John Bell's journey into the annals of physics history began with a paper that, at the time, seemed to be published in a rather obscure and short-lived journal. The journal in question was Physics Physique Физика, a publication that existed from 1964 to 1968 and was founded by Bernd Matthias and Philip Anderson, two physicists at Bell Laboratories. What makes this story particularly intriguing is the nature of the journal itself and the paper it published. Bell's theorem, one of the most significant results in quantum mechanics, was introduced in this journal, which was set up with a unique purpose: to address the overwhelming amount of good physics being written and the challenge of keeping up with it. The journal's editorial team, consisting of Anderson and Matthias, aimed to solve the problem of information overload by selecting only the most valuable papers for all physicists to read. This approach was revolutionary, as it involved in-house editorial selection, a model that has since been revived in the 2000s with the Nature series of journals. The journal's inclusive, multi-language title was also ahead of its time. Despite its innovative approach, the journal's existence was short-lived, lasting only three volumes due to delays in publication and Maxwell's aggressive pursuit of profit. Nonetheless, the journal's impact on the physics community was profound, as it published work from notable physicists like Murray Gell-Mann, Leonard Susskind, and Leo Kadanoff. Bell's theorem, in particular, stands out as the most important result published in the journal, and its influence on the development of quantum technologies cannot be overstated. The story of John Bell's paper in Physics Physique Физика is a testament to the power of unconventional approaches in scientific publishing and the enduring impact of groundbreaking research, even in the face of short-term challenges.
