ABSTRACT
This chapter bridges the theoretical foundations of the book detailed in the preceding chapters and the applications of these theories in various social contexts in subsequent chapters by tracing the evolution of the public sphere as physical and virtual place through the lens of the evolution of public libraries. As long-standing pillars of the public sphere, the history of libraries through the past several centuries serves as an ideal case study of the changes in the nature of public sphere entities and their effects on information worlds, maturing into a key link between small worlds and a source of information access for the lifeworld. As many other physical public sphere entities-such as the archetypical village green-have ceased to be common the library has became the only type of physical public sphere entity commonly found in most communities. This chapter explores this evolution in relation to what the public sphere entities have viewed as their responsibilities, the social roles and expectations for these entities across information worlds, the roles of technology in the public sphere, and the migration from the public sphere as a purely physical place to a frequently virtual place.
