“Hey, Siri, what’s the circumference of Earth?”
“The circumference of Earth is 40,075 kilometres at the equator.”
“Alexa, how many vampire novels did Anne Rice write?”
“I found a webpage for you. Would you like me to open it?”
We’ve all experienced that slightly frustrating moment when Siri, Alexa, Cortana, or Google Assistant are unable to directly answer the questions we ask.
These voice assistants that interpret human speech and respond using a synthesized voice are modern marvels that even a century ago would have been seen as some form of magic or trickery.
However, as useful as they are in finding information, recognizing a particular song, or adding an event to our calendar, they do have significant limitations.
Here at Airdrie Public Library (APL), we love technology, but we also realize that while robots may one day be able to answer our questions, librarians still play a key role in helping people find, evaluate, and use information.
For instance, your library has a cool program called Book a Librarian.
Yes, you can book time with an APL staff member to help you with any information request.
They can help you navigate library resources and databases, and assist you with school, consumer and health information, genealogy and archive resources, and market and business research projects.
A staff person will help you plan a project and identify appropriate, credible resources to answer your questions.
Of course, if you’re writing a paper, they won’t do the actual research or type or proof your work, that’s up to you.
And they can’t offer any medical, financial, or legal advice.
While booking time with a librarian may not be as much fun as asking our voice assistants to tell you a dad joke or name a song, you will get the help you need.
For more information on your library’s programs and resources, visit www.airdirepubliclibrary.ca.
