Educational Timeline

September 26th, 2000
Eric Larson

Books are banned:

Tomorrow, Jan 1, 2045 will herald the world-wide ban on the printing of books.

The world launches itself into the brave new world of electronic dissemination of information tomorrow -- it is with a tear we say "goodbye" to the beloved book. The Santiago conference of 2030, which had a goal of eliminating the use of forest products world-wide, recognized that paper products consumed an inordinant amount of resources. While controversial at the time, the banning of books was nonetheless a foregone conclusion as the land area required to support printing was just too excessive.

However, it is for the better. The world-wide ban on newsprint of 2035, then of cardboard in 2040, has saved tens of millions of acres of trees from being demolished to satisfy the world demand for paper. This final link, that of banning books, will save another 6 million acres of forest per year.

The demise of the book was assured in 2020 with the introduction of $1/sheet electronic Tyvek paper and the finishing of the wireless "net" in 2025. This "information everywhere, for everyone" access meant that traditional paper printing was an anachronism.