By Zhang Daqing (Former Director of the Medical Library at Peking University)
Reading in the digital age is no longer confined to traditional printed books and magazines. Various reading methods have emerged, including e-books, social media, online forums, audiobooks, and videos. Digital reading brings readers more enjoyment, as they can interact with authors and fellow readers through comments, shares, and likes, forming a more dynamic reading community. Many digital reading platforms use personalized recommendation algorithms to suggest content that aligns with users' reading history, interests, and preferences, enhancing the reading experience and efficiency.
However, reading in the digital age tends to be fragmented and fast-paced, leading people to prefer quick browsing and information retrieval rather than deep reading and contemplation. I believe digital reading can be roughly categorized into three types: browsing, searching, and perusing.
First, browsing involves readers actively selecting content based on their needs and interests, offering high autonomy and flexibility. Browsing has become a primary way for most people to obtain information. However, if readers wish to search and filter information independently, they may spend a long time finding content that meets their needs, resulting in inefficient information retrieval. Browsing is influenced by individual interests and subjective choices, often causing readers to overlook potentially valuable information resources.
Related to browsing is knowledge push, where information providers typically use intelligent algorithms to customize content based on readers' interests, reading history, and behavior patterns. In theory, push algorithms may exhibit filter bias, causing readers to receive only content that aligns with their past browsing behavior, limiting the range and diversity of information. In reality, because readers find it difficult to pre-screen and evaluate the quality and credibility of pushed content, they may also receive low-quality or erroneous information. Therefore, browsing may theoretically lead to the formation of information cocoons, where individuals tend to read information that aligns with their own views, limiting their exposure to different perspectives and information.
However, readers can avoid this by actively seeking and reading information from different viewpoints, maintaining an open mindset towards diverse perspectives, not blindly accepting the information they read, and objectively evaluating and analyzing the information they consume.
Second, searching involves purposeful reading to obtain specific information. Search-based reading is typically aimed at solving specific problems or obtaining particular information. Currently, readers mainly use databases and online search engines to obtain the information they need, although they can also conduct offline searches at libraries.
Searching emphasizes efficient information retrieval, with readers usually employing methods such as keyword, author, and title searches. The focus of searching lies in the density and quality of literature or information, with readers selectively reading and referencing authoritative literature and reliable sources of information. However, searching also has its limitations. Readers often rely on past reading experiences or guidance from teachers and peers, with clear goals but possibly only reading parts of the text relevant to their needs while overlooking other content, especially related but not directly relevant information, resulting in an incomplete understanding of the problem.
Moreover, in the age of information explosion, various databases or online searches can generate a large amount of information, requiring readers to spend a considerable amount of time and effort to sift through it.
Third, although perusing books at the library is a traditional reading method, it still holds significant value in the digital age. Perusing various types of books at the library, whether novels, history books, popular science literature, or academic journal articles, helps broaden one's horizons and understanding of different fields of knowledge. Perusing different materials and works can inspire thinking, expand the boundaries of thought, and spark innovative ideas.
Perusing literary works at the library enriches personal emotional experiences, perusing cultural and artistic books can cultivate aesthetic tastes and cultural literacy, perusing history and philosophy books can help understand the development process of human society, comprehend the formation and changes of various cultures, systems, and social phenomena, understand different philosophical viewpoints and intellectual traditions, and enhance understanding and respect for the diversity of the world. Particularly, reading philosophical works helps provoke self-reflection, examining one's inner world, and promoting personal spiritual growth.
Perusing various books freely at the library is essentially a dialogue and exchange with the wise. Perusing a large number of books and materials regularly helps improve reading abilities, including reading speed, good reading habits, and skills.
Sitting in a quiet corner of the library, immersing oneself in the sea of thought, encountering the source of wisdom. Here, thoughts roam freely, and the soul settles and elevates. Here, accompanied by books, one engages in dialogue with the ancients. So, let's go to the library, envision life, and enjoy the wonderful life of reading.
