The "telref" line once got 1,000 calls per day. The Internet is making casual research easier -- Google, no doubt, took some of the library's load away, but the library also takes questions via e-mail and online chat.

According to the Times, librarians have five minutes to answer questions or refer the caller to someone or something else (like another library department). Researchers have a tendency to get caught up in research; the five minute deadline encourages them to be efficient.

While more questions are coming in through electronic channels, it's interesting to hear the librarians' take on the advantages of telephone calls:

"The voice, however, has advantages. The researcher can guess how old the caller is. Youngsters tend to be in a hurry; oldsters want to reminisce. Voices can also hint at urgency.

"The haughty and the impatient tend to be men, Ms. Shalat said. Physicians are the worst. 'It's not a man thing, it's a conceit thing,' Ms. Shalat said. 'This is Doctor So-and-So calling and I need blah blah blah. Run and get it, honey.'

"A person might ask, 'Tell me about Africa,' Ms. Shalat said. A few quick questions will elicit her real interest in animals, then in elephants, and finally the reproductive cycles of elephants. 'Now that's a question we can answer,' Ms. Shalat said.

"Getting to an answer can resemble jazz, with plenty of improvisation."

The New York Public Library's reference website has a form for e-mail questions and a link to a live chat system. The library takes calls from anyone, anywhere at 212-340-0849 Monday through Saturday, 9 AM to 6 PM Eastern Time.