American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the largest general scientific organization in the United States, and the largest federation of scientific organizations in the world. AAAS objectives are to further the work of scientists, increase their freedom and responsibility, facilitate cooperation among scientists, promote education in science, improve the effectiveness of science in the promotion of human welfare, and increase public understanding and appreciation of the importance and promise of the methods of science in human progress. Its publications include the weekly periodical Science. The AAAS was founded in 1848. Membership includes around 140,000 individuals (some of them nonscientists). About 300 societies and academies on physical, life, and social sciences are affiliated with the AAAS. Headquarters are in Washington, D.C.