ABSTRACT
In Chapter 8, readers will think about the relationships between information, writing, and technologies, looking at both the past and present. Looking at the past, for example, will show readers instances when technologies have impacted the ways in which societies and people have gathered, written, shared, and protected information. In many Western societies, much credit has gone to Johannes Gutenberg for helping the spread of information with the printing press processes he developed in the mid-1400s. While Gutenberg’s work did make an impact on the world, just how big of an impact is up for debate. The story of Gutenberg and the printing press, like many stories of technology, is a complex and complicated one, one that is more related to an evolution than a revolution. Today, there are a number of technologies that have evolved over time to help writers gather, write, share, and protect information. Therefore, in this chapter, readers will learn general strategies for finding, sharing, and organizing credible information using a number of different technologies, from search engines to infographics.
