Preservation is a difficult topic. It is like immortality. Do we want our work to live forever? Why? In our Records Management course we are learning about retention schedules. Sometimes, it is preferable or necessary to throw a record away or delete it when it has served its purpose.
If I think the results of my research are going to be valuable to others, I would then ask who, where, why, when and how? The answers to these questions would determine how I preserved it. Maybe I would want to preserve the research records for one year, maybe for ten years. One concern I have as a novice researcher is: what if I am embarrassed about the results of my research 10 years from now? What if it is stored somewhere in a group or organization's digital depository? What if I can't release it, or dispose of it if I want to?
My research project concerns reports written by 12 individuals about archives. These people will want to have access to the accumulated research and will deserve access. I will not have sole power or right to decide how or how long the records are preserved. Preservation is also an immediate concern. If the research is digitized somewhere where it can be altered or changed, then it will not be preserved in its original form. The records won't be authentic. If the results are published somewhere online, each individual would need to agree to the preservation location and method. Will the records be held in a digital depository that everyone has access to? May people change their submissions if they want to? If yes, the research changes. It is incomplete and therefore, can't be really preserved. However, some of the writers might say insulting things and that should be edited. If the research results are edited or censured, the original results are not preserved. When is the research finished? When is it ready to be embalmed digitally? When is it ready for immortality?
We are told that the earth, like each person, has a lifespan. If we discover life on other planets, I could send my research records digitally to another planet before our beautiful earth expires. Then the records may be forwarded again from one planet to another, on and on, forever. That's not the only option. I could build a pyramid and put a computer system inside the pyramid with as many different kinds of storage units as possible and hope, that my work becomes immortal. But, it won't. We learned in records management class that microfilm is one of the most endurable mediums. If I really wanted to be sure my reports endure, I would probably transfer them to microfilm I would also keep paper copies in various vaults and archives around the world. I would preserve my research records in as many different digital mediums as possible. It is likely I would set up a committee to monitor changes in technology and to transfer the results as required. If someone retired, someone new would be elected. I would write out the election procedures and preserve them with the results of my research. I am aware that there is a tongue in cheek aspect to my blog entry. I am making a point, but also having fun. I do think preservation is important in certain contexts. As an artist, I use acid free paper and the highest quality paint. Longevity is important. On the other hand, sometimes I come back to paintings I have done 10 years ago,, and feel they served a migratory purpose. I no longer need them. They didn't quite gel as fixed works of art. Sometimes, I dispose of them. This process of selection (sometimes preserving and sometimes throwing away) is, I think, a healthy one.
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