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42-403: The magazine was launched by a small, London-based independent publishing house, Harrison Raison, which in 1956 had successfully launched New Scientist , a weekly magazine to serve the natural sciences. The idea was to create a comparable magazine about the social sciences. The cultural commentator Robert Hewison wrote that New Society became "a forum for the new intelligentsia ", created by

84-408: A management buyout to what is now TI Media . In April 2017 New Scientist changed ownership when RELX Group , formerly known as Reed Elsevier, sold the magazine to Kingston Acquisitions, a group established by Sir Bernard Gray , Louise Rogers and Matthew O'Sullivan to acquire New Scientist . Kingston Acquisitions then renamed itself New Scientist Ltd. The New Scientist was subsequently sold to

126-764: A "slightly updated design, with ... a fresher, brighter feel". A dedicated "Views" section was added between news reports and in-depth features, including readers' letters, comment, and reviews on science, culture and society. Regular columnists were introduced, and columns in the culture pages. The light-hearted "Back Pages" includes the long-standing Feedback and The Last Word, puzzles, and a Q&A section. Online readership takes various forms. Overall global views of an online database of over 100,000 articles are 10.8m by 7m unique users according to Google Analytics , as of January 2019 . On social media there are 3.5m+ Twitter followers, 3.5m+ Facebook followers and 100,000+ Instagram followers as of January 2019 . Emily Wilson

168-511: A much higher silver content and regained their pre-debasement value. Shillings were minted during the reigns of every English monarch after Edward VI, as well as during the Commonwealth , with a vast number of variations and alterations appearing over the years. The Royal Mint undertook a massive recoinage programme in 1816 , with large quantities of gold and silver coin being minted. Previous issues of silver coinage had been irregular, and

210-442: A subscription. In the first half of 2013, the international circulation of New Scientist averaged 125,172. While this was a 4.3% reduction on the previous year's figure, it was a much smaller reduction in circulation than many mainstream magazines of similar or greater circulation. UK circulation fell by 3.2% in 2014, but stronger international sales increased the circulation to 129,585. A monthly Dutch edition of New Scientist

252-411: A tree. Some evolutionary biologists who actively oppose the intelligent design movement thought the cover was both sensationalist and damaging to the scientific community. Shilling (British coin) The British shilling , abbreviated "1s" or "1/-", was a unit of currency and a denomination of sterling coinage worth 1 ⁄ 20 of one pound , or twelve pence . It was first minted in

294-647: Is a popular science magazine covering all aspects of science and technology. Based in London , it publishes weekly English-language editions in the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia. An editorially separate organisation publishes a monthly Dutch-language edition. First published on 22 November 1956, New Scientist has been available in online form since 1996. Sold in retail outlets (paper edition) and on subscription (paper and/or online),

336-742: The Daily Mail and General Trust (DMGT) for £70 million in March 2021; DMGT guaranteed the magazine's editorial independence, and ruled out staff cuts and the sharing of editorial content. In December 2021, DMGT announced that both New Scientist and the DMGT-owned daily i newspaper would be moved to a new division of the company, to be called Harmsworth Media. Originally, the cover of New Scientist listed articles in plain text. Initially, page numbering followed academic practice with sequential numbering for each quarterly volume. So, for example,

378-968: The Official Secrets Act by reprinting cabinet minutes. Ministers were discussing ways to curtail benefit payments to British families. The plans were dropped. The confrontation was an important step on the long road to the enactment of a Freedom of Information Act . The magazine's independence ended in 1988, when it was absorbed into the New Statesman . In 2010 the V&;A held an exhibition of documentary photographs from New Society . Three collections of essays from New Society were published: One for Sorrow, Two for Joy: Ten Years of "New Society" (1972); Arts in Society (1977); and The Other Britain (1982). Contributors to New Society included: New Scientist New Scientist

420-480: The Letters page. A readers' letters section discusses recent articles and discussions also take place on the website. Readers contribute observations on examples of pseudoscience to Feedback, and offer questions and answers on scientific and technical topics to Last Word. New Scientist has produced a series of books compiled from contributions to Last Word. From issue 3228 of 4 May 2019, New Scientist introduced

462-489: The alternative reverse inscription EXURGAT DEUS DISSIPENTUR INIMICI , meaning "Let God arise and His enemies be scattered", becoming QVAE DEVS CONIVNXIT NEMO SEPARET , meaning "What God hath put together let no man put asunder" after 1604. A slang name for a shilling was a "bob" (plural as singular, as in "that cost me two bob"). The first recorded use was in a case of coining heard at the Old Bailey in 1789, when it

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504-411: The article, saying that it is "an ideas magazine—that means writing about hypotheses as well as theories". In January 2009, New Scientist ran a cover with the title " Darwin was wrong". The actual story stated that specific details of Darwin's evolution theory had been shown incorrectly, mainly the shape of phylogenetic trees of interrelated species, which should be represented as a web instead of

546-459: The coin was not minted until the 16th century, the value of a shilling had been used for accounting purposes since the early medieval period . The value of one shilling equalling 12 pence (12 d) was set by the Normans following the conquest ; before this various English coins equalling 4, 5, and 12 pence had all been known as shillings. The notation ss/dd for a number of shillings and pence

588-437: The coins feature the denomination XII printed next to the portrait of the king. Elizabeth I and Mary I shillings are exceptions to this; the former has the denomination printed on the reverse, above the coat of arms, and the latter has no denomination printed at all. Some shillings issued during Mary's reign bear the date of minting, printed above the dual portraits of Mary and Philip . Early shillings of James I feature

630-473: The end of 1946 for similar reasons, exacerbated by the costs of the Second World War . New "silver" coinage was instead minted in cupronickel , an alloy of 75% copper and 25% nickel. Beginning with Lord Wrottesley's proposals in the 1820s there were various attempts to decimalise the pound sterling over the next century and a half. These attempts came to nothing significant until the 1960s when

672-474: The expansion of higher education in Britain from the early 1960s. New Society was usually perceived as centre-left, but it was fiercely non-partisan and never endorsed any political party. Timothy Raison , its founding editor (1962–68), was later a Conservative MP from 1970 until 1992. In Raison's opinion, New Society sought "to mirror, to analyse, to understand, not to exhort or moralise." It tried to see

714-756: The first issue included an article "Where next from Calder Hall?" on the future of nuclear power in the UK, a topic that it has covered throughout its history. In 1964, there was a regular "Science in British Industry" section with several items. Throughout most of its history, New Scientist has published cartoons as light relief and comment on the news, with contributions from regulars such as Mike Peyton and David Austin . The Grimbledon Down comic strip, by cartoonist Bill Tidy , appeared from 1970 to 1994. The Ariadne pages in New Scientist commented on

756-406: The first page of an issue in March could be 649 instead of 1. Later issues numbered issues separately. From the beginning of 1961 " The " was dropped from the title. From 1965, the front cover was illustrated. Until the 1970s, colour was not used except on the cover. Since its first issue, New Scientist has written about the applications of science, through its coverage of technology. For example,

798-459: The last issue, minted in 1787, was not intended for issue to the public, but as Christmas gifts to the Bank of England's customers. New silver coinage was to be of .925 ( sterling ) standard, with silver coins to be minted at 66 shillings to the troy pound. Hence, newly minted shillings weighed 2 ⁄ 11   troy ounce , equivalent to 87.273 grains or 5.655 grams . The Royal Mint debased

840-402: The lighter side of science and technology and included contributions from David E. H. Jones , Daedalus . The fictitious inventor devised plausible but impractical and humorous inventions, often developed by the (fictitious) DREADCO corporation. Daedalus later moved to Nature . Issues of (The) New Scientist from issue 1 to the end of 1989 are free to read online; subsequent issues require

882-521: The magazine covers news, features, reviews and commentary on science, technology and their implications. New Scientist also publishes speculative articles, ranging from the technical to the philosophical. New Scientist was acquired by Daily Mail and General Trust (DMGT) in March 2021. The magazine was founded in 1956 by Tom Margerison , Max Raison and Nicholas Harrison as The New Scientist , with Issue 1 on 22 November 1956, priced at one shilling (equivalent to £1.58 in 2023 ). An article in

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924-504: The magazine's 10th anniversary issues provides anecdotes on the founding of the magazine. The British monthly science magazine Science Journal , published from 1965 until 1971, was merged with New Scientist to form New Scientist and Science Journal . In 1970, the Reed Group, which became Reed Elsevier , acquired New Scientist when it merged with IPC Magazines . Reed retained the magazine when it sold most of its consumer titles in

966-411: The main countries where it is purchased. In the 21st century, until May 2019, New Scientist contained the following sections: Leader, News (Upfront), Technology, Opinion (interviews, point-of-view articles and letters), Features (including cover article), CultureLab (book and event reviews), Feedback (humour), The Last Word (questions and answers) and Jobs & Careers. A Tom Gauld cartoon appears on

1008-487: The makers of New Scientist , exploring the future through the world of science fiction" and fact was launched. In the same year the magazine launched a dating service, NewScientistConnect, operated by The Dating Lab. Since 2016 New Scientist has held an annual science festival in London. Styled New Scientist Live , the event has attracted high-profile scientists and science presenters. In September 2006, New Scientist

1050-474: The monarch on its obverse, and it is for this reason that it obtained its name from an Italian coin known as the testone , or headpiece , which had been introduced in Milan in 1474. Between 1544 and 1551 the coinage was debased repeatedly by the governments of Henry VIII and Edward VI in an attempt to generate more money to fund foreign wars. This debasement meant that coins produced in 1551 had one-fifth of

1092-419: The most influential issues of the magazine were : 1. A special issue, "Non-Plan : an experiment in freedom," 20 March 1969, in which the design historian Reyner Banham , the urban geographer Peter Hall , the architect Cedric Price and Paul Barker argued jointly that much town and country planning was misguided and counter-productive and should be scrapped. 2. The issue of 17 June 1976, which broke

1134-410: The need for a currency more suited to simple monetary calculations became pressing. The decision to decimalise was announced in 1966, with the pound to be redivided into 100, rather than 240, pence. Decimal Day was set for 15 February 1971, and a whole range of new coins was introduced. Shillings continued to be legal tender with a value of 5 new pence until 31 December 1990. Testoons issued during

1176-574: The portrait usually flipping left-facing to right-facing or vice versa between monarchs. The reverse features the escutcheon of the Royal Arms of England , surrounded by the inscription POSVI DEVM ADIVTORE MEVM , or a variant, meaning "I have made God my helper". Henry VIII testoons have a different reverse design, featuring a crowned Tudor rose , but those of Edward VI return to the Royal Arms design used previously. Starting with Edward VI

1218-439: The publication of "meaningless double-talk" designed to bypass a fatal objection to Shawyer's proposed space drive, namely that it violates the law of conservation of momentum . Egan urged others to write to New Scientist and pressure the magazine to raise its standards, instead of "squandering the opportunity that the magazine's circulation and prestige provides". The editor of New Scientist , then Jeremy Webb, replied defending

1260-503: The reign of Henry VII as the testoon , and became known as the shilling, from the Old English scilling , sometime in the mid-16th century. It circulated until 1990. The word bob was sometimes used for a monetary value of several shillings, e.g. "ten-bob note". Following decimalisation on 15 February 1971 the coin had a value of five new pence , and a new coin of the same value but labelled as "five new pence" or "five pence"

1302-464: The reign of Henry VII feature a right-facing portrait of the king on the obverse. Surrounding the portrait is the inscription HENRICUS DI GRA REX ANGL Z FRA , or similar, meaning "Henry, by the Grace of God, King of England and France". All shillings minted under subsequent kings and queens bear a similar inscription on the obverse identifying the monarch (or Lord Protector during the Commonwealth ), with

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1344-410: The silver coinage in 1920 from 92.5% silver to 50% silver. Shillings of both alloys were minted that year. This debasement was done because of the rising price of silver around the world, and followed the global trend of the elimination, or the reducing in purity, of the silver in coinage. The minting of silver coinage of the pound sterling ceased completely (except for the ceremonial Maundy Money ) at

1386-413: The silver content of those minted in 1544, and consequently the value of new testoons fell from 12d to 6d. The reason the testoon decreased in value is that unlike today, the value of coins was determined by the market price of the metal contained within them. This debasement was recognised as a mistake, and during Elizabeth's reign newly minted coins, including the testoon (now known as the shilling), had

1428-408: The world as it was, not as it was supposed to be. These aims were continued and developed under the editorship of Paul Barker (1968–86), who was described by the labour historian Eric Hobsbawm as the "most original of editors". In the magazine's pages "ideas were always more important than ideology". The historian E. P. Thompson wrote that " New Society ' s hospitality to a dissenting view"

1470-546: Was "evidence that the closure of our democratic traditions is not yet complete". New Society saw itself as being in the documentary lineage of Picture Post , George Orwell , Mass-Observation and the documentary films of John Grierson . Timothy Raison had been on the staff of Picture Post . By contrast with other London-based magazines of opinion, New Society ' s emphasis was strongly non-metropolitan, and it preferred to focus on "the Other Britain". Two of

1512-414: Was appointed editor-in-chief in 2018. New Scientist has published books derived from its content, many of which are selected questions and answers from the "Last Word" section of the magazine and website: Other books published by New Scientist include: New Scientist has also worked with other publishers to produce books based on the magazine's content: In 2012 Arc , "a new digital quarterly from

1554-457: Was criticised by science fiction writer Greg Egan , who wrote that "a sensationalist bent and a lack of basic knowledge by its writers" was making the magazine's coverage sufficiently unreliable "to constitute a real threat to the public understanding of science". In particular, Egan found himself "gobsmacked by the level of scientific illiteracy" in the magazine's coverage of Roger Shawyer's " electromagnetic drive ", where New Scientist allowed

1596-505: Was described as cant , "well understood among a certain set of people", but heard only among criminals and their associates. In the Gambia, white people are called toubabs , which may derive from the colonial practice of paying locals two shillings for running errands. An alternate etymology holds that the name is derived from French toubib , i.e. doctor . To "take the King's shilling "

1638-580: Was launched in June 2015. It replaced the former Natuurwetenschap & Techniek  [ nl ] (NWT) magazine, adopting its staff and subscribers. The editorially independent magazine is published by Veen Media. It contains mainly translations of articles in the English-language edition, but also its own articles. These are typically focused on research in the Netherlands and Belgium,

1680-484: Was minted with the same size as the shilling until 1990, after which the shilling no longer remained legal tender. It was made from silver from its introduction in or around 1503 until 1946, and thereafter in cupronickel . Before Decimal Day in 1971, sterling used the Carolingian monetary system (" £sd "), under which the largest unit was a pound (£) divided into 20 shillings (s), each of 12 pence (d). Although

1722-458: Was to enlist in the army or navy, a phrase dating back to the early 19th century. To "cut someone off with a shilling", often quoted as "cut off without a shilling" means to disinherit. Although having no basis in English law, some believe that leaving a family member a single shilling in one's will ensured that it could not be challenged in court as an oversight. A popular legend holds that

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1764-408: Was widely used (e.g., "19/11" for nineteen shillings and eleven pence). The form ss/– was used for a number of shillings and zero pence (e.g., "5/–" for five shillings exactly). The first coins of the pound sterling with the value of 12d were minted in 1503 or 1504 and were known as testoons. The testoon was one of the first English coins to bear a real (rather than a representative) portrait of

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