What are the characteristics of scientific papers published in World War II, and
what papers from World War II, if any, are highly cited today? This paper reports that 3767
publications from World War II have been cited at least 100 times since 1939–1945. The
data show that the publication rates of scientific papers declined during World War II only
to increase rapidly after it. The USA was the most prolific source of scientific publications
during the war, and Harvard University was the most dominant institute. In addition, there
were five ‘Sleeping Beauties’, that is papers that were published but rarely cited during the
war but came into prominence at a much later date.
