A research project involving a University of Nebraska-Lincoln professor could offer scholars a new way to analyze books from the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries.

Assistant English professor Matthew Jockers is part of a joint project with BookLamp, a private company, and several U.S. universities.

BookLamp uses digital tools to compare books by theme and writing style, and suggests other books a reader might like based on how closely they match previous reads.

To power its algorithm, company works with publishers across the industry to analyze thousands of titles in its Book Genome Project, which it launched in 2003.

Jockers says the arrangement represents a big step forward. For years, digital researchers have struggled to gain access to the results of digitally text-mined books.