Scientific American 180 Year-Anniversary Photography Contest Official Rules

For 180 years, Scientific American covers have taken readers on epic journeys—from deep oceans to distant galaxies. Now it’s your turn. We’re inviting you to take part in a visual storytelling challenge: 

Capture an original, high-quality photograph featuring a physical print cover of Scientific American placed in a setting where science meets scenery. That can mean natural landscapes, cityscapes, labs, museums—anywhere that reflects or complements the theme of the cover. 

The contest runs from August 1, 2025 through September 5, 2025. 

To enter, choose one of two options: 

• Option 1: Post your photo on Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn or Bluesky. Include your name and location in the caption, use the hashtag #SciAmInTheWild and tag us. Only posts shared to your main feed from a public account will be considered valid entries. 

• Option 2: Email your photograph to contests@sciam.com. Include your name and location and attach your image.  

Prizes: 

• One grand prize winner will receive a one-year Unlimited subscription to Scientific American and an adventure-themed prize pack—loaded with science gear, gadgets, and surprises to fuel your next expedition. 

• Two runners-up will also receive prizes. 

Join us in celebrating 180 years of science—everywhere. 

IMPORTANT: Please read these Official Rules before entering the Scientific American 180-Year Anniversary Photograph Contest (the “Contest”), presented by Scientific American, a division of Springer Nature America, Inc. (“Scientific American” or “Sponsor”). By entering the Contest, the contestant (“You,” or “Your”) agrees to the terms of these Official Rules. These Official Rules shall govern in the event of any inconsistency with other Contest-related materials.

Scientific American is the sole sponsor of this Contest.

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. A PURCHASE DOES NOT INCREASE THE CHANCES OF WINNING.

1. ELIGIBILITY: The Scientific American 180-Year Anniversary Photograph Contest (“Contest”) is open to all residents of the 50 U.S. states and Washington, D.C., who are 18 years of age or older as of August 1, 2025, excluding employees of Scientific American, a division of Springer Nature America, Inc. (“Sponsor”), Springer Nature America, Inc., their affiliates, subsidiaries, and agencies (collectively “Promotion Parties”) and members of their immediate family or persons living in the same household. Void where prohibited by law.

2. AGREEMENT TO RULES: By participating, the contestant agrees to be fully and unconditionally bound by these Official Rules, and You represent and warrant that You meet the eligibility requirements. You further represent and warrant that Your entry is Your original work, Your entry does not infringe on any third-party rights, and Your entry does not depict any individuals who have not granted their express permission to be featured in the photograph. Furthermore, You agree that Sponsor is under no obligation to post, display, or otherwise make your entry publicly available and may, at its sole discretion, remove or delete the entry from its website, social media platforms, or any other published locations. You agree to accept Sponsor’s decisions regarding the content of this Contest as final and binding.

3. ENTRY PERIOD. The Contest begins at 12:00AM EST on Friday, August 1, 2025, and ends at 11:59PM EST on Friday, September 5, 2025.

4. HOW TO ENTER: Take an original, high-quality photograph featuring the cover of any physical print issue of Scientific American magazine placed in an interesting, beautiful, or unexpected setting where science meets scenery and reflects or complements the theme of the cover. Settings may include, but are not limited to, natural landscapes, urban environments or cityscapes, laboratories, or museums. Post the photograph on any of the following social media platforms with a brief caption including Your name, Your location, and Your chosen setting. In Your caption, use the hashtag #SciAmInTheWild and tag Scientific American’s corresponding social media page:

• Instagram: @scientific_american

• TikTok: @scientificamerican

• Bluesky: @sciam.bsky.social

• LinkedIn: Scientific American

You may also enter by emailing Your submission to contests@sciam.com. If You submit the same entry on social media and via email, it will be counted as a single submission. All entries must be received no later than 11:59PM EST on September 5, 2025.

5. PROHIBITIONS ON ENTRY: No more than one entry per person or social media account is permitted. Entries must not violate any third-party intellectual property rights and must not depict any individuals who have not granted their express permission to be featured in the photograph. Entries must not include digital editions of Scientific American magazine, covers created using any artificial intelligence systems, or any locations that are digitally generated or created by artificial intelligence systems. Entries must not contain any offensive, violent, unsafe, unlawful, or irrelevant material, and must not infringe third-party rights. Using any of the foregoing material in entries will result in disqualification. Using any robotic, automatic, programmed, or similar entry method or entering more than the number of times permitted will void all entries and result in disqualification. You may not enter more times than indicated by using multiple social media accounts, identities or devices in an attempt to circumvent the rules. If You use fraudulent methods or otherwise attempt to circumvent the rules, your entry may be removed from eligibility at the sole discretion of Sponsor.

6. JUDGING CRITERIA: All eligible entries will be reviewed by judges appointed by Sponsor. Each submission will be assessed based on the following criteria:

• Creativity – Originality of concept and uniqueness of location.

• Aesthetic Impact – Visual appeal, including composition, lighting, and overall presentation.

• Relevance – Strength of the connection between the photographed setting and the displayed cover art of the physical Scientific American issue.

Each entry will be scored on a scale of 1 to 5 for each criterion. In the event of a tie, the entry with the highest score in Creativity will be selected. Judges’ decisions are final and not subject to review or appeal.

7. GRANT OF RIGHTS: By submitting a photograph for the Contest, You hereby grant to Sponsor the perpetual, non-exclusive, irrevocable, world-wide, right to publish, reproduce, copy, use, distribute, publicly perform, communicate, display publicly and/or otherwise make available the photograph in any and all forms and/or media of expression (including without limitation in connection with any and all end-user devices), whether now known or developed in the future. Without limitation, the above grant includes: (i) the right to edit, alter, adapt, adjust and prepare derivative works; (ii) rights for any training, educational, and/or instructional purposes; and (iii) the right to add and/or remove links or combinations with other media/works. The above rights are granted with respect to the photograph as a whole or any part thereof. The photograph may further be used in connection with marketing and promotional materials, including, without limitation, on third-party social media platforms and through functionalities such as “Link in Bio.”

8. PRIZES: One selected contestant (the “Winner”) will be awarded one (1) grand prize, which consists of a 1-year unlimited print subscription to Scientific American magazine; and a Scientific American merchandise box containing a Scientific American hat, notebook, pen, stickers, flashlight, tote bag, Stanley mug, binoculars, microscope, and one (1) print issue of Scientific American magazine with an approximate retail value (“ARV”) of $500.00 USD (the “Grand Prize”). Two selected runners-up (the “Runners Up”) will be awarded a Scientific American hat, notebook, pen, stickers, flashlight, tote bag, and one (1) print issue of Scientific American magazine (ARV: $170.00) (the “Runner Up Prize”). The Grand Prize and the Runner Up Prize (collectively, the “Prizes”) consist of only those items specifically listed as part of the Prizes, and Winner and Runners Up agree to accept the Prizes “as is.” There is a limit of one Grand Prize and one Runner Up Prize per family or household. No substitution or transfer of the Grand Prize by Winner or any Runner Up Prize by Runners Up is permitted. The Sponsor reserves the right to substitute a prize of equal or greater value. All prizes will be awarded.

9. WINNER SELECTION AND NOTIFICATION: The Winner and Runners-Up will be selected by a majority vote of the judges appointed by Sponsor. Selection will be completed by September 9, 2025. Winner and Runners-Up will be notified via the social media platform used for their submission or via email from contests@sciam.com, depending on their method of entry. Winner and Runners-Up will be required to complete, execute and return an Affidavit of Eligibility and Release (the “Affidavit”). If Winner or Runner-Up (i) cannot be contacted, (ii) is found to be ineligible, (iii) fails to claim their Prize, or (iv) fails to submit the Affidavit by 11:59PM EST on September 12, 2025, the Prize may be forfeited. In such cases, an alternate Winner or Runner-Up may be selected. Alternate Winners and/or Runners-Up, if necessary, will be selected and notified by September 15, 2025, through the same communication method as above. They must claim their Prize and submit the Affidavit by 11:59PM EST on September 19, 2025, or the Prize may again be forfeited. Receipt of the Prizes offered in this Contest is conditioned upon Winner’s and Runners-Up’s compliance with any and all federal, state, and local laws and regulations. The Winner and Runners-Up will be solely responsible for paying all federal, state, and local taxes on their receipt and acceptance of the Prizes. ANY VIOLATION OF THESE OFFICIAL RULES BY WINNER AND/OR ANY RUNNER-UP (AT SPONSOR’S SOLE DISCRETION) WILL RESULT IN WINNER’S AND/OR ANY RUNNER-UP’S DISQUALIFICATION FROM THE CONTEST, AND ALL PRIVILEGES AS WINNER AND/OR RUNNER-UP WILL BE IMMEDIATELY TERMINATED.

10. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY: By entering this Contest, You waive all right to, and hold the Promotion Parties harmless from, any claim, liability, loss, damage (including punitive, incidental and consequential damages) or expense (including attorneys’ fees) arising out of or in connection with participation in this Contest or the acceptance, use or misuse of any prize. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. Promotion Parties will not be responsible for: late, incomplete or incorrect entries; an entrant’s failure to receive prize notices because of the entrant’s spam, junk e-mail, or other security settings or the entrant’s provision of incorrect or otherwise nonfunctioning contact information; technical, hardware or software malfunctions, lost or unavailable network connections, or failed, incorrect, inaccurate, incomplete, garbled or delayed electronic communications, whether caused by the sender or by any of the equipment or programming associated with or used in this Contest; any human error that may occur in the processing of the entries in this Contest; or any typographical, technological or other error in the publishing of the offer, administration of the Contest or announcement of the prizes. If, in the Sponsor’s opinion, there is such an error, if there is any suspected evidence of tampering with any portion of the Contest or if technical difficulties (including viruses and bugs) compromise the integrity of the Contest, the Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to cancel or modify this Contest. In the event of termination, winners will be selected from among all eligible entries received as of the date of termination. In the event that a dispute arises as to the identity of a potentially winning entrant, entries will be declared to have been made by the name on the online entry form.

11. INDEMNIFICATION: If the content of Your entry is claimed to constitute infringement of any proprietary or intellectual property rights of any third party, You shall, at your sole expense, defend or settle against such claims. You shall indemnify, defend, and hold harmless the Promotion Parties from and against any suit, proceeding, claims, liability, loss, damage, costs or expenses which Promotion Parties may incur, suffer, or be required to pay arising out of such infringement or suspected infringement of any third party’s right.

12. CHOICE OF LAW AND FORUM: You agree that all matters arising out of or relating to this Contest and these Official Rules are governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of New York, without giving effect to any of its conflict of laws provisions thereof. You further agree that any legal suit, action or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Contest and these Official Rules shall be brought exclusively in the applicable federal or state courts located in New York, NY.

13. PRIVACY: Information submitted with an entry is subject to the Privacy Policy stated on www.scientificamerican.com/page/privacy-policy. To read the Privacy Policy, click here.

14. WINNERS LIST: All requests for the names of all prizewinners must be made by March 9, 2026. For the names of all prizewinners, available after September 9, 2025, send a self-addressed, stamped #10 envelope c/o David Ewalt to: 1 New York Plaza, Suite 4600, New York, NY 10004-1562.

15. SPONSOR: Scientific American, a division of Springer Nature America, Inc.
1 New York Plaza, Suite 4600
New York, NY 10004-1562