How do we read today? Offline and online, print book and ebook

Reading always also implies the use of a specific medium of reading. Whether it is a print book, a laptop, an ebook reader, a tablet, or a smartphone – the technological possibilities of the medium fundamentally shape our reading experience; and this has far-reaching cognitive and social effects.

As the lively pre-course discussion on the Welcome Page has shown, many of you read literature not just in one medium but in at least two. In our learning community, ebook readers and print books seem to be the favorite reading media. A sizeable minority has abandoned reading print books altogether, be it for reasons of space, mobility, or money. A majority treasures print books for their sensuous and aesthetic qualities, valuing their look, touch, and smell. In this video, Philipp Schweighauser briefly touches on some of the material qualities and different social and cognitive effects of different reading media. Week 6 of this course will be devoted entirely to this topic.