The Invisible Library

The Invisible Library is dead, long live the Invisible Library! RIP, (1999-2006).

The curator of the Invisible Library, Malibu Lake Branch, Mr. Barrington, sent me an e-mail pointing out that the original, nicely designed, has disappeared from the ‘Net, except via the wayback machine. I’d posted about it a while ago as an example of crypto-cataloging. I miss the still interesting site design, but the catalog is not lost nor dead.

James Hay is maintaining a continuation of the original Invisible Library preserved from the wayback it seems, with additions.

There seems to be a somewhat active livejournal community for The Invisible Library.

There is what appears to simply be a single snapshot of a catalog for an Invisible Library posted on Aug ’08.

And, finally, Mr. Barrington and Ms. Fayaway’s own Invisible Library, Malibu Lake Branch.

The Invisible College
“In letters in 1646 and 1647, Boyle refers to ‘our invisible college’ or ‘our philosophical college’. The society’s common theme was to acquire knowledge through experimental investigation.”

“A traditional book is released in editions. When a work is revised or updated, a new edition is released. These revised or updated editions usually offer small, incremental changes, such as a new preface or introduction, a new chapter, or small changes to the content. An unbook is more like software … An unbook is mindware: software for the mind.”

The Invisibles
“Throughout history, a secret society called the Invisibles, who count among their number Lord Byron and Percy Shelley, work against the forces of order that seek to repress humanity’s growth.”

“Why unbook’d you say? Well because most of these stories are not going to get published, but they sure are fun to write…. one sentence at a time.”

“Hopefully you’ll find the information useful and I hope these images and words evoke emotions, inspire ideas and move people to take actions for a better world.”

“The Invisibles is an ensemble piece which means every character relies on the one next to them to give full value in terms of what the script is trying to achieve.”

“Each year, it is believed, thousands of young British Asian women are forced into marriages against their will. Those who resist face ostracism – or far worse.”

“Invisible people cast invisible votes. Can’t count what you can’t see.”

“Unfiltered, informal communications produced by communities of people who share an interest in a common subject or discipline. E-mail, personal conversations, conference papers, unpublished diaries, meeting minutes, phone calls, newsletters, memoranda, and other sources that may not pass through the usual publishing, broadcasting, and distribution channels.”

“The Invisible College, an expanding circle of educators, fosters and promotes community service learning as an effective educational tool. The Invisible College recognizes the transforming power of service learning to involve the academy as a responsible and inclusive member of the diverse community.” (Despite that the source links to a 404, they’ve moved several times and are now here.)

“As an entirely independent enterprise (and therefore free from the pressure to conform with consensus opinions) it provides a platform for new — and often controversial—ideas to get an airing. At the same time it encourages scientific standards of thinking and research in areas (such as pyramid studies) which have previously been bedevilled by woolly, ‘new-age’ thinking.”

“The sonic terrain staked out by The Invisible College is a slippery one; their approach leaving the listener suspended in a nocturnal no-man’s land …”

Nothing to See Here”

“I made this breakthrough not by learning facts about spiritual phenomena on the intellectual level, but by achieving a state of awareness and open-mindedness that enabled me to receive what my spirit guides were actually trying to communicate to me, rather than what my prejudiced and brainwashed conscious mind wanted to hear.”