The ''Journal of Irreproducible Results'' is a
magazine of science humor. It was established in
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
in 1955 by
virologist
Virology is the scientific study of biological viruses. It is a subfield of microbiology that focuses on their detection, structure, classification and evolution, their methods of infection and exploitation of host cells for reproduction, thei ...
Alexander Kohn and
physicist
A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe.
Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...
Harry J. Lipkin, who wanted a humor magazine about science, for
scientists
A scientist is a person who conducts scientific research to advance knowledge in an area of the natural sciences.
In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, philosophers engaged in the philosophica ...
. It contains a mix of jokes,
satire
Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming ...
of scientific practice, science cartoons, and discussion of funny but real research.
It has passed through several hands and as of 2015 is published in
San Mateo, California.
History
Alexander Kohn and Harry J. Lipkin founded ''The Journal of Irreproducible Results'' in 1955 in
Ness Ziona
Ness Ziona ( he, נֵס צִיּוֹנָה, ''Nes Tziyona'') is a town in central Israel. In it had a population of , and its jurisdiction was 15,579 dunams ().
History Early history
Lying within Ness Ziona's city bounds is the ruin of an Arab vi ...
, Israel. Kohn remained editor until 1989. Lipkin remained an editor until volume 16, number 1, August 1967, when Kohn became Editor-in-Chief, and Lipkin became one of the associate editors.
Medical researcher
George H. Scherr
George may refer to:
People
* George (given name)
* George (surname)
* George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George
* George Washington, First President of the United States
* George W. Bush, 43rd Preside ...
was the publisher from 1964 to 1989, after which ''JIR'' was published by
Blackwell Scientific Publications. Under Blackwell, James A. Krosschell was editor and publisher starting with volume 35, number 1, 1990, and remained publisher throughout the Blackwell ownership.
Marc Abrahams was editor from 1991, to the next-to-last Blackwell issue in 1994, when he left to form the rival ''
Annals of Improbable Research'' (''AIR'') and create the
Ig Nobel Prize
The Ig Nobel Prize ( ) is a satiric prize awarded annually since 1991 to celebrate ten unusual or trivial achievements in scientific research. Its aim is to "honor achievements that first make people laugh, and then make them think." The name o ...
. The final Blackwell issue, volume 39, number 3, was edited by Leslie A. Gaffney.
In 1994, Blackwell returned ''JIR'' to George Scherr, who was publisher and editor until 2003, during which time he pursued a number of legal complaints against Abrahams and ''AIR'', even as the journal's publication became erratic.
''JIR'' received attention from American
military intelligence
Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist commanders in their decisions. This aim is achieved by providing an assessment of data from a ...
when a copy of one of their articles was found among other papers in an abandoned terrorist headquarters in
Kabul
Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into 22 municipal districts. Acco ...
. The article was a highly unrealistic and farcical explanation of how to build a
nuclear weapon
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions ( thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bom ...
that some unwitting
Al Qaida
Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arabs
The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 3 ...
member had filed away. Nonetheless, the discovery prompted a short-lived official investigation.
Astronomer
Norman Sperling, an assistant editor at ''
Sky & Telescope
''Sky & Telescope'' (''S&T'') is a monthly American magazine covering all aspects of amateur astronomy, including the following:
*current events in astronomy and space exploration;
*events in the amateur astronomy community;
*reviews of astronomic ...
'' magazine, became editor and publisher of the journal in 2004, with promises to rejuvenate it.
See also
* ''
Journal of Polymorphous Perversity''
References
External links
* {{webarchive , url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190926055757/http://www.jir.com/, date=26 September 2019 , title=Official website archived
1955 establishments in Israel
Bimonthly magazines published in the United States
Science and technology magazines published in the United States
Satirical magazines published in the United States
Magazines established in 1955
Magazines published in California
Professional humor
Humor magazines