newsletter11-29-2001book

The Future of the Book 29 November 2001

The following are points made during the discussion meeting

Opening Remarks and Observations

(Under review)

Summary
1. What is the future of the book?
There was a consensus that the book is too convenient to discard all together.
a) it is inexpensive (compared to an e-book device)
b) it is easy to mark with your own comments
c) it is easy to flip from one page to another section (without scrolling)
d) "it just feels like a book" (comfort, familiarity)

E-books are convenient for
-- research ("Search for any word or phrase")
-- cost (individual books can be
-- speed of purchase (purchase and download online)
-- virtually no wait for delivery (compared to next day delivery of books online or a trip to a bookstore).
-- ease of getting into print. Put a book on a web page and you are connected to your readers.

2. Eventually, everyone will have a book in print.
Some "Print on Demand" companies:
www.firstpublish.com
www.iuniverse.com

Examples of self-printed and print-on-demand books were circulated in the room.

3. Electronic paper
James Randi gave the following description of "electronic paper"
Small spheres with dark and light sides to a crystal are placed next to each other. You can fit more than 2000 on an inch.
Cost (in production): about 10 cents.

Here is a reference to electronic paper:
http://www.sciam.com/2001/1101issue/1101ditlea.html

The meeting closed at 8:40 pm

THE TOPIC FOR THE NEXT MEETING WILL BE "The End of Time" on Thursday January 29.

One of our members sent the following e-mail after the discussion:

ONLY AN 8TH GRADE EDUCATION:

Remember when old-timers tell us they only had an 8th grade
education? Could any of us have graduated from a Kansas grade
school in 1895? This clearly explains how people with "only" an 8th
grade education could be so successful. It seems like only geniuses
could pass the 8th grade in those days! Read on!

The following was taken from the original document on file at the
Smokey Valley Genealogical Society and Library in Salina, KS
and reprinted by the Salina Journal.

Eighth Grade Final Exam: Salina, KS - 1895

Grammar (Time, one hour)
1. Give nine rules for the use of Capital Letters.
2. Name the Parts of Speech and define those that have no
modifications.
3. Define Verse, Stanza and Paragraph.
4. What are the Principal Parts of a verb? Give Principal parts of
do, lie, lay and run.
5. Define Case, Illustrate each Case.
6. What is Punctuation? Give rules for principal marks of
Punctuation.
7 - 10. Write a composition of about 150 words and show therein
that you understand the practical use of the rules of grammar.

Arithmetic (Time, 1.25 hours)
1. Name and define the Fundamental Rules of Arithmetic.
2. A wagon box is 2 ft. deep, 10 feet long, and 3 ft. wide. How many
bushels of wheat will it hold?
3. If a load of wheat weighs 3942 lbs., what is it worth at 50
cts.per bushel, deducting 1050 lbs. for tare?
4. District No. 33 has a valuation of $35,000. What is the necessary
levy to carry on a school seven months at $50 per month, and
have $104 for incidentals?
5. Find cost of 6720 lbs. coal at $6.00 per ton.
6. Find the interest of $512.60 for 8 months and 18 days at 7
percent.
7. What is the cost of 40 boards, 12 inches wide and 16 ft. long at
$20 per metre?
8. Find bank discount on $300 for 90 days (no grace) at 10 percent.
9. What is the cost of a square farm at $15 per acre, the distance
around which is 640 rods?
10. Write a Bank Check, a Promissory Note, and a Receipt.

US History (Time, 45 minutes)
1. Give the epochs into which US History is divided.
2. Give an account of the discovery of America by Columbus.
3. Relate the causes and results of the Revolutionary War.
4. Show the territorial growth of the United States.
>5. Tell what you can of the history of Kansas.
6. Describe three of the most prominent battles of the Rebellion.
7. Who were the following: Morse, Whitney, Fulton, Bell, Lincoln,
Penn and Howe?
8. Name events connected with the following dates: 1607,
1620, 1800, 1849 and 1865.

Orthography (Time, one hour)
1. What is meant by the following: Alphabet, phonetic, orthography,
etymology, syllabication?
2. What are elementary sounds? How classified?
3. What are the following, and give examples of each: Trigraph,
subvocals, diphthong, cognate letters and linguals?
4. Give four substitutes for caret 'u'.
5. Give two rules for spelling words with final 'e'. Name two
exceptions under each rule.
6. Give two uses of silent letters in spelling. Illustrate each.
7. Define the following prefixes and use in connection with a word:
Bi, dis, mis, pre, semi, post, non, inter, mono and sup.
8. Mark diacritically and divide into syllables the following, and
name the sign that indicates the sound: Card, ball, mercy, sir, odd, cell,
rise, blood, fare and last.
9. Use the following correctly in sentences, cite, site, sight, fane,
fain, feign, vane, vain, vein, raze, raise and rays.
10. Write 10 words frequently mispronounced and indicate
pronunciation by use of diacritical marks and by syllabication.

Geography (Time, one hour)
1. What is climate? Upon what does climate depend?
2. How do you account for the extremes of climate in Kansas?
3. Of what use are rivers? Of what use is the ocean?
4. Describe the mountains of North America.
5. Name and describe the following: Monrovia, Odessa, Denver,
Manitoba, Hecla, Yukon, St. Helena, Juan Fernandez, Aspinwall
and Orinoco.
6. Name and locate the principal trade centers of the US
7. Name all the republics of Europe and give capital of each.
8. Why is the Atlantic Coast colder than the Pacific in the same
latitude?
9. Describe the process by which the water of the ocean returns to
the sources of rivers.
10. Describe the movements of the earth. Give inclination of the
earth.

This gives a whole new meaning to an early 20th-century
person saying, "I only had an 8th grade education," doesn't it?

E-mail your response to: [email protected]