Australia: "Books Get the Shove as University Students Prefer to do Research Online"

From the Sydney Morning Herald:

THE University of NSW [New South Wales] is throwing away thousands of books and scholarly journals as part of a policy that critics say is turning its library into a Starbucks.
Academics say complete journal collections, valuable books and newspapers dating to the 19th century are being thrown out to clear space for cafe-style lounges.
The Herald has obtained an internal document listing thousands of titles due to be pulled from shelves. The 138-page ”weeding” list includes encyclopaedias, dictionaries, books in foreign languages and texts on psychology, politics and morality.
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Dr John Golder, a visiting research fellow in theatre, feared the digitisation of libraries would prevent students stumbling across new information. ”A serendipitous discovery is impossible when the book isn’t there,” he said.

Read the Complete Article
Includes a statement from a university spokesperson.

Filed under: Academic Libraries, Libraries, Resources, School Libraries