1) The Rise and Fall of Japan's Science Journals
The period from the end of World War I marked the first boom for science magazines aimed at the general public. Kagaku Gaho (Science Picture News) was first published in 1918, and Kagaku Chishiki (Scientific Knowledge) in 1921. Kodomo no Kagaku (Science for Children) first appeared in 1920 and has continued in various forms up to the present day.
The historical background for this boom in scientific interest begins with the Meiji Restoration. While studying Western science and technology, Japan had been expanding its industrial and R&D capabilities since the Meiji Restoration and was endeavoring to enhance the country's strength on the basis of these achievements. In addition, a liberal current known as "Taisho Democracy" also flowed beneath the surface of society at this time.
A little later, in 1931, Iwanami Shoten published a science journal from the orthodox school called Kagaku (Science), which emphasizes academic writing. This year marks the journal's 70th anniversary. From the 1930s up until World War II, general science magazines continued to be launched. These included Kagaku no Nihon (Scientific Japan, 1933), Sogo Kagaku (General Science, 1934), and Kagaku Pen (Science Pen, 1936). During the Pacific War, Kagaku Bunka (Science Culture, 1941), Seikatsu Kagaku (Science in Living, 1942) and Kagaku Shicho (Trends in Science, 1942) were established. The first issue of Kagaku Asahi (Science Asahi) came out in November 1941, on the eve of the war.
Science journals burst forth en masse following the end of the war. The magazine Kagaku no Tomo (Friends of Science) was launched toward the close of 1945, and was followed in 1946 by Kokumin no Kagaku (Science of the People), Kagaku no Sekai (The world of Science), Kagaku to Geijutsu (Science and Art), Kagaku Koron (Public Views on Science), Shizen (Nature), Bunkajin no Kagaku (Science for the Intellectual), Kagaku Shicho (Trends in Science), and Kagakuken (The Realm of Science). Of all the science journals that emerged in this post-war period, only Shizen continued until the 1980's.
From the 1950's to the 1960's, newspapers and news agencies established special departments for covering science and technology as they adapted to an age in which nuclear energy, space, and computers were becoming a practical reality. Newspapers gradually expanded to include articles and special columns on science, and "print" science journalism came to include both magazines and newspapers.
In the 1970's, concern grew regarding pollution and other environmental issues. Magazines such as Gijutsu to Ningen (Technology and Humankind, 1972) and Gendai Gijutsu Hyoron (Essays on Modern Technology, 1974) were established with the purpose of monitoring and criticizing science and technology from the standpoint of the general public.
1971 marked the launch of Nikkei Science, the Japanese version of Scientific American. This journal spearheaded the trend for visual scientific journals in Japan.
The early 1980s was a competitive period for visual magazines. The year 1981 witnessed the establishment of Newton, COSMO, and the Japanese edition of Popular Science. Large publishing companies followed these journals in 1982 with Omni, UTAN, Quark, and Technopolis. In 1983, Koper 21 and other magazines targeting elementary students were established.
The concept shared by all these magazines was the visual enjoyment of science. The magazines featured such subject matter as new solar systems photographed by space probes and microscopic worlds clarified through life science. This was an age in which computers were becoming commonplace. Under such circumstances, these new visual magazines were welcomed by many readers, including young people and homemakers, and sold well for a time.
Of these magazines, however, only Newton and Trigger survived. Science magazines ultimately became a passing fad and were unable to increase their readership. When Japan's economic bubble burst, the magazines entered a bleak, wintry period.

2)Overseas Science and Technology Magazines
The British magazine nature, first published in 1869, and the American magazine Science, founded by Thomas Edison in 1880, are both well known to scientists and renowned as academic journals. Magazines aimed at more general readers include Scientific American and Popular Science, both monthly journals published in the US. Scientific American was initially launched as a weekly in 1845, but assumed its current monthly journal format in 1921. The magazine is distributed in eleven countries worldwide, including Japan.
Other journals with Japanese editions are Popular Science, established in 1872, and National Geographic, a magazine with a natural history focus that was first published in 1888.
America also witnessed a boom in new science journals in the early 1980s. One typical example is Omni, first published in 1978, which attracted readers with its strong emphasis on entertainment. Other science journals aimed at a broad audience appearing one after another during the same period include Discover, first published in 1980, and Science 80, established in 1979. However, Discover is one of the few in this group that is still published today.
Other well-known science journals include the British New Scientist, first issued in 1956, and the French Science & Vie, issued from 1913.