How to write a great research paper. Dr. Chiara Farinelli Elsevier Publisher, Nuclear and High Energy Physics

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1 How to write a great research paper Dr. Chiara Farinelli Elsevier Publisher, Nuclear and High Energy Physics Universita degli Studi di Roma La Sapienza, 3 July 2017

Technological and Content Innovation Open Access Writing your paper - considerations before writing

2 Overview Short history on publishing - how did scientific publishing change? The peer review process - how is peer review evolving? Technological and Content Innovation Open Access Writing your paper - considerations before writing - choosing the right journal - Bibliometrics, Impact Factors, WOS/JCR - submitting your manuscript Publishing Ethics - Responsibilities of the author (and what not to do)

3 1. A short history of publishing

4 Origins of Scholarly Publishing Gutenberg and moveable type Henry Oldenburg ( ) Founding Editor and Commercial Publisher of the first scientific journal 1580 Founding of the House of Elzevir March 6,1665 Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society First true scholarly journal

5 5

6 Scholarly Publishing Today Scientific,Technical and Medical communities around the world are united through STM Publishing 6

Role of scientific publications Journal publishing has thrived for over 340 years but the fundamental role of Publishers remains unchanged Registration Timestamp Certification Peer

7 Role of scientific publications Journal publishing has thrived for over 340 years but the fundamental role of Publishers remains unchanged Registration Timestamp Certification Peer review validity & integrity Dissemination Medium to share findings First scientific journals published in 1665 Preservation Preserve and archive records of science Elzevirianas circa

Who we serve Publishers support the greater scientific and health communities Researchers Health Practitioners Faculty & Students Pharma Companies Librarians

8 Who we serve Publishers support the greater scientific and health communities Researchers Health Practitioners Faculty & Students Pharma Companies Librarians Societies Engineers Professionals Elsevier s Global Publishing Network 7,000 Editors 70,000 Editorial Board Members 570,000+ Referees 650,000+ Authors General Public 9

9 2. Open Access Publishing

publishing Article is made freely available to all online Some journals

10 11 Journal publishing models Traditional publishing Authors publish free of charge Institutions or individuals subscribe to journals Open access publishing Article is made freely available to all online Some journals publish exclusively open access Other subscription journals offer open access options

11 What is open access? Free and permanent access to scholarly research combined with clear guidelines (user licenses) for users to re-use the content. Gold open access After submission and peer review, an article publishing charge (APC) is payable Upon publication everyone can immediately and permanently access the article online Green open access After submission and peer review in a subscription journal, the article is published online Subscribers have immediate access and the article is made open access either through author self-archiving, publisher deposit or linking. 12

12 14 Funding Body Agreements Green agreements Facilitates sustainable green open access Immediate internal posting on repositories Public access to the author accepted manuscript after embargo Mixed agreement combination of both green and gold Gold agreements Help establish automation of workflows to streamline author experience Can include reporting to funding organisation on uptake Compliance is higher when combined with clear funding for APCs.

13 3. Technological and Content Innovation

14 The Publishing Industry Over Time Today

15 Compound Annual Growth Rate In Articles Global Expansion of Scientific Research 40% 35% Malaysia 30% 25% 20% 15% 10% 5% 0% -5% Iran Romania Saudi Arabia Pakistan Egypt Thailand India Brazil Turkey Taiwan Republic of Korea France Germany United Kingdom Japan China United States Articles 2010 (Thousands) 17

Technology innovation Combining content with technology and analytics to empower individuals and institutions to realize the potential of information to improve academic, professional, and clinical

16 Technology innovation Combining content with technology and analytics to empower individuals and institutions to realize the potential of information to improve academic, professional, and clinical performance, expand human knowledge and generate positive sometimes groundbreaking outcomes in critical domains of human endeavor ScienceDirect 2002 Scirus 2004 Infinet Student Consult Scopus 2005 Mosby s Nursing Skills 2006 Gold Standard PharmaPendium 2007 Reaxys 2009 SciVal (part of Elsevier Research Intelligence) 2010 GeoFacets 2012 ClinicalKey Pure (part of Elsevier Research Intelligence) 2013 Mendeley 18

17 Content Innovation innovates the journal article to attract authors and readers Long-term objectives: Create value for authors by offering an optimal platform to showcase their research in all its digital dimensions Create value for readers by enabling them to build insights efficiently and effectively Create value for editors, societies, and customers by increasing the value of journals and by better serving researchers

18 Why? Because the way that research is done is changing and the article needs to adapt From print science to digital science Give authors a platform to express their research beyond text and images: data, code, multimedia,... Give readers the best tools to find research that is relevant for them, build insights fast, and have access to all relevant data and methods

technology for an optimal reading experience From scientists printing out PDF

19 An example or Content Innovation in a nutshell Breaking away from ink on paper print legacy Enable authors to better express their research Use modern web technology for an optimal reading experience From scientists printing out PDF and using a ruler to get to a data point to interactive plots embedded in the article!

Overview of Content Innovations in 4 categories (+ links) Interactive data & code viewers Embracing digital research output as an integral part of the scholarly article Context & reference tools

20 Overview of Content Innovations in 4 categories (+ links) Interactive data & code viewers Embracing digital research output as an integral part of the scholarly article Context & reference tools Creating connections between the article and other valuable online resources Multimedia Using digital media to present and showcase research Article presentation tools Improving the (static) presentation of the article, through new types of content or improved presentation of existing content elements.

21 Content Innovations Flow Article Transfer Service Interactive Plots and Figures Add quality Google Maps Linking with data repositories 23

22 Content Technology and Analytics = Improved Outcomes 24

23 4. The peer review process

24 Initial changes Principles of Peer Review A well understood concept Without it there is no control in scientific communication OUT rejection rejection Submission Editor (preliminary Assessment) Reviewer 1 Reviewer 2 Editor: Decision minor/major revisions required Journal Editors evaluate and reject certain articles prior to external peer review Branding, logos, page numbers Print Proof In Press Published accepted Typesetting, copy editing 26

25 The peer review process: an overview Author Editor Reviewer START Submit a paper Basic requirements met? [Yes] [No] Assign reviewers Collect reviewers recommendations Review and give recommendation Revise the paper REJECT [Reject] [Revision required] [Accept] Make a decision ACCEPT 27

26 Types of editorial decisions Accept Reject Minor revision Major revision Decisions 28

The Challenge 29 Reviewers do not feel recognized Reviewer Recognition Program it is good to be recognized for what amounts to a contribution to the academy and the often unheralded role of review.

27 The Challenge 29 Reviewers do not feel recognized Reviewer Recognition Program it is good to be recognized for what amounts to a contribution to the academy and the often unheralded role of review. A role which is 'stolen' from time when we often should be with family or friends. Provide a set of standards and tools to reviewers through which reviewer contribution to science is made tangible and measurable, and thereby communicable to their peers and professional stakeholders (e.g. superiors, funders)

30 Reviewer recognition platform A platform where reviewers can -track their reviewer status & performance -Collect their rewards -Claim their reviews for non- Elsevier journals and create a public

28 30 Reviewer recognition platform A platform where reviewers can -track their reviewer status & performance -Collect their rewards -Claim their reviews for non- Elsevier journals and create a public profile that can be shared on social media -Volunteer for reviewing for other journals Regular to reviewers in which they will find link to customized pages, displaying their status per journal, and rewards and perks, such as certificates and discount codes. No need to log-in Automatic updates after each new review

29 Current Peer review Process Reviewer decision All review reports are submitted. Editor decision Editor makes a decision based on reports. Author Notification Authors receives editors decision. If reviewers agree, this should be a straightforward task. If reviewers disagree or give different recommendations, the editor may want to consult the reviewers again. Reviewers dislike being kept out of the decision loop. 31

30 Cross-Reviewing Editor shares reports with all reviewers and invites them to comment on each other s report in a limited amount of time. Reviewers comment on each other s report anonymously. Reviewer#2 Reviewer#1 Editor makes a decision afterwards. Editor 32

31 5. Before you begin

32 You want to make sure your article gets the attention it deserves The volume of research articles is growing at an accelerated pace For most researchers, it is a real challenge to keep up with the literature Your job: make sure your article does not fall through the cracks! 40M hrs/week average time spend on literature 34

33 Simple but effective Choose the right journal Make sure your abstract is crystal-clear about what and why. Do not assume people will understand Spend quality time on your introduction and conclusions Do not forget your keywords Share your data and research Use easy to understand charts and professional illustrations to support your message Use clear and correct manuscript language 35

34 Choose the right journal Aim to reach the intended audience for your work Choose only one journal, as simultaneous submissions are prohibited Supervisor and colleagues can provide good suggestions Shortlist a handful of candidate journals, and investigate them Aims Scope Accepted types of articles Readership Current hot topics Articles in your reference list will usually lead you directly to the right journals 37

35 38 Journal Finder

36 Share your knowledge Make your paper stand out from the crowd 39

37 How do your peers find you online? 40

38 6. Bibliometrics, Impact Factors, WOS/JCR

39 Bibliometrics Impact Factor Eigenfactor SJR SNIP H-Index Types of Indicators 42

40 Impact Factor Impact Factor Year 2 Year 1 Citing Year To all items (regardless of type) Only source items ( articles and reviews ) Citations to non-source items (editorials, letters, news items, book reviews, abstracts) may inflate the Impact Factor 43

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 Multidisciplinary Biochemistry, Genetics & Molecular Biology Neuroscience Immunology & Microbiology Chemistry Pharmacology, Toxicology & Pharmaceutics Medicine Chemical Engineering

41 Multidisciplinary Biochemistry, Genetics & Molecular Biology Neuroscience Immunology & Microbiology Chemistry Pharmacology, Toxicology & Pharmaceutics Medicine Chemical Engineering Environmental Science Agricultural & Biological Sciences Psychology Earth & Planetary Science Materials Science Physics & Astronomy Nursing Health Professions Energy Computer Science Veterinary Engineering Mathematics Economics, Econometrics & Finance Social Sciences Business, Management & Accounting Arts & Humanities Citation rates to total journal impact Aggregate journal impact factors across 25 fields of research Impact Factor 45

42 Eigenfactor Eigenfactor Year 5 Year 4 Year 3 Year 2 Year 1 Citing Year Freely available at eigenfactor.org; on the JCR Similar to Impact Factor, but considers 5 years Self-citations excluded Citations weighted by the EF of the citing journal Similar calculating process to Google PageRank 46

43 Scimago Journal Rank Year 3 Year 2 Year 1 Citing Year Freely available at scimagojr.com; on Scopus Similar to Impact Factor, but considers 3 years SJR Self-citations limited Citations weighted by the SJR of the citing journal It is based on Scopus data 47

Source Normalized Impact per Paper Year 3 Year 2 Year 1 Citing Year SNIP Freely available online via Scopus Similar to Impact Factor, but considers 3 years Measures contextual citation

44 Source Normalized Impact per Paper Year 3 Year 2 Year 1 Citing Year SNIP Freely available online via Scopus Similar to Impact Factor, but considers 3 years Measures contextual citation impact Citations weighted by the likelihood of citation in the subject field of source 48 Devised at the University of Leiden, currently the most sophisticated journal performance indicator

45 H-Index Citations Hirsch, J. (August 2005) An index to quantify an individual s scientific research output H-Index h h Paper no. Available online via Scopus Rates individuals based on career publications Incorporates both quantity and quality 49 Productivity and age constraints

46 Your personal reason for publishing Get funding? Get promoted? PhD degree?...????? However, editors, reviewers, and the research community do not consider these reasons when assessing your work. 50

47 Determine if you are ready to publish You should consider publishing if you have information that advances understanding in a certain scientific field This could be in the form of: Presenting new, original results or methods Rationalizing, refining, or reinterpreting published results Reviewing or summarizing a particular subject or field If you are ready to publish, a strong manuscript is what is needed next 51

48 7. How to get published

49 Titles Fewest possible words Adequately describes content Identifies main issue Does not use rarely-used abbreviations Effective manuscript titles 53

50 Abstract < words This is the advertisement of your article. Make it interesting and understandable Make it accurate and specific A clear abstract will strongly influence whether or not your work is considered Keep it as brief as possible 54

51 Keywords Highlights Used by indexing and abstracting services Are the labels of the manuscript Use only established abbreviations e.g. DNA Do not repeat words in the title Advertise your work 3-5 bullet points Key conclusions Use full sentences 55

52 Introduction Provide a brief context to the readers Address the problem Identify the solutions & limitations Objective of Study 56

53 Methods Describe how the problem was studied Include detailed information Do not describe previously published procedures Identify the equipment and describe materials used Other researchers should be able to reproduce your work using the method description 57

54 Results Be clear & easy to understand Highlight the main findings Feature unexpected findings Provide proper statistical analysis Include clear illustrations & figures 58

55 Discussion Most important section! What do the results mean? Make the discussion correspond to the results Compare your own results with published work What is the bigger picture? Go beyond your results 59

56 The Conclusion Should be clear & concise Provide justification for the work Advance the present state of knowledge Provide suggested future experiments Take Home Message! 60

References Do not use too many references Always ensure you have fully absorbed material you are referencing Use published work not grey literature Avoid excessive

57 References Do not use too many references Always ensure you have fully absorbed material you are referencing Use published work not grey literature Avoid excessive self-citations Avoid excessive citations of publications from the same region/country Conform strictly to the style in the guide for authors or Your Paper Your Way 61

58 The Process of Writing Building the Article Title & Abstract Conclusion Introduction Methods Results Discussion Figures/Tables (your data) 62

59 Suggest potential reviewers Your suggestions may help the Editor to pass your manuscript to the review stage more efficiently The reviewers should represent at least two regions of the world. They should not be your supervisor, direct colleagues at the same institute or close friends Generally you are requested to provide 3-6 potential reviewers. Check the Guide for Authors! 63

60 Post-review revision Carefully study the reviewers comments and prepare a detailed letter of response Respond to all points - even if you disagree Write a polite, scientifically solid rebuttal State specifically what changes you have made to address the reviewers comments, mentioning the page and line numbers where changes have been made Perform additional calculations, computations, or experiments if required; these usually serve to make the final paper stronger Avoid repeating the same response over and over 64

61 Manuscript language: Overview Accurate Concise Clear Objective 65 65

62 Manuscript language: Sentences Write direct and short sentences One piece of information per sentence Avoid multiple statements in one sentence 66 66

63 Manuscript language: Tenses Present tense: for known facts & hypotheses Past tense: for experiments conducted & results 67

64 Manuscript language: Grammar Use active voice to shorten sentences Avoid abbreviations Minimize use of adverbs Eliminate redundant phrases Double-check unfamiliar words or phrases 68

Recap Important so Editors and Reviewers

correct tenses, correct grammar and is all

65 Recap Important so Editors and Reviewers can understand the work Refer to the journal s Guide for Authors for specifications Work has short sentences, correct tenses, correct grammar and is all in English GET HELP Have a native English speaker check your manuscript or use a language editing service Am I using proper manuscript language? 69

66 8. Publishing Ethics

Publish AND Perish! if you break ethical rules International scientific ethics have evolved over centuries and are commonly held throughout the world.

67 Publish AND Perish! if you break ethical rules International scientific ethics have evolved over centuries and are commonly held throughout the world. Scientific ethics are not considered to have national variants or characteristics there is a single ethical standard for science. Ethics problems with scientific articles are on the rise globally. 71

68 What does it mean to be an Author? An author is generally considered to be someone who has made substantial intellectual contributions to a published study Being an author comes with credit but also with responsibility: they are two sides of the same coin Decisions about who will be an author and the order of authors should be made before starting to write up the project 72

69 Authorship Corresponding Author Ghost Authorship First Author Gift Authorship Good Listing Principle Poor Listing Principle 73

Previous work taken and passed off as one s own These are the 3 most

70 The most serious issues Fabrication Making up research data Falsification Manipulation of existing research data Plagiarism Previous work taken and passed off as one s own These are the 3 most common forms of ethical misconduct that the research community is challenged with 74

71 What is Plagiarism? Plagiarism is the appropriation of another person s ideas, processes, results, or words without giving appropriate credit, including those obtained through confidential review of others research proposals and manuscripts. source: Federal Office of Science and Technology Policy, 1999 Presenting the data or interpretations of others without crediting them, and thereby gaining for yourself the rewards earned by others, is theft, and it eliminates the motivation of working scientists to generate new data and interpretations. Professor Bruce Railsback Department of Geology, University of Georgia M. Errami & H. Garner, A tale of two citations Nature 451 (2008):

72 What may be Plagiarised? Work that can be plagiarised includes Words (Language) Ideas Findings Writings Graphic Representations Computer Programs Diagrams Graphs Illustrations Information Lectures Printed Material Electronic Material Any Other Original Work Higher Education Academy, UK 76

73 Submission (Q) A researcher is ready to submit her paper and decides to submit to Biosystems Engineering, ASABE and Nature at the same time. A researcher has had his paper rejected by Biosystems Engineering and decides to submit it to ASABE. Failing that, he plans to submit it to Nature. Failing that, he plans to submit to each journal in his discipline until it is accepted. 77

74 Submission (Q) A researcher is ready to submit her paper and decides to submit to Biosystems Engineering, ASABE and Nature at the same time. A researcher has had his paper rejected by Biosystems Engineering and decides to submit it to ASABE. Failing that, he plans to submit it to Nature. Failing that, he plans to submit to each journal in his discipline until it is accepted. The first scenario is not acceptable to most research communities and journals The second scenario is acceptable but authors should heed the advice of referees and editors concerning improvements. 78

Submissions (A) Multiple, redundant, or concurrent publication issues Should be avoided where manuscripts that describe essentially the same research are published in more than one journal or primary

75 Submissions (A) Multiple, redundant, or concurrent publication issues Should be avoided where manuscripts that describe essentially the same research are published in more than one journal or primary publication. An author should avoid submitting a previously published paper for consideration in another journal. Duplication of the same paper in multiple journals of different languages should be avoided. 79 Salami Slicing, or creating several publications from the same research, is manipulative and discouraged.

Plagiarism Detection Cross Check Initiative (2009)

journals, from 400+ publishers Software alerts

this huge database of published articles Many

76 Plagiarism Detection Cross Check Initiative (2009) Huge database of 30+ million articles, from 50,000+ journals, from 400+ publishers Software alerts Editors to any similarities between the article and this huge database of published articles Many Elsevier journals now check every submitted article using CrossCheck 81

77 Consequences What are the potential consequences? Potential consequences can vary according to the severity of the misconduct and the standards set by the journal editors, institutions and funding bodies. Possible actions include: Written letters of concern and reprimand Article retractions Some form of disciplinary action on the part of the researcher s institute or funding body 82

78 Institutions All Stakeholders Authors Companies Agencies Publishers/ Journal Editors Funding Bodies Who is really responsible for Ethics? All Elsevier journals are members of: 83

Thank you Visit Elsevier Publishing Campus www.publishingcampus.

79 Thank you Visit Elsevier Publishing Campus For more information on publishing ethics For writing/submission tips and author services

How to write a great research paper. Dr. Eleonora Presani - Publisher Physics

How to write a great research paper Dr. Eleonora Presani - Publisher Physics e.presani@elsevier.com Bandung, October 2015 Overview Publishing Country, Institute How to get published Before you begin Bibliometrics