"I made a decision at the time to have each quarter devoted to one important subject that each intelligent person would want to know about, whether he was a scientist, social scientist, humanist or alert layman. I knew of no other such American journal," Holton says.

Holton's idea to publish such a journal stems from his belief that science and the humanities should not be treated as separate fields.

"[Science and the humanities] are not in antithesis to each other," he says. "Rather, there is a commonality in our culture that brings them together."

Herschbach agrees that science and art have much in common.

"[In science] you are interested in whether or not you are asking the right questions. That's what you are always trying to do in science as well as in art--get a new perspective," he says. "If it really hits you and changes your experience, you say it is an important artistic contribution."

Holton says each journal is the result of discussions among a small group of scholars from diverse fields, who are hand-picked by the editor each quarter.

"I thought each [issue] should come out of a conference where the authors meet and discuss ideas," Holton says. "Discussions make the final papers much more coherent."

Journal themes have included everything from race and religion to education.

Since 1962, the Editor-in-Chief has been Stephen R. Graubard, who has "carried on brilliantly," Holton says.

One Step Ahead

Holton says one issue of Daedalus in particular, in which the magazine focused on arms control during the Cold War era, exemplifies the journal as a medium through which intellectuals can voice their ideas and differences on matters of national import.

In "Arms Control," Holton says he brought together "hawks and doves to see if one could clarify the other's statement."

In response to this issue, Holton received a letter from a "young senator"--John F. Kennedy '40--who wished to set up an arms control commission if he were elected President.

Holton says the journal is always at the forefront of intellectual thought and discourse. In the 1960s, the academy published two successive issues on the state of blacks in the U.S. titled "The Negro American," which "no foundation dared to support," Holton says. However, these Daedalus issues managed to carry an introduction by then-President Lyndon B. Johnson.

When it comes to topics of controversy, Holton says the journal tries to clarify issues and to "find bridges" between opposing beliefs.