Before Google

First, let us think about a question: if Google can't answer our question these days, who are we gonna call? My answer is: a librarian, of course.

For the past couple of years, "librarian" has popped up on the Forbes list of Least Stressful Jobs. And even in this Age of the Search Engine, librarians keep making new discoveries.

Last week, I went to the Rose Library which belongs to Emory. It was interesting to find something different from the google site.

There was a typewritten note found on a cataloguing card:

“Telephone call mid-afternoon New Year's Day, 1967: Somewhat uncertain female voice: "I have two questions. The first is sort of an etiquette one. I went to a New Year's Eve party and unexpectedly stayed over. I don't really know the hosts. Ought I to send a thank-you note? Second. When you meet a fellow and you know he's worth twenty-seven million dollars — because that's what they told me, twenty-seven million, and you know his nationality, how do you find out his name?"

The library plans to begin posting some of the old questions on its Instagram accountin the coming days.

"We were Google before Google existed," The staff explained. "If you wanted to know if a poisonous snake dies if it bites itself, you'd call or visit us."Really? "Yes, that question was asked."Even with Google, Siri, OnStar and DuckDuckGo — among others — in the picture, the library continues to field queries. "We get about 1,700 reference questions a month via chat, email and phone", the staff says, including tougher questions that people can't answer —even with the Internet.