[00:00.000]From VOA Learning English,
[00:02.710]this is the Technology Report.
[00:05.750]What is a place where you could find
[00:08.500]old pictures of camels carrying people
[00:11.730]to Mecca, Saudi Arabia,
[00:14.070]and also books about ancient Aztecs in Mexico?
[00:18.750]It is all found inthe World Digital Library(WDL).
[00:20.440]It is all found inthe World Digital Library(WDL).
[00:23.190]Its collection is available on the Internet.
[00:26.920]The library has 8,000 items from whole books
[00:31.910]to ancient writings, to music and photographs.
[00:36.630]There are 170 partners in 79 countries
[00:41.320]sending material to the World Digital Library.
[00:45.850]Partners include national or university libraries,
[00:50.390]museums and other cultural organizations.
[00:55.370]The librarian of the United States Congress
[00:59.050]James Billington launched the WDL in 2009.
[01:04.980]John Van Oudenaren is the director of the library.
[01:09.760]He says Mr Billington wanted it to include items
[01:13.690]that are both interesting and important.
[01:17.080]"So we are looking for things that
[01:18.430]from each country, each culture, each civilization.
[01:21.610]Things that are unique and important
[01:24.250]and help to tell the story of that place."
[01:26.840]Every item is explained in the 6 official languages
[01:32.060]of the United Nations: English, Arabic,
[01:35.650]French, Spanish, Chinese, Russian plus Portuguese.
[01:41.120]Since 2009, 25 million people
[01:45.510]have visited the website from 250 places.
[01:49.900]The greatest number is from Spanish-speaking countries.
[01:53.780]Mr Van Oudenaren says users include schools,
[01:58.300]researchers and anyone interested.
[02:01.490]"People say this is what the Internet should be about.
[02:04.640]And that kind warms my heart."
[02:07.180]He was especially happy to hear from one teacher in New York City.
[02:12.150]"And she said it was really wonderful to have a site
[02:15.240]where every kid in the class, no matter what country they were from
[02:19.120]or where their parents were from could search and find something
[02:22.070]about that country that was interesting and important."
[02:24.410]Mussa Maravl is a researcher for the WDL from Sudan.
[02:29.430]He works with all the materials that are in Arabic.
[02:33.520]He recently published rare photographs of Mecca from 1885.
[02:39.490]"These camels were , you know, lying their heads on the ground,
[02:43.540]which is very unusual for a camel.
[02:46.020]It means these camels have travelled so far so long
[02:49.460]and half of those camels were very thin, too,
[02:54.040]meaning they have exhausted all the fat they have stored there."
[02:58.120]Mussa Maravl believes the library provides tools for understanding,
[03:03.240]especially among Arabs, Muslims and United States.
[03:08.530]He says the WDL is posting many items about important developments
[03:15.060]in Arabic and Islamic science.
[03:17.990]"The kind of cultural heritage you are promoting is exactly,
[03:22.780]I believe, what the world need to choose basically
[03:25.720]all these cultures contribute together
[03:29.800]to promote understanding throughout humanity in general."
[03:33.740]Anyone may search the World Digital Library by subject,
[03:38.620]time period, kind of document or area of the world.
[03:43.240]