i heart books

A while back, I read that 1 in 4 Americans read no books last year. It was interesting to me, b/c I am always hearing that people are comsuming far more information now than ever before. Apparently not much information is coming from books. It seems that people are turning away from books and turning to new media. What effect is this having on our culture? Are there physical effects, such as vision problems, b/c of this? I'm curious about the long terms effects of this trend.

I found this article at goodmagazine.com about people who are trying to help bring books "back to life". Is there something that designers can be doing? How can we help to maintain and encourage the imporant role books can play in our lives?

Poll: One in four adults read no books last year