WSJ: Looking like a massive computer chip or the disc of the sun rising up from the Mediterranean coast, the hypermodern successor to the ancient library of Alexandria stands out as a beacon of hope, efficiency and enlightenment among the crumbling buildings of Egypt’s second-largest city…In less than 10 years of operation, the library has introduced information technology considered cutting edge anywhere on the globe. Its researchers have devised optical character-recognition software for Arabic and digitized key manuscripts for dissemination over the Internet. With some 1.5 million visitors and 700 events last year, the Bibliotheca Alexandrina (the library is formally known by its Latin name) has become a gathering place for scientists, literary figures and other thinkers from around the world.”