I have a lot of memories associated with the campus mail room. As an undergrad, I wrote a lot of letters, and sent them in envelopes with stamps, and got a fair number back. But email and Facebook is so much more efficient — I’m not surprised that campuses are looking at ways to put that unused space to better use.

As a student’s letter mail is deposited in the appropriate folder, a bar-code reader sends the student an e-mail alert. Students swipe their ID cards as they enter the facility, cueing employees to bring the mail to the counter to be picked up.

via Bad Omen for USPS? Lehigh U. Sells Its Mailboxes