Just a commons or garden idea

Ever-more imaginative names for university libraries have been dreamt up to impress potential students: "learning resource centres"; "learning labs"; "advanced study facilities" (OK, we made that one up). But nothing can compare to Sheffield University's "Information Commons". "Since the Middle Ages, the word 'commons' has meant a shared resource, so Information Commons reflects a shared information resource," says Sheffield's website. The name was apparently inspired by the commons on many US campuses.