User:Ragesoss/Nature (journal)

Nature is an international scientific journal composed of research publications reviewed by peers in most areas of science and technology. It is one of the oldest scientific journals still in existence today.

Nature was first established in England in 1869 by Sir Norman Lockyer. Although several scientific journals were in circulation in England prior to the existence of Nature, including Recreative Science: A Record and Remembrancer of Intellectual Observation, Popular Science Review, Quarterly Journal of Science, Scientific Opinion, and The Reader, all of which were created in the second half of the 19th century, Nature was the only journal to survive. Although it is unclear exactly why Nature received the success that it did over other journals of its kind, historian Janet Browne has suggested that the relatively progressive, controversial nature of the journal’s first articles and writers may have aided in increasing the number of Nature readers. Many of Nature’s early publications included evolutionary theory and Darwinism, which at that time in England was in fact a divisive issue due to its radical nature and its religious implications. Another explanation for the journal’s achievement was given by Sir John Maddox, a former editor of Nature. Maddox proposed that it was Nature’s more journalistic style of writing and publication that allowed for its triumph.

Since its conception in 1869, Nature has undergone much change and growth. Nature now has at least ten different journals covering a variety of scientific and technological issues, from cell biology to immunology; Nature has also launched a number of webpages. In addition, Nature Publishing Group, which now encompasses Nature and Nature Research Journals, among other works, plans to initiate six new journals in 2007 and 2008.

Scientific journals preceding Nature
Nineteenth-century England was home to a great deal of scientific progress; particularly in the latter half of the 19th century, England underwent enormous technological and industrial changes and advances. In addition, during this period, the number of popular science periodicals doubled from the 1850s to the 1860s. According to the editors of these journals, the publications were designed to serve as “organs of science,” in essence, a means of connecting the public to the scientific world.

Nature, first created in 1869, was most certainly not the first journal of its kind. One journal to precede Nature was entitled Recreative Science: A Record and Remembrancer of Intellectual Observation, which, created in 1859, began as a natural history magazine and progressed to expand its contents over the course of its existence to include more physical observational science and technical subjects and less natural history. This broadening of content could be detected in the journal’s name changes from its original title to Intellectual Observer: A Review of Natural History, Microscopic Research, and Recreative Science and then later to the Student and Intellectual Observer of Science, Literature, and Art. Recreative Science attempted, as mentioned, to include more physical sciences such as astronomy and archaeology, while Intellectual Observer broadened itself further to include literature and art along with the science of the era. Similar to Recreative Science was the scientific journal entitled Popular Science Review, created in 1862. Although its subject matter was very similar to Recreative Science, Popular Science Review attempted to keep readers more informed on the progress of the numerous scientific branches by creating subsections entitled ‘Scientific Summary’ or ‘Quarterly Retrospect,’ in which book reviews and commentary were included to update the audience on the latest scientific works and publications. Two other journals produced in England prior to the development of Nature were entitled the Quarterly Journal of Science and Scientific Opinion, founded in 1864 and 1868, respectively. The journal most closely related to Nature in its editorship and format was entitled The Reader, created in 1864; the publication mixed science with literature and art in an attempt to reach an audience outside of the scientific community, similar to Popular Science Review.

However, each of these publications ultimately failed. The Popular Science Review was the longest to survive, lasting 20 years and ending its publication in 1881; Recreative Science ceased publication in the form of the Student and Intellectual Observer in 1871, while the Quarterly Journal, after undergoing a number of editorial changes, ceased publication in 1885, The Reader terminated in 1867, and finally, Scientific Opinion lasted a mere 2 years, until June 1870.

The creation of Nature
Not long after the conclusion of The Reader, a former editor, Norman Lockyer, decided to create a new scientific journal entitled Nature. First owned and published by Alexander MacMillan, Nature, the first edition of which was created in November 1869, was similar to its predecessors in its attempt to “provide cultivated readers with an accessible forum for reading about advances in scientific knowledge.” How, then, was Nature able to outlast other scientific journals created at the same time in England and become arguably one of the most prestigious scientific journals in modern society? Janet Browne has proposed that “far more than any other science journal of the period, Nature was conceived, born, and raised to serve polemic purpose.” Many of the early editions of Nature consisted of articles written by members of a group that called itself the X Club, a group of scientists known for having liberal, progressive, and somewhat controversial scientific beliefs relative to the time period. Initiated by Thomas Henry Huxley, the group consisted of such important scientists as Joseph Hooker, Herbert Spencer, and John Tyndall, along with another five scientists and mathematicians; these scientists were all avid supporters of Darwin’s theory of evolution, a theory which, during the latter-half of the 19th century, received a great deal of criticism among more conservative groups of scientists. Perhaps it was in part its scientific liberality that made Nature a longer-lasting success than its predecessors. John Maddox, editor of Nature from 1966 to 1972 as well as from 1980 to 1995, suggested at a celebratory dinner for the journal’s centennial edition that perhaps it was the journalistic qualities of Nature that drew readers in; “journalism” Maddox states, “is a way of creating a sense of community among people who would otherwise be isolated from each other. This is what Lockyer’s journal did from the start.” In addition, Maddox mentions that the financial backing of the journal in its first years by the Macmillan family also allowed the journal to flourish and develop more freely than scientific journals before it.

Whatever the cause, Nature has thrived for 137 years and continues to publish relevant and substantial scientific papers.

Nature in the 20th Century
Nature underwent a great deal of development and expansion during the 20thcentury, particularly during the latter half of the 1900s.

Editors
In 1919, Sir Richard Gregory followed Sir Norman Lockyer to become the second editor of the journal. Gregory helped to establish Nature in the international scientific community; as it is stated in his obituary by the Royal Society, “Gregory was always very interested in the international contacts of science, and in the columns of Nature he always gave generous space to accounts of the activities of the International Scientific Unions.” During the years 1945 to 1973, editorship of Nature changed three times, first to A.J.V. Gale and L.J.F. Brimble in 1945 (who in 1958 became the sole editor), then to Sir John Maddox in 1965, and finally to David Davies in 1973. In 1980, Sir John Maddox returned as editor and retained his position until 1995, at which point he retired and Dr. Philip Campbell became Editor-in-chief of all Nature publications, a position that he still holds today.

Important events in Nature’s expansion and development
In 1970, Nature first opened its Washington office; other branches opened in New York, Tokyo, Munich, Paris, San Francisco, and Boston in 1985, 1987, 1987, 1989, 2001, and 2004, respectively. Starting in the 1980’s, the journal underwent a great deal of expansion, launching over ten new journals; in 1983, Nature created Bio/technology, which was later renamed Nature Biotechnology, while Nature Genetics, Nature Structure Biology, Nature Medicine, Nature Neuroscience, Nature Cell Biology, and Nature Immunology were developed in 1992, 1994, 1995, 1998, 1999, and 2000, respectively. These now comprise Nature Publishing Group, which was created in 1999 and includes Nature, Nature Research Journals, Stockton Press Specialist Journals and Macmillan Reference (renamed NPG Reference). In 1997, Nature created its own website, www.nature.com, and in 1999 Nature Publishing Group began its series of Nature Reviews; Nature Reviews Neuroscience, Nature Reviews Cell Biology, and Nature Reviews Genetics were the first to be published in 1999, with many others to follow in later years, including Nature Reviews Cancer and Nature Reviews Technology, both of which were first published in 2001, as well as Nature Reviews Drug Discovery, which was initiated in 2002, and Nature Reviews Microbiology, which was developed in 2003.

The Future of Nature
Nature Publishing Group plans to initiate Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics, “the official journal of the American Society of Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics,” in 2007; Nature Publishing Group also plans to publish Molecular Therapy, intended to be the American Society of Gene Therapy’s official journal, as well as Nature Photonics and the International Society for Microbial Ecology (ISME) Journal, all of which will launch in 2007. In 2008, Nature Geoscience is slated to commence publication.