The individual work cubicles (carrels) in the HNU library had already been named after leading figures before - however, only men from the field of economics were the inspiration for this. For this reason, the team of HNU Women's Representative Prof. Dr. Claudia Kocian-Dirr, together with Library Director Barbara Mäule-Müller, had spent the last few months developing a concept for a more balanced, diverse ratio of room signage. Now, both the already accessible six carrels on the first floor and the total of nine new group study rooms and compartments on the second floor, which are currently still being remodeled, have received their new signage. "The renaming or rebranding reflects the diversity at HNU much more vividly," explains Prof. Dr. Claudia Kocian-Dirr. "Now, on the one hand, all faculties are equally represented thematically, and on the other hand, several genders and nationalities are also represented."
Visibility and attention for the life's work of notable personalities
In addition to names, the signage includes brief biographies explaining the significance and role models of the outstanding men and women. "The signage is also intended to encourage our students to engage with the personalities, some of whom they already know and some of whom they are less familiar with," says library director Barbara Mäule-Müller. "We hope that with the project we can perhaps even awaken an interest in doing a little more in-depth research."
Among the namesakes selected are, for example, Konrad Zuse, who invented the world's first functioning computer, Florence Nightingale, who founded modern Western nursing, and Ingeborg Esenwein-Rothe, who for decades was considered a leading exponent of economic statistics in the German-speaking world.
The new signage at a glance
Carrels on the first floor (accessible)
- Ingeborg Esenwein-Rothe (reference to the Faculty of Economics)
- Joseph A. Schumpeter (reference to the Faculty of Business and Economics)
- Ingeborg Rapoport (reference to the Faculty of Health Management)
- Ignaz Semmelweis (Reference to Faculty of Health Management)
- Grace Hopper (relation to Faculty of Information Management)
- Konrad Zuse (reference to the Faculty of Information Management)
Group study rooms on the 1st floor (accessible soon)
- Alan Turing (relation to the Faculty of Information Management)
- Ludwig von Mises (reference to the Faculty of Economics)
- Gunta Stölzl (Faculty of Information Management)
- Florence Nightingale (Faculty of Health Management)
Compartments on the 1st floor (soon accessible)
- Dorothea Christiane Erxleben (reference to the Faculty of Health Management)
- John William Mauchly (reference to the Faculty of Information Management)
- Ada Lovelace (reference to the Faculty of Information Management)
- Eugen Schmalenbach (Reference to Faculty of Economics)
- Anna J. Schwartz (related to the Faculty of Business and Economics)
Contact persons at HNU
Prof. Dr. Claudia Kocian-Dirr
Barbara Mäule-Müller
