Contending that the reliance on digital data storage threatens civilization itself, Bergeron describes ways of protecting important data for businesses, libraries, and individuals. Coverage includes, for example, the transmission of knowledge throughout history, the information technology infrastructure, the psychological significance of nontangible documents, and the economics of network-based data storage. Computer consultant Bergeron teaches at Harvard Medical School and at MIT. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)