Max-Planck-Institut für Wissenschaftsgeschichte

The Max-Planck-Institut für Wissenschaftsgeschichte (MPIWG) in Berlin, founded in 1994, is one of more than 80 research institutes of the Max Planck Society. It is dedicated to the analysis of scientific thinking and action as historical phenomena.

• Research Departments and Groups: The institute includes three departments led by Etienne Benson and Dagmar Schäfer, as well as several research groups led by junior Research Group Leaders. There is also a Research IT Group specializing in Digital Humanities, and an International Max Planck Research School (IMPRS)[4].
• Publications and Open Access: The MPIWG promotes open access to scientific knowledge and publishes research results freely accessible on the internet. This includes open-access monographs, preprint series, and regular essays on current research projects[1].
• Digital Humanities: The Digital Humanities Team develops and utilizes advanced digital resources and tools to enhance humanities research. They support researchers with digital workflows, develop specialized research tools, and ensure the highest standards of accessibility, usability, and sustainability of research results[5].

The main mission of the MPIWG is to analyze scientific thinking and action as historical phenomena, based on a historical epistemology. The institute investigates how new categories of thinking, proving, and experience have emerged in history. It advocates for open access to scientific knowledge and supports the Berlin Declaration on Open Access to Knowledge in the Sciences[1][3].

• Open Access and Digital Sustainability: The MPIWG is strongly committed to open access and ensures that research results are accessible and sustainably archived in the long term. This also includes the development of new electronic research tools and the establishment of new forms of publication[1].
• Digital Infrastructure: The Digital Humanities Team works closely with the library and research data management to ensure that all research data is handled according to the highest standards from planning to publication and archiving[5].

The Max-Planck-Institut für Wissenschaftsgeschichte is a central place for innovative and interdisciplinary research, characterized by its strong focus on open access, digital humanities, and the historical analysis of scientific thinking and action.

• 1 - https://www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/de/publikationen-ressourcen/open-access
• 2 - https://www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/de/video/wie-wir-wurden-was-wir-sind-75-jahre-max-planck-gesellschaft
• 3 - https://www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/de
• 4 - https://www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/research
• 5 - https://www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/research/digital-humanities