The history of science increasingly relies on innovative developments in the Digital Humanities to present its scholarly results. Databases, digitized historical sources, computer-based tools for their analysis, as well as the network of links integrating them with scholarly interpretations all play an important role. In 2012, the Edition Open Access (EOA) platform was founded to bring together publication initiatives that seek to disseminate the results of their work in a format combining traditional publications with the digital medium. It currently hosts the open-access publications of the Max Planck Research Library for the History and Development of Knowledge (MPRL) and Edition Open Sources (EOS). EOA is open to hosting other open access initiatives similar in conception and spirit, in accordance with the Berlin Declaration on Open Access to Knowledge in the sciences and humanities, which was launched by the Max Planck Society in 2003 and is supported by more than 400 signatory institutions worldwide.
The Max Planck Research Library for the History and Development of Knowledge comprises a number of subseries, among them Studies, Proceedings, and Textbooks. They present original scientific work submitted under the scholarly responsibility of members of the Scientific Board and their academic peers. The publications of the Studies series are dedicated to key subjects in the history and development of knowledge, bringing together perspectives from different fields and combining source-based empirical research with theoretically guided approaches. The Proceedings series presents the results of scientific meetings on current issues and supports, while at the same time offering further cooperation on these issues through an electronic platform with further resources and the possibility for comments and interactions. The Textbooks volumes are prepared by leading experts in the relevant fields.
Edition Open Sources (EOS) pioneers a new paradigm for publishing historical sources. This joint venture of the University of Oklahoma Libraries and the Library of the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science publishes academic editions of primary sources in the history and development of knowledge alongside facsimile reproductions of the original source, transcriptions, and/or translations. The sources presented in this series may be rare books, manuscripts, documents, or data that are not readily accessible in libraries and archives.
In 2021, the project was relocated to the Institute's library where—in cooperation with all departments of the Institute—it will be advanced to create more innovative and inclusive publication solutions for the Digital Humanities.
