Conclusion

The exhibit concludes that the acceptance of new principles is dependant on pre-existing beliefs and the culture of the society’s majority. The acceptance of "On the Origin of Species" in the US was divided since the belief in Creationism was high and people believed that evolution was conflicting with it. The American society had a Christian majority therefore, their pre-existing beliefs are very different from Darwin’s ideas. The theory of evolution would be banned from certain schools and the topic was avoided. However, as society’s culture changed and the impact of religion on academics was reduced, it became enforced by the legislature to teach the theory of evolution as it is foundational biology important for the progression of biological sciences.

The exhibit develops a new form of media by creating a digital platform to be used to better understand and study “On the Origin of Species”. Alan Liu in the article “Imagining the New Media Encounter” notes that in a new media encounter there will be a change in the work itself causing certain aspects to be lost and gained. The exhibit allows for increased accessibility of the book and its information. Allowing the first edition copy of the book to be observed from any screen with access to the internet. In the physical form, the majority of people would not have the opportunity to see and study the original copy. This can be due to limited quantity, preservation policies not allowing the book to be brought out for examination, or even economical limitations if individuals aren’t able to travel to places with the book. Therefore having it online would allow for increased exposure of the book to society. The exhibit also condenses items like photographs, a newspaper cartoon, painting, and more, digitally in one place. However, this is at the expense of bias since, in the conversion to a new medium, the items and facts shared about the book and its history were consciously selected to advance the message the exhibit attempted to prove. Another added aspect is preservation, in the book’s physical form foxing can be seen on the pages which would continually worsen as time progresses, damaging the work. In a digital platform, age-related damage is halted and a copy of the book is available online. The exhibit also allows for more control in seeking information, it allows the ability to retrieve data faster through the search function. When the item is digitized there is a degree of information lost, which includes physical touch information as that is its original medium. Digitization should not be a replacement for the book since as there is no doubt that it holds historical value. Which explains why it had been sold for much money even with several completely digitized versions available online for free.