Digital Library and Educational Initiatives
at the University of Michigan
Gary M. Olson and Daniel E. Atkins
School of Information
University of Michigan
Ann Arbor, Michigan USA
Abstract
The new emerging digital technologies are transforming the
handling of information, and as a result are changing the
nature of human activities and organizations. There are a
variety of visions of what the consequences will be (a
recent sampling would include Lanham, 1993; Mitchell, 1995;
Negroponte, 1995; Tapscott, 1996; or the contents of any
issue of Wired magazine), everyone is in agreement that the
changes will be profound and wide reaching.
At the University of Michigan we are involved in two broad
responses to these changes. First, we have undertaken a
number of research projects that explore new technologies
and assess their effects on human activity. Second, we are
creating new educational programs so we can prepare
students for interesting and useful careers in these
arenas. These two sets of activities are intertwined both
via the people involved (faculty and students) and the
ideas embodied in our approach to both. In this paper we
describe these two areas of work, and illustrate our
approach in the process.