Meet Hannah. Hannah's study group is looking at innovations in bicycle technology. She

talks to a reference librarian to make sure she's focusing on the best information about

patent law, trade flows, research and development, and traffic patterns. Her group posts its

hyperlinked notes to a collaborative learning space, which is accessed a day later by a

globe-spanning research team studying transmission patterns in E. coli-caused infant mortality.

The way Hannah maps traffic to underlying data suggests a way for them to report the

spread of new infections, unlocking insights which they publish in an open-access journal

along with deep links to supporting documentation from other scientists around the world. All

of this is automatically added to the microbiome catalog available through the library's search

service, which is cited by Justin, an undergraduate working on a paper about plagues in Asia Minor.

He posts a shout-out to his friends on Twitter for mash-ups of maps, annotated videos, images,

and music. Amazed to hear back that the 19th-century texts he's looking at are in the library,

he records a video log to tell everyone he's heading out to check out the real thing. Justin's

video inspires one of his professors to drill down a little deeper as she develops an online

course on nation building. A text-mining analysis opens her eyes about early transportation

systems. And when her class goes online, Hannah is notified of a new hit on her search for

the term "bicycle."

How is all of this possible? Because our diverse and unique collections, global networks, technology,

and expertise help merge the digital and physical world. Because we can help you assess, curate,

and make sense of the vast world of knowledge from early history to right now. And because

we can help you wherever you are whenever you need us and whatever you're studying.

Nurturing ideas that lead to more ideas: The Harvard Library.