Injury: the word derives from the Latin word for "not right"—an appropriate term for the cause of more than 150 000 deaths annually in the United States, 2.3 million hospitalizations, annual costs of $158 billion,1 and unmeasurable grief and suffering.
"Not right" also describes the failure, until recently, of most health professionals and their institutions to give appropriate attention to the major cause of lost potential years of life before retirement. Early workers in injury prevention would therefore be surprised and pleased that The Journal is devoting this issue to injuries.
The work of many pioneers has been crucial to the development and recognition of injury science, which is the prevention and control of injuries based on relevant disciplines such as epidemiology; biomechanics; physics; ergonomics; law; and the political, behavioral, and medical sciences. This editorial describes eight scientists whose work has moved the field forward; each made major contributions