There's a world outside the ivory tower?

Interesting article in the New Republic about scholarly communications. See http://tinyurl.com/27bgv9s. "Toward a New Alexandria" by Lisbet Rausing.

It covers some familiar ground, but then says this:

"If scholars continue to hide away and lock up their knowledge, do they not risk their own irrelevance? An immediately important debate, I think, is to be had over how academics fail to engage with their natural constituency (and former students): journalists, business leaders, lawyers, entrepreneurs, politicians, and civil servants. These people are the ruling classes, if you would like. They are the ones who house and feed professors. Is it really in academics’ long-term interest to not let these well-educated and well-intentioned people as much as glance at, say, the Index of Christian Art? Is it really in their interest not to show the public their scholarly articles and academic monographs?"

I've heard lots about the problem of scholars publishing for each other in ways that will bankrupt libraries, from the points of view of scholars and libraries. I've heard much less from the point of view of outsiders wanting to read that scholarly publishing. Interesting.