TY - JOUR
AU - Colin Burke
AB - Information history is moving beyond listing the “what” and to answering how-and-why systems emerged, prospered, or died. This paper explores the nature of (and debates over) explanation in historical studies. The conclusion is that the history of information has to rely upon complex explanations that are a mixture of social science and humanities approaches. There are no formulas for such historical work, as shown by Boyd Rayward’s sensitive efforts on the history of Paul Otlet’s career and personal life.
BT - Library Trends
IS - 2
LA - English
N2 - Information history is moving beyond listing the “what” and to answering how-and-why systems emerged, prospered, or died. This paper explores the nature of (and debates over) explanation in historical studies. The conclusion is that the history of information has to rely upon complex explanations that are a mixture of social science and humanities approaches. There are no formulas for such historical work, as shown by Boyd Rayward’s sensitive efforts on the history of Paul Otlet’s career and personal life.
PY - 2013
SP - 293
EP - 301
T2 - Library Trends
TI - Thanks, Prof. Rayward, for Explaining . . .
VL - 62
ER -