October 08, 2009

California State University, Fresno will hold a colloquium on March 20-21 to discuss “The Future of the Book in the Digital Age.”

Representatives from Brandeis University, Pomona College, MediaCommons, Stanford University, Public Knowledge Project and the University of California Press will offer feature panel presentations and open discussions.

The colloquium begins at 6 p.m. on March 20 with a dinner (free with registration) in the Residence Dining Hall. At 7 p.m. the keynote speaker, Robert Stein, presents “The Evolution of Reading and Writing in the Networked Era or Yikes! What if everything (and everyone) really is connected?” Stein will look at the roles of author and reader and how they are changing with the advent of new digital technologies.

Stein is the director of the Institute for the Future of the Book and a senior fellow at the London School of Economics in the Department of Social Psychology. He was the founder of The Voyager Company, where he led the development of over 300 titles in The Criterion Collection, a series of definitive films, and more than 75 CD titles, including the “CD Companion to Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony,” “Who Built America” and “Stephen Jay Gould On Evolution.”

The first Library Colloquium at Fresno State is presented by the Office of the Provost, the Henry Madden Library and the Printise J. Womack Lecture Fund.

The colloquium continues on March 21 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Satellite Student Union with presentations from the following literary experts:

John Willinsky is a professor of education at Stanford University. His recent book, “The Access Principle: The Case for Open Access to Research and Scholarship,” has won two outstanding book awards. Much of his work, including open source software for journals and conferences, is free to download at the Public Knowledge Project (http://pkp.sfu.ca), which he directs at Stanford, University of British Columbia and Simon Fraser University.

Kathleen Fitzpatrick is an associate professor of English and media studies at Pomona College in Claremont. She is the author of “The Anxiety of Obsolescence: The American Novel in the Age of Television.” She is also the founder and coordinating editor of MediaCommons, an all-electronic scholarly publishing network in media studies.

Laura Cerruti is the director of Digital Content Development at University of California Press. She has alternately sold to books clubs and special markets, managed the paperback list, worked on revised editions in the California Natural History Guide series and acquired books in poetry and classical studies. Highlights from her recent projects include the Mark Twain Project Online and a number of print books, including “The Complete Poetry of Cesar Vallejo,” edited and translated by Clayton Eshleman.

Laura J. Miller is an assistant professor of sociology at Brandeis University. Her research interests include the book industry, marketing, and the consumer culture. Her book, “Reluctant Capitalists: Bookselling and the Culture of Consumption,” was published by University of Chicago Press in 2006.

Seating is limited on both days, so registration is required. More information on location, the program guide and registration are available at events.lib.csufresno.edu, or by calling the Henry Madden Library at 559.278.2587.