational & crazed beings. Some small portion of humanity will hold physical books, certain books, in spiritual regard. Books will not disappear, too, because humans have a packrat mentality, many of us do. This is scare mongering much like one sees at intervals in the Classical Music field. Someone yells that Classical Music is dieing. Same argument to that. Some infinitessimal speck of people will keep them alive.
Posted by: T, GA, USA on 2:56pm Sat 19 Apr 08
The value of a physical version of a written work will become more important as our civilization continues toward a more technologically advanced world. Yes, digitization is an excellent idea regarding preservation, but it is amazing to actual see, touch and read a first-edition, autographed copy of an actual book. I believe there will still be printed materials for decades to come, but the books that we value and treasure as part of our individual cultural experiences should be preserved for future generations in physical, as well as digital, forms.
The value of a physical version of a written work will become more important as our civilization continues toward a more technologically advanced world. Yes, digitization is an excellent idea regarding preservation, but it is amazing to actual see, touch and read a first-edition, autographed copy of an actual book. I believe there will still be printed materials for decades to come, but the books that we value and treasure as part of our individual cultural experiences should be preserved for future generations in physical, as well as digital, forms.
Posted by: rudolph, Minnesota on 8:51pm Sun 20 Apr 08
oops electro magnetic pulse... guess your archives are base
oops electro magnetic pulse... guess your archives are base
Posted by: alecto, Australia on 3:30am Mon 21 Apr 08
[quote]...some newspaper archives in such disrepair that their odour of acetic acid - used as vinegar - is as "overpowering as a chip shop". As a written record, these can be as important as books.[/quote]
Although this is true, it's out of context with the discussion about the smell of books and the ways they decay. A smell of acetic acid would only come off from degrading acetate microfilm. This film may itself be the only remaining record of the newspaper or journal it reproduces, as originals were often discarded after filming. Ironically, microfilming was often done to preserve the content of supposedly more vulnerable printed materials.
...some newspaper archives in such disrepair that their odour of acetic acid - used as vinegar - is as "overpowering as a chip shop". As a written record, these can be as important as books.
Although this is true, it's out of context with the discussion about the smell of books and the ways they decay. A smell of acetic acid would only come off from degrading acetate microfilm. This film may itself be the only remaining record of the newspaper or journal it reproduces, as originals were often discarded after filming. Ironically, microfilming was often done to preserve the content of supposedly more vulnerable printed materials.
Posted by: Bryan Draper, College Park, Maryland, USA on 3:39pm Mon 21 Apr 08
As a library conservator, this is an interesting study, particularly as I often smell books as I examine them. Books are complicated organic objects which produce a variety of deterioration products, as they age, whose characterization offers potential & useful insight. Digitization is not the sole answer to preservation, as the computer files and hardware need to be "refreshed" and maintained as well, often at a greater cost than the original book. Sadly this article does not accurately describe library preservation: the phrase "comical in their ineptitude" glosses over many decades of evolution of preservation.
As a library conservator, this is an interesting study, particularly as I often smell books as I examine them. Books are complicated organic objects which produce a variety of deterioration products, as they age, whose characterization offers potential & useful insight. Digitization is not the sole answer to preservation, as the computer files and hardware need to be "refreshed" and maintained as well, often at a greater cost than the original book. Sadly this article does not accurately describe library preservation: the phrase "comical in their ineptitude" glosses over many decades of evolution of preservation.
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