Where do you go when you have a question and can’t find the answer yourself? Just ask the Google, you say? Then what do you do when Google spits out multiple answers, some that may contradict each other? And how do you know if that answer is even correct?
Do you ask an AI chatbot? We’ve heard the stories about AI’s unbelieveably unreliable answers. You could call a friend, ask around, but did you know that you can also just ask your question at the library?
You’ve been asking and library staff have been answering your questions for as long as public libraries have been around. What kind of questions? Every kind.
Recently, one of our staffers shared this newspaper clipping from 1925. The article talks about the many questions people were asking the current librarian, Miss Mary Johnston. In just one month, Miss Johnston answered over 300 questions about topics ranging from mythology to bacteria. It’s a pithy little article and an interesting window into our community a hundred years ago. (If anyone can explain the public’s interest in cheese that year, we’d like to know).
That was 1925. We’ve come a long way since then. You would think that people gradually stopped asking us questions, as news and information became more available. We’re living in the information age and we have the internet. By now, people have pretty much stopped asking us questions, right?
Nope. Last year our staff was asked and answered at least 6,000 questions and that was a slow year. We answer questions every day. If we can’t find your answer quickly, we’ll do some deeper research and get back to you. Yes, Google can give you an answer immediately but we’ll make sure the answer we give you is correct.
Ask us anything! We’ve answered questions from why our town is named Ravenna and how did Blackhorse get its name to whether or not there’s an alien spaceship orbiting Mars. A fairly common question is whether someone has ever died in a house/is it haunted. Kevin Gray, one of our librarians, said, “Once I had someone bring in their old birth certificate and asked if I could prove that she was that same person. She had doubts.”
Ask away at the library. Asking us your questions is not old-fashioned and you certainly won’t be the only one asking. Give us a call, stop by, or ask on our website form. We’ll find your answer and make sure it’s correct.
Sincerely, Cornelius 