Science (journal)

**Science** is a weekly peer-reviewed journal published by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). It is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with a secondary office in Cambridge, England. First launched in 1880, the journal now has roughly 130,000 subscribers, though its total readership—including institutional and online access—is estimated to exceed 400,000.

The journal’s primary focus is publishing significant original research and review articles, but it also covers science news, policy opinions, and broader issues at the intersection of science and society. Unlike many specialized journals, *Science* and its competitor *Nature* span all scientific disciplines. Its 2024 impact factor was 45.8, according to the Journal Citation Reports. However, studies have noted that some high-prestige journals, including *Science*, sometimes publish work with substandard methodological structures, and that reliability in certain fields may decline with higher journal rank.

Authors do not need to be AAAS members to submit papers, and submissions come from around the world. Acceptance is highly competitive—fewer than 7% of submitted articles are published.

The journal was founded in 1880 by journalist John Michels, with financial backing from Thomas Edison and later Alexander Graham Bell. Edison received favorable editorial treatment in return, though the arrangement was not disclosed at a time when his reputation was struggling. The journal failed to attract enough subscribers and ceased publication in March 1882. Bell and Gardiner Greene Hubbard bought the rights and revived it a year later under entomologist Samuel H. Scudder, finding some success covering meetings of American scientific societies, including the AAAS. By 1894, *Science* was again in financial trouble and was sold to psychologist James McKeen Cattell for $500. In 1900, Cattell and AAAS secretary Leland O. Howard arranged for the journal to become the AAAS’s official publication.

Early 20th-century highlights included papers by Thomas Hunt Morgan on fruit fly genetics, Albert Einstein on gravitational lensing, and Edwin Hubble on spiral nebulae. After Cattell’s death in 1944, ownership passed to the AAAS. The journal lacked a steady editor until Graham DuShane took over in 1956. In 1958, he merged *Science* with *The Scientific Monthly*, boosting circulation from 38,000 to over 61,000. Physicist Philip Abelson, co-discoverer of neptunium, served as editor from 1962 to 1984, streamlining the review process and modernizing practices. During his tenure, the journal published papers on the Apollo missions and early AIDS reports. Subsequent editors included biochemist Daniel E. Koshland Jr. (1985–1995), neuroscientist Floyd E. Bloom (1995–2000), biologist Donald Kennedy (2000–2008), biochemist Bruce Alberts (2008–2013), geophysicist Marcia McNutt (2013–2016), Jeremy M. Berg (2016–2019), and Holden Thorp (2019–present). Under McNutt, the journal expanded its family to include *Science Robotics*, *Science Immunology*, and the open-access *Science Advances*.

In February 2001, *Science* and *Nature* simultaneously published draft human genome sequences—*Science* carrying the Celera Genomics paper, *Nature* the public Human Genome Project. In 2007, both journals received the Prince of Asturias Award for Communications and Humanity. By 2015, AAAS CEO Rush D. Holt Jr. noted that internationally co-authored papers had become the norm, rising from under 20% in 1992 to nearly 60%.

Online access to the latest issues is restricted to subscribers, AAAS members, and institutional IP addresses, with reduced fees for students and K–12 teachers. Research articles published after 1997 become freely available (with registration) one year after publication—a delayed open-access model. Public-health articles are sometimes free immediately. AAAS members can also access pre-1997 archives via “Science Classic.” The journal participates in initiatives like HINARI, OARE, AGORA, and Scidev.net to provide free or low-cost access in developing countries. The website also features “ScienceNow,” offering up-to-the-minute science news.