
A History of Scientific Journals Publishing at the Royal Society, 1665-2015
"A History of Scientific Journals" explores the significance and purpose of scientific journals in a changing research community. The book delves into the editorial management, business practices, and financial struggles of the Philosophical Transactions and its sibling Proceedings, highlighting their role in academic research and career development. The book's authors draw on the Royal Society's archives, spanning over 350 years, to provide insight into the evolution of scientific journals since Isaac Newton's time. The book is praised for its erudition and acuteness by Nature.


Table of Contents:
List of figures
List of tables
List of abbreviations
Contributor roles
Acknowledgements
Introduction: Origins Myths
Part I Invention, 1665-1750
1 The first Philosophical Transactions, 1665-1677
2 Repeated Reinventions, 1677-1696
3 Stabilising the Transactions, 1696-1752
4 The Transactions and the wider world, c.1700-1750
Part II Maturity and Institutionalisation, 1750-1820
5 For the Use and Benefit of the Society, 1750-1770
6 Sociability and Gatekeeping, 1770-1800
7 Circulating Knowledge, c.1780-1820
Part III The Professionalization of Science, 1820-1890
8 Reforms, Referees and the Proceedings, 1820-1850
9 Editing the Journals, 1850s-1870s
10 Scientific Publishing as Patronage, c.1860-1890
Part IV The Growth of Science, 1890-1950
11 The Rise of the Proceedings, 1890-1920s
12 Keeping the Publications Afloat, 1895-1930
13 Why do we Publish? 1932-1950
Part V The Business of Publishing, 1950-2015
14 Selling the Journals in the 1950s and 1960s
15 Survival in a Shrinking, Competitive Market, c.1970-1990
16 Money and Mission in the Digital Age, 1990-2015
Reflections: Learning from 350 years
Bibliography
Index