Magazine Monday: Popular Science

Review of Popular Science
by Steven D. Mathews, Library Assistant

The Yocum Library subscribes to the print edition of Popular Science, a magazine that features accessible articles not only about current science topics but also predictions about the future.

This general-audience magazine also has a long history of evolution. The periodical was first published in the mid-nineteenth century as a monthly scholarly journal that housed some of the writings of Charles Darwin, Thomas Edison, William James, Charles Sanders Peirce, John Dewey, and other fin-de-siècle pioneers in science, philosophy, and technology.

However, the twentieth century created numerous problems for the publishers of Popular Science Monthly in terms of declining readership and sales. In 1915, the articles for educated readers were taken up by the publishers of what would eventually be named Science later in the century. This split created an opportunity for the writers and editors of Popular Science to focus on disseminating their knowledge into bite-sized articles for the general public that focused on everyday technologies and trades (e.g., cars, electronics, and other mechanics).

Starting in January 2016, Popular Science became a bi-monthly periodical, which means they only publish six issues a year—a big change after publishing one issue each month since 1872. The issues reviewed—Nov/Dec 2016, “100 Greatest Inventions,” and Jan/Feb 2017, “Explore”—separate into four pithy titles: Now, Next, Features, and Manual. 

The Now sections contain nuggets on some of today’s existing tools, experiments, crises, and gadgets, such as the Apple Watch, Uber’s self-driving cars, and how the tablet is replacing the laptop (or not). The Next sections speculate on potential explorations of deep space and oceans, twenty-second century climate predictions, and what “psychonauts” can learn about the benefits and harms of injesting various drugs and substances. 

The Manual sections are perhaps the most interesting and practical. For example, the “Explore” issue contain lists of essentials for “The Modern Explorer” (besides your smartphone): food, power, another “burner” phone, communication in cellular-lacking areas, first aid, water, navigation, and rain protection. 

Three of these sections (Now, Next, and Manual) average 1–2 pages, which leaves room for a few detailed featured articles. The latter are not simply pages and pages of text, however. They include large photos, designs, and creative approaches to narrative. 

For example, one feature, “The Proxima Trail,” found on p. 69 of “Explore,” is written completely as screenshots (on an Apple II, to boot!) that imitate the classic Oregon Trail video game from the 1970s and 80s. Instead of going from Missouri to Oregon in the middle of the nineteenth century, however, the Proxima Trail takes to you a new solar system during a nine-year journey (3017–3026). The parallels are astonishing, nonetheless.