http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/1...1.00650.x/full

This issue of the Annals of Human Genetics marks the online publication of the contents printed by the journal between 1925 and 1954 under the name of Annals of Eugenics.

As the first periodical dedicated to genetics, as applied to humans, this journal published a number of seminal articles that have gone on to become classic papers of the scientific literature. A distinguished example, among many, is R. A. Fisher's 1936 landmark paper on Linear Discriminant Analysis (“The use of multiple measurements in taxonomic problems,”Annals of Eugenics, Volume 7, pp. 179–188), which has received over 6,500 citations to date. The ongoing use and reference to material published by the Annals of Eugenics, and the somewhat limited availability of the original printed copy, justifies making this back file available online to the research community.

Online access to the Annals of Eugenics archive will also be of interest to historians of science. In many ways, the history of the Annals embodies the history of human genetics as a scientific enterprise and exemplifies the complex relationship of this discipline with wider society.

The somber role that human genetics played in providing what was taken to be a scientific framework to social prejudice during the period of “Eugenics”, is a well known case of the complex interaction between science and society. The present issue of the journal includes four specially commissioned articles that attempt to contextualize the online publication of the Annals of Eugenics archive. To exemplify some of the major scientific contributions made during that period, the article by J. Ott highlights key papers on linkage analysis published by the journal. The contributions by K. Weiss, G. Allen, and D. Kevles deal with aspects of the history of eugenics and of human genetics, and explore their relevance to ongoing debates regarding the social implications of human genetics research.

It is hoped that the online release of the Annals of Eugenics back file will fill a gap in the literature and will be of considerable value to the academic research community. It goes without saying that in making this material available online, there is no intention to promote any form of eugenics.
Article in USA Today.