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2013 No. 8 October Expanding Scientific Communication — Messages from STAM 02 NIMS NOW International 2013 October Expanding Scientifi c Communication — Messages from STAM About 2.4 million scientific articles are published every year, and this number keeps growing. Amid the fi erce competition toward a higher impact factor, which now even affects national policy, the situation surrounding science and article publication is changing at an ever-increasing pace. Scientists, readers and publishers are being asked about the reasons for writing an article and selecting a journal for publication. Science and Technology of Advanced Materials (STAM), a materials science open-access journal supported by NIMS, is in the middle of this trend. How can science reach people? How should STAM select articles for publication? We aim to communicate our answers to these questions through our editing and publishing activities. NIMS NOW International 2013 October 03 Expanding Scientific Communication — Messages from STAM Special Discussion: Future of academic journals and STAM Science and Technology of Advanced Materials (STAM) is increasing its presence as a materials science journal not only in Japan, but also abroad. How is STAM received at materials science research sites? What kind of journal does STAM aim to become in the future? These and other topics are discussed below by Masakazu Aono, Director-General of the International Center for Materi- als Nanoarchitectonics (MANA), Toyonobu Yoshida, Editor-in-Chief of STAM, and Mikiko Tanifuji, publisher of STAM and Head of the Scientific Information Office at NIMS. Importance of having a Japanese important new research on elementary parti- the citation number (CN) of each of the enor- materials science journal cles into the spotlight. Readers around the mous number of articles published in the thou- world were astonished to learn that excellent sands of journals around the world. Thomson research was blooming in war-shattered Japan. Reuters also developed an index called the “im- NIMS NOW: First, I would like to ask Dr. Aono. However, such times soon passed, and by the pact factor” (IF) to show which journals have From your experiences at research sites around time I became a researcher, there were many published articles with larger CNs, and created a the world, what kind of journal do you find international journals to which I could submit ranking of journals as a result. I find this ranking STAM to be? articles to have my research exposed to the to be fair in a sense, but it has two risks. One is world, and I did not feel any inconvenience. Af- that a journal with a high IF tends to attract Aono: After World War II, Prof. Hideki Yukawa ter a number of years, a surprising change oc- higher quality submissions and eventually launched an English-language journal, Progress curred with the advancement of the Internet. comes to dominate its field of publishing. The of Theoretical Physics, in order to bring Japan’s Thomson Reuters began to count and publish other is that young researchers new to this Masakazu Aono × Toyonobu Yoshida × Mikiko Tanifuji 04 NIMS NOW International 2013 October Future of academic journals and STAM world mistakenly believe that articles published science such as condensed matter physics and STAM spread through word of mouth in every- in high-IF journals are of higher quality. To come molecular chemistry, as Dr. Yoshida said, the is- day conversation. At the same time, I worked to to the point as to your question about how I see sue of practical application is extremely impor- supplement what was missing in it as a journal, STAM, while recognizing that IF has its pros and tant. One of the future directions of STAM would and to extract and strengthen factors that char- cons, I think eff orts to raise IF would be impera- be to clarify its approach to bridging basic and acterize the journal. For example, displaying the tive for achieving continuous development of applied materials research. Conventionally, NIMS logo on STAM’s cover page shows that a STAM. It is a fact that high-quality articles are many Japanese journals in English had been leading research institute guarantees the quality rarely submitted to low-IF journals. In that sense, published by academic societies, mainly for the of the content. I publicized the message that I off er my heartiest congratulations and respect purpose of supporting the members’ activities. NIMS is serious about STAM through all kinds of to the editorial staff of STAM for their eff orts However, we cannot create a truly international channels to make it visible. I explained it not which has raised its IF to 3.75. The real challenge journal by merely pursuing such local objec- only to researchers, but also to academic socie- lies ahead. There is a need to send out a clearer tives. I think STAM can increase its relevance by ties and libraries in and outside Japan. I wrote message on the position of STAM, or, why STAM clarifying its global objectives as a distinctive reports and articles about it in various media is a must. Let me discuss that later.... Japanese journal in English published by an or- and gave lectures at research meetings, aca- ganization other than an academic society. demic conferences, libraries, and publishers’ Yoshida: Competition among journals is inten- gatherings when I had the chance. I think an- sifying, and IF has come to aff ect even national Yoshida: If there was an academic society in Ja- other role of NIMS as a national research insti- policy. Considering the future of the research pan which encompassed all materials-related tute is to communicate with academic societies fi elds and the national interest, the presence of fi elds, that society could have created a new in Japan and to share the spirit of improving a journal with guaranteed fairness and a hub journal. However, academic societies, which all each other’s journals. function will be a strong advantage for the have histories, cannot undergo organizational country. If Japan develops a leading materials changes easily. We also had an idea to create a science journal, that would be a benefi t for the virtual group from the top layers of academic so- country. STAM is characterized by the aware- cieties and have that group publish a materials ness of “the true value of materials is in their use” science journal. This idea, however, gained little which it shares with NIMS. When we review arti- support, and was diffi cult to put into practice. cles, we sometimes ask the authors to write a little more about possible applications. Since NIMS NOW: I see. So, the process of actualizing there are many other journals that handle arti- STAM was very diffi cult. I believe Ms. Tanifuji has cles on physics or chemistry alone, we focus on gone through much trouble as a publishing di- something extra when editing materials science rector. articles. Then, authors start submitting such ar- ticles. Even if we reject an article, pointing out that it does not suggest any applications, the Diffi culty of publishing a journal author sometimes resubmits the article after adding the requested section. Tanifuji: To be honest, I did not know the jour- Aono: If we ask researchers around the world nal STAM when I fi rst received an off er of a posi- about the research fi elds in which Japan excels, tion at NIMS. I had been working as a publisher they always mention materials, in addition to for 17 years at that time, and had known many physics and chemistry. Nanotechnology is also a academic journals in science. I thought about a strong fi eld related to these. For such fi elds in number of aspects before making a decision as which Japan has an edge, Japan should fi rmly to whether or not to take the off er: the status of establish leading English-language journals. the journal and its future potential; how seri- Some people say that we can simply use the ously NIMS planned to raise the value of the many international journals that already exist, journal; what were the journal’s objectives; and and I thought so too until ten years ago. How- how those objectives could be achieved. First, I Masakazu Aono Doctor of Engineering. Completed the doctoral course at the ever, the traditional function of journals as a thought STAM should pursue two goals: fi nd an School of Engineering, the University of Tokyo in 1972. He place for researchers to help each other ad- edge based on what academic societies cannot served as researcher at the National Institute for Research in vance through fair competition is collapsing to- do; and do what academic societies can do, Inorganic Materials (NIRIM), senior researcher at NIRIM, chief day. Dr. Yoshida referred to it earlier as “guaran- while taking advantage of being a research in- scientist at the Institute for Physical and Chemical Research (RIKEN), professor at the Graduate School of Engineering, teed fairness.” STAM aims to be a fair and stitute. During the fi rst few years, I focused on Osaka University, and Director-General of the Nanomaterials world-class Japanese journal. In the meantime, making STAM known at NIMS. NIMS is a leading Laboratory, NIMS. In April 2004 he became NIMS Fellow, and while materials science is inseparable from basic research institute, and the fi rst point was to have since 2007 the Director-General of MANA, NIMS. NIMS NOW International 2013 October 05 Expanding Scientifi c Communication — Messages from STAM Masakazu Aono × Toyonobu Yoshida × Mikiko Tanifuji Aono: I have been watching Ms. Tanifuji tread a should clarify its stance to actively bridge basic sues every year, as we do now.

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