In the past decade, there has been a sharp increase in the number of youth using the internet as a mean of educational research. But does this mean death for brick and mortar libraries? Not at all!

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In a recent joint study with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and the Pew Internet and American Life Project, they found that surprisingly the youngest adults are the heaviest library users with twenty one percent of Americans 18-30 turning to public libraries as source of information.  The study also found that library usage drops gradually as people age with only 12 percent of the general adult population relying on public libraries.

Lee Rainie, Pew’s director said, “the notion has taken hold in our culture that these wired-up, heavily gadgeted young folks are swimming in a sea of information and don’t need to go to places where information is” but that “the age of books isn’t yet over.”

While the most youth are relying on libraries as a source for making decisions about schooling, paying for it and getting job training, many are also using libraries to solve problems.

Many libraries have created large spaces for more computers and have also started using places previously used as stack areas or warehouse areas and replacing them with group study areas so patrons can begin to interact. Loriene Roy, President of the American Library Association says, “Libraries are creating social spaces.”

“We know everyone has problems and needs for information, and libraries still need to reach out to make sure people know” about the resources available to them <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags” />Roy says.