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Too Much to Know

Managing Scholarly Information before the Modern Age
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( 178 ratings, 24 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Too Much to Know by Ann M. Blair explores the history of information overload from the Renaissance era. The book examines how scholars managed vast amounts of information and developed early methods to categorise, store, and retrieve knowledge, showcasing the innovative techniques they used to cope with a deluge of data long before the digital age.
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Format: Paperback / softback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

History enthusiasts will appreciate this book if they are interested in how the overwhelming amounts of information in the pre-digital age were managed and organised. It delves into the historical practices of data collection, retrieval, and synthesis, offering insights into the evolution of information management techniques long before the internet era.

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Examines methods of information management in ancient and medieval Europe as well as the Islamic world and China, focusing on the organization, composition, and reception of Latin reference books in print in early modern Europe.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

The flood of information brought to us by advancing technology is often accompanied by a distressing sense of "information overload," yet this experience is not unique to modern times. In fact, says Ann M. Blair in this intriguing book, the invention of the printing press and the ensuing abundance of books provoked sixteenth- and seventeenth-century European scholars to register complaints very similar to our own.

In Too Much to Know, Blair examines methods of information management in ancient and medieval Europe as well as the Islamic world and China. She then focuses particular attention on the organisation, composition, and reception of Latin reference books in print in early modern Europe. She explores in detail the sophisticated and sometimes idiosyncratic techniques that scholars and readers developed in an era of new technology and exploding information.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Too Much to Know by Ann M. Blair is praised for its in-depth exploration of historical information management and the challenges of information overload faced by early modern Europeans. Reviewers commend Blair for her impressive research and the unique synthesis of historical learning practices, considering the profound historical and cultural context. The book is noted for its scholarly depth and serves as both an account and a guide to the history and practice of information management before the digital age.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780300165395

Publisher: Yale University Press

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 13 September 2011

Country: United States

Imprint: Yale University Press

Illustration: 31 b-w illus.

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Width: 156.0mm

Height: 578.0mm

Weight: 612g

Pages: 416

About the Author

Ann M. Blair is Henry Charles Lea Professor of History, Harvard University. She lives in Cambridge, MA.

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