title: Honoring the 75th anniversary of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons.
abstract: Ever since the Journal of Neurosurgery (JNS) published its first volume in 1944, the journal has reflected the scientific, technical, and clinical evolution of our specialty and parent organization, first called the Harvey Cushing Society and later the American Association of Neurological Surgeons. The JNS has been an uncompromising arbiter of progress in our specialty, and its superb editorial stewardship has led to its recognition as the premier journal in the field. The impact rating of JNS and its wide circulation among neurosurgeons worldwide are two of the many reasons why most of the truly innovative and paradigm-shifting advances in neurosurgery have been published in its pages. As part of the 75th anniversary of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons celebration, the JNS Publishing Group has initiated a project of reviewing papers published over the years that have had the highest impact factor and greatest scientific interest: papers that have heralded new knowledge, new concepts, and new techniques that have been at the heart of modern neurosurgery and its continuing excitement and progress. We hope you will enjoy these articles and the accompanying commentaries. In this issue we present the next paper in this series.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Stanford University, Stanford, California.
authors.forename: Edward R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Laws