Letters: When old is gold

With reference to the editorial, "Paper lives on" (December 27), although the world is making advancements in technology, the pleasure of reading printed books cannot be replicated by e-books. The saying "old is gold" is apt. Books in physical form allow greater accessibility and proximity between the writer and the reader. This is in addition to how they activate the brain, stimulate imagination and encourage retention of memory.

E-books, on the other hand, are too mechanical and monotonous. Technology, at times, is so sophisticated that it overlooks basic convenience and destroys the quality of life at the same pace that it improves it. In the process, emotional and social bonds erode.

The present environment is over-dependent on technology and revolves around costing and pricing rather than utility and quality. This problem did not exist earlier, when erosion of natural resources was minimal. Mankind is increasingly distancing itself from nature.

Encouraging print will provide the rural population easier access to knowledge; discouraging it will create a social divide. Without print life will become artificial.

C Gopinath Nair, Bengaluru

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