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The science of man-machine operating systems, which includes operations research and systems analysis, has achieved a substantial body of theory and application over the last 40 years. Its current strength prompts it to attack difficult large-scale problems while challenging the other relevant sciences to unite, not only with each other and operations and systems research, but also with society, to deal with some of the most widespread and important problems of our time.

Please scroll down for article-it is on subsequent pages With 12,500 members from nearly 90 countries, INFORMS is the largest international association of operations research (O.R.) and analytics professionals and students. INFORMS provides unique networking and learning opportunities for individual professionals, and organizations of all types and sizes, to better understand and use O.R. and analytics tools and methods to transform strategic visions and achieve better outcomes. For more information on INFORMS, its publications, membership, or meetings visit http://www.informs.org

From time to time there arise in professional circles discussions of how scientific and technical journals are managed and especially how the editors choose their contents. Members of INFORMS had such a discussion recently, and the editor-in-chief of this journal offered a thoughtful response (Michael H. Rothkopf, Editorial refereeing—How blind should we be? Interfaces, Vol. 24, No. 6, pp. 14–18, 1994.). Unfortunately for a scientific community dedicated to seeking models of operating systems involving human behavior, OR/MS has offered no discriminating and objective studies of the editorial process to enlighten those with concerns about it.