The way in

Directing the flow: the use of yet another Highway Code symbol is found at the entry point in to the library area of the Kirkwall Library. Familiarity with the Highway Code has already been touched upon above, so this photo will also focus on the 'No mobile phones' sign. The barrier for entrance in to the library is obvious by the white arrow on a blue background, which normally stands for 'One Way'; not only does this show the way in to the area, but also indicates from the outset that the premises expect people to follow one route only, because 'One Way' means 'one way' by default. Maybe this is working at the level of instructing users of the library that they will comply with following a set route once inside the library area, since they have been subconsciously programmed to by the very visual cue of the sign recognised by the consciousness before they even enter. This can ensure that there are no crowd problems within the building because the flow of human traffic is in theory only going one way; and nobody will collide with anybody on the way in or out because these signs ensure this does not occur. The 'No mobile phones' visual cue is obviously not seen to be as familiar to people, because it has the words beneath the symbol of the mobile phone; maybe this is in case it is mistaken for another object such as a calculator. However, in theory, an image of a mobile phone will be more instantly recognisable to a minor than a Highway Code sign will be, but apparently society does not deem this to be the case, and have therefore opted, in this instance, to use road sign symbols in the knowledge that minors will comprehend them, even though they do not drive, but may own a mobile phone, and therefore not need to be informed in words as to what the latter symbol indicates. It may be the case that the Highway Code signs have been in existence for longer than the mobile phone and as such it is expected that everybody is able to have acquired a familiarity with those particular signs, and that in the future as new technology appears, only the signs relating to them will have written words for clarification and that the mobile phone signs and so forth will no longer require a written explanation.