Located on Lower Level Two (LL2) of the Tom Bradley Wing
Phone: (213) 228-7200 | Fax: (213) 228-7209 | E-mail (form)
https://www.lapl.org/branches/central-library/departments/science-technology-patents
Department Staff
Ani Boyadjian, Department Manager (213) 228-7223
Megan Katz, Senior Librarian (213) 228-7202
Materials & Collections
The Science, Technology & Patents Department has an extremely diversified collection. You can find information on mathematics, computers, cooking, automobile repair, UFOs, restaurant management, construction, engineering, cosmetology, medicine, zoology, botany, agriculture, pets, chemistry, nutrition, psychiatry, hotel management, and consumer information.
You can find building construction codes and lists of licensed contractors. There is a comprehensive collection of building codes of various types covering the City of Los Angeles, County of Los Angeles, and State of California codes, besides the Uniform Codes.
The department is the source for consumer information and carries copies of major consumer magazines, including Consumer Reports. The department keeps the various editions of the Kelley Blue Book for new and used car and truck prices, as well as other related sources.
The Los Angeles Public Library is a United States Patent & Trademark Office Depository Library. The Science, Technology & Patents department has a collection of U.S. patents dating from 1790. It is the largest patent collection on the West Coast. The department carries British patents back to the 17th Century. The Library is a depository of U.S. Trademark information, and for the Copyright Office of the Library of Congress. For more information, go to the Intellectual Property Information Section.
The Central Library is a U.S. and State of California Depository. Documents relating to science and technology can be found here. Environmental impact reports for the Greater Los Angeles Area are also available through depository arrangements with local government agencies. An index to environmental impact reports is available.
The Library's Business/Economics and Science, Technology, & Patents Departments offer seminars on patents, intellectual property, entrepreneurship, business on the Web, marketing and related business topics. All seminars are held in the Central Library's Mark Taper Auditorium at 630 West Fifth Street, Los Angeles, California. The seminars are co-sponsored by the Library's Business/Economics and Science, Technology, and Patents Departments.
Seminar information is posted on the LAPL Events Calendar: https://www.lapl.org/events
BEST Friends of LAPL
BEST Friends is the support group for the Business & Economics and Science, Technology & Patents Departments. For membership information, please contact by mail or email:
BEST Friends, P.O. Box 712217, Los Angeles CA, 90071 best.friends.lapl@gmail.com
Culinary Historians of Southern California
The Culinary Historians of Southern California (CHSC), founded in 1995, is a group of scholars, cooks, food writers, nutritionists, collectors, students, and others interested in the study of culinary history and gastronomy. The group's purpose is to provide a forum for the discussion of food in society and to support the culinary collections at the Los Angeles Public Library. At regular programs, usually held on the second Saturday of the month at the Central Library, invited speakers share their expertise on topics related to culinary history and gastronomy.
Dues of $25.00 a year entitle members to discounts on group publications and admission to special events. For further information please contact:
Culinary Historians of Southern California
Research Guides
The Science, Technology & Patents Department has prepared these guides to help you in beginning research on popular topics:
· Automobile Information Guide
· Environmental Impact Reports
· Exploring African-American Ingenuity
· Intellectual Property Resources
· Military and Industry Standards and Specifications