The Way We Write History Has Changed

Instead of reading papers during an archival visit, historians can snap pictures of the documents and then look at them later.
Digital photos drive down the cost of archival research, allowing an individual to capture far more documents per hour.
So an archival visit becomes a process of standing over documents, snapping pictures as quickly as possible.
On the way out, you must prove that you’ve stolen nothing from the boxes kept in the vaults.
Shorter trips mean cheaper trips, which, Milligan predicts, will make archival work more accessible.