More Information
While the tools and resources students and faculty need for research have evolved over the past century, the Library keeps pace by making sustained investments in technology and redesigned spaces, developing staff expertise, and by building preeminent collections that help UCLA researchers ask big questions and make important discoveries. No matter the challenges the campus may encounter, generations of donors have always been there to help the Library continue to power UCLA research.
These photos trace that evolution: from an early experiment in automated record keeping, as seen when a Biomedical Library clerk checks a periodical listing against a 550-page reference volume produced nightly by an IBM computer, to today’s technology-enhanced spaces built for collaboration and shared discovery.
They trace a shift from quiet, individual study to active group study; from primarily physical materials to millions of online resources now at students’ fingertips 24/7. It’s a foundation UCLA Library will keep building on as we open doors to opportunity for every Bruin.
See more historical images from University Archives(opens in a new tab)
