Tutorial for authors and referees: Illuminating the review process

Julie Kim-Zajonz, Managing Editor, Physical Review Applied October 21, 2014

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org Outline

Ø Introduction Ø Manuscript preparation Important considerations Ø The review process Ø Submission and resubmission Ø Writing referee reports

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org What are the positions of the different groups involved in the review process? Editors Want to ensure quality publications Significantly advance physics Important to the field Scientifically sound In satisfactory form

Authors Referees Want to publish Represent the opinion of the community

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org In the end Editors Want to ensure quality publications for

Authors will benefit

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org Manuscript preparation

BEFORE writing your paper consider: • Audience you are trying to reach (e.g. journal, PRL vs. PR style) • Take-home message • Authorship vs. acknowledgment

WHEN submitting your paper inform us of: • Suggested referees & people with conflict of interest • Related papers • Justification (required for some journals and sections) • Any other relevant information

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org Manuscript preparation

Title: Should be concise, precise, accurate, and informave Author list: Should include all who made significant contribuons

Abstract: Explain very briefly problem under study and main findings; avoid background

Introducon: Methods: • Problem tackled • Explain theory, simulaons, • Movaon experiments. • Importance • Design, derivaon • Brief review of contribuon • Keep reproducibility in mind

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org

Manuscript preparation (continued)

Results: Summary: Explain and discuss Outline • Findings • Take-home message • Models & fits • Open quesons • Measurements • Impact • Uncertaines

• Assumpons Acknowledgments: • Alternave interpretaons • Include organizaons and people

Reference list: • Include relevant or related papers

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org Important points to bear in mind By submitting the manuscript, the corresponding author certifies that: • The paper represents original work of the listed authors. • The manuscript as presented accurately reflects the scientific results. • All of the authors made significant contributions to the concept, design, execution, or interpretation of the research study. • All those who made significant contributions were offered the opportunity to be listed as authors. • All of the listed authors are aware of and agree to the submission of this manuscript. • The manuscript has not been published, and is not now and will not be under consideration by another journal while it is considered here. • As part of the submission, the authors have provided any relevant information to the editors (e.g., information about recent relevant unpublished manuscripts by the authors). • The authors accept the established procedures for selecting manuscripts for publication.

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org The cover letter A good cover letter should contain: • Motivation of research, problem approached, and essential results • Justification (why your work is important) • Previous work, especially theories or results questioned by your work; let us know the context • Suggested referees • Undesirable referees (tell us why) • Anything else you think we might need to know

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org Quotes from cover letters:

This is an example of the fact that scientific progress usually proceeds incrementally, sometimes in unbearably small steps. We believe that our paper represents one of those steps.

You asked for justification for a Rapid. We are pleased to tell you that all the authors agree that this should be a Rapid.

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org The Peer Review Process External Manuscript Internal Review (more submission Review later)

Reject 1st round, 2nd round, rd Appeal To Editorial Board Member (PR) 3 round or Divisional Associate Editor (PRL)

Appeal to Editor in Chief

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org Resubmissions • Should I resubmit my paper? • What does the letter say? Does it invite resubmission? Does it direct you to another journal? • If resubmitting from PRL to PR, use the old code, answer the referees’criticism, consider expanding the paper now that you are not bound by the PRL four-page limit. • Have you done everything to ensure that your manuscript informs the reader why it is important and how it significantly advances the field?

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org Resubmissions (continued) • If you have comments on the reports or on the referees that you wish to tell the editor, please do so in a separate note to the editors How can I make an effecve resubmission? Ø Answer all cricism Ø Be factual & collegial

Purpose of the resubmission letter: Convince the editor that your paper deserves further consideration

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org Quotes from resubmission letters:

We have revised our manuscript ONLY according to the comments of referee A. We To save time to have not taken into consideration the publication, we decided comments of referee B, who clearly not to respond to the completely missed the main points of our criticism of referee A. manuscript. It is unfortunate that referee C repeats this mistake.

I bow to your decision although I still maintain that the First Referee is an ignoramus.

.. our paper has no conclusion, because we wanted to save space.

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org Referee selection

Referees’ publication history with The Physical Review

Bibliography, Database with more Editor’s own WoS, authors’ than 65,000 active database suggestions referees!

Set of referees selected

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org Referees should

Review the manuscript Give general comments Give technical details Recommendation

Hints: • Avoid contradictions within a report • Be collegial and polite • Any comments for the editor only should be placed in a separate section

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org Preparing a referee report

1) Review manuscript: Show that you understand the manuscript and the problem under study Keep in mind: 2) Technical details: • Be timely

• Validity • Address criteria • Technical problems or comments • Improvements • Substantiate arguments • Reference list • Give a clear

• Style issues recommendation • Conciseness of presentaon • No polemics PLEASE

3) Recommendaon: • Accept, reject, revise and resubmit, etc. • Support recommendaon

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org Quotes from referee reports: I am still sorry to report that the writing remains This manuscript is complete rubbish and deficient from the point of should not be published anywhere. In addition view of language. ...Some to appearing quite stupid, the authors are errors won't be even picked unnecessarily impolite. I really find it difficult up by a spell checker (e.g., to deal with such morons. on page 2: "penetrate through closing" instead of The paper should be rejected "penetrate through for the following reasons: clothing".) 1. No one cares about this anymore. The only thing I really liked about 2. Anyone who could referee the manuscript was the words it is probably dead. "Copper pairs" (line 2). The man's 3. All who read it will wish they name is Cooper. Copper is a were. metal. Not only is this paper wrong, I did it first!

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org More quotes from referee reports:

Just because I did this quickly [in one day], please don't get the idea that I I am sorry that I have been am a good referee to dump a lot of so slow in responding to future papers on. I am not always this this refereeing request: this prompt. is partly due to the Christmas holidays, and This paper fills partly because I could not a much needed stop myself from falling gap and should asleep whenever I be rejected. attempted to read it.

On the positive side, the revised version is greatly improved--there are now only a large number of grammatical errors rather than a huge number.

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org Our referees Our referees are crucial to our journals, as is the quality of the reports. • We have approx. 90 000 referees in database. Over 25 000 were sent at least 1 referral last year. • We are, at times, adding hundreds new referees/month

To a first approximation all referees are busy. So ~10 000 are in consistent use (>1 referral/yr).

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org Ethics • The Research: Beware of using selective data. • Authorship: Who really belongs as an author? The corresponding author MUST ensure that all co-authors are in the loop at all stages. • Plagiarism: Be very, very careful about what is copied without attribution. Self- plagiarism is also not acceptable.

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org Ethics (continued)

• We rely on referees (and authors) to identify breaches of professional ethics • Coordinate efforts with other affected journals • We will investigate, but we have no power beyond our journals

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org Other quotes from authors: I was wondering if I could find out what the latest status of our manuscript is. I told my mother about my first submittal to Physical Review Letters, and she won't stop bothering me about it. She keeps calling to see if it's been accepted or not; I've tried telling her it's with the editors, but she's getting tired of hearing that.

According to your automated Author Status Inquiry System, one of the When we do not hear from referees for our manuscript has not the referees for several responded for 6 weeks. I wonder if I months, we are left with no should be concerned about his well- alternative but to bother you. being. Please check to see if perhaps some harm has befallen him. If not, could something be arranged?

APS JOURNALS journals.aps.org Thank you for your attention! For additional information, please visit http://journals.aps.org http://journals.aps.org/prapplied

With thanks to Gene Sprouse, our Editor in Chief, and many other editors for information and help

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