An arson fire in the early 90s that destroyed much of the Los Angeles public library's collection altered that conventional wisdom. Library officials at Harvard and nationwide began to re-examine their notions about the security of their collections.

One myth about Widener holds that the library uses an oxygen-suppressant system, which would spray a gas like halon to snuff out the fire but make it impossible for humans inside to breathe.

Not true, says Cline.

There is a halon system in Pusey--one that accidentally discharged over the summer, resulting in a day-long evacuation. But those systems have since been outlawed and Pusey's will be replaced soon.

Additionally, the fear of water on books is much less acute now that technology allows wet books to be repaired, while burned books cannot be.

Permanent Changes

The renovation also seeks to address some of the other shortcomings of the original design.

The original notion that light was good for books has since been proved wrong--it hastens their decay.