Library Day 2025
Meet Anja, the Heart of Our Library!
To celebrate Library Day on October 24, we interviewed Anja Patt, Head of Library and Information Services at our research library. She shared insights into her work and her vision for the future of libraries.
Text: Pamela Ornelas
The scientific library of the Max Planck Institute of Biophysics and the Max Planck Institute of Brain Research counts with around 20,000 books in print, numerous theses, working spaces, booklet binding, and more. But its greatest asset is Anja Patt. Anja loves her work. Among her many responsibilities, she keeps track of all of publications from our Institute and ensures that our repositories stay up to date. She boosts the visibility to our research by highlighting our publications on the screens in our building and keeping them up to date in our website. Additionally, she oversees the acquisition of books and journals for our collection.
However, our library is much more than what meets the eye. As digitalization rapidly transforms how we access information, our library keeps expanding its digital presence. Thanks to licencing deals through the Max Planck Digital Library, we have access to a great number of international scientific journals, databases, and e-books. Anja is herself very excited about this shift. While she loves holding books in her hands, she acknowledges that physical libraries, especially in the life sciences, will continue to shrink. She sees the potential in digitalization and embraces the opportunity to keep learning and evolving.
That said, do not miss out on our printed collection! Our library offers rare books and journals that are not available digitally, as well as science-related literature, biographies, and popular science books. If you need support in your research, you can also find books on scientific writing, communication, illustration, and experiment design. And if you are new to town or looking for something to explore on the weekend, check out (literally!) the Frankfurt and Rhein/Main guides, available in English and German.
For more information about our library services, feel free to ask Anja for assistance. And if you need a break or a quiet place to work, enjoy the lovely view of the flower patch from the library.
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