EDITORIAL www.rsc.org/loc | Lab on a Chip Happy New Year from Lab on a Chip

DOI: 10.1039/b616089c

Does progress in research to re-assess how we should proceed. We by the same group in sequence. This need taxonomy? are responsible to society, because we makes it look as if (1) microchips are spend billions in taxpayers money on our horrendously expensive, (2) manufactur- Science and engineering is based on logic research, and even more so because we ing them is not reproducible, (3) all the and knowledge, and convention means are the educators of future generations of different research groups consider each that knowledge gained from new experi- scientists! Are we really being sufficiently other to be enemies, (4) the devices are ments and discoveries is shared through responsible? systematically destroyed by researchers literature publications. Published papers Fortunately, it is not all the fault of after each experiment, (5) our students are expected to disclose all the necessary those of us doing research; funding are particularly lazy, etc? Currently this information to allow both readers to bodies now tell us what to do. It’s all community accepts that we just publish follow the author’s ideas and conclu- about ‘nanotechnology’, or ‘systems bio- as ‘novel’ whatever the circumstances. sions, and experimentalists to repeat the logy’ or ‘flying to Mars’…. Do we really Why not agree on a standard set of experiment and verify the findings. This need all these buzzwords in order to parameters to be measured, so that knowledge then serves as the basis for obtain grants? Wasn’t chemistry, physics, comparisons can be made? A kind of novel research activities, which are then biology, electrical engineering, etc. good data sheet for each device layout per- published and so forth. I call this cycle enough? Shouldn’t the ideal cycle of formed on identical cell culture or research progress. experiment and publication lead us to chemistry? IUPAC would pay money It sounds a bit like a fairy tale, the right areas of research and applica- for such an activity I am sure! I recently someone finding the time to read all the tions anyway? Or perhaps somewhere tried to convince a number of well known hundreds of years of published literature, else? colleagues to participate in such an doesn’t it? And, it’s getting still worse. Hirsch factors, impact factors and activity, sadly without success. Why are Bibliometric investigations of funding citations are all wonderfully simple and we researchers not keen on this idea? I bodies, the desires of commercial pub- computable. But do researchers really honestly do not know. Should we start lishers, the egos of powerful professors want to live with complete chaos in the asking our graduate students to define and the advent of electronic publishing literature, with only a vague idea of the terminology and contents of datasheets? without peer-review, makes a further papers published in the past 5–20 years, Somebody should award a million pound increase in publication activity unavoid- and with a bibliometric funding land- prize to the team that succeeds as this able. The human brain is still the same scape? Isn’t there something distorted will help develop and advance the field and, indeed we are not keen to read all here? enormously. this material. Also, should we also read Let’s get more specific: the term ‘lab Finally, the reviews on micro total all the patent filings? They often on a chip’. What on earth does this analysis systems published in Analytical document barely more than an idea, mean? Of course it makes a good title for Chemistry. These reviews get a surpris- and some may later be proved incorrect. a journal, but why would one use it as a ingly high number of citations, and yet And, what about conference proceed- term in a scientific publication? Does our they offer no critical evaluation of the ings? Engineering conference proceedings journal define it? Perhaps it does? At subject. The citations to these reviews come closer to the ideal, with more least this confusion doesn’t cause any have a steeper citation slope than some stringent peer-review of submitted problems for the progress of research. of the Nobel prize winners’ best papers. abstracts that include figures and results. Moving on to the next item: ‘repeating Why is this? Could it be that the review’s Other scientists often use only a para- the experiment’. Our authors and peer- attempt at taxonomy of manuscripts graph or two of vague descriptions for reviewers do a good job ensuring that the is helping the community? We all conference abstracts. A few years ago, a experimental sections of papers are com- remember the days when we used books Nobel prize was based on such a sketchy prehensive and that readers can repeat to determine the name of a flower or a abstract which resulted in general unease the experiment. … Do you get it? ‘‘… beetle. Specialist entomologists classify in the scientific community about the repeating the experiment’’! During my over a million insect species using DNA, award. When we plan our research, whole career in ‘lab on a chip’ I have enzyme pattern, morphology and the should we be considering available com- never seen this done. I have rarely even latest statistics. Google uses an algorithm mercial products? I would like to men- seen comparisons of different devices which brings up what we need in the tion the plethora of CE-on-chip results which are supposed to do the same thing. jungle of the internet. In a similar way, a that are continually published which are Researchers always seem to manufacture taxonomic approach to classification of much poorer than those that can be their own (new) systems and go back to manuscripts could identify nearest rela- obtained using the commercially avail- the beginning rather than build on tives to a given paper or an unpublished able Agilent Bioanalyzer. I suspect there existing (proven) chip designs/systems. manuscript. What is the best way to is a need to re-think what we are The few examples I can remember where search the literature? Keywords? I would currently doing in terms of research and this was not the case were manufactured love to be able to search by similarity of

This journal is ß The Royal Society of Chemistry 2007 Lab Chip, 2007, 7, 11–14 | 11 graphics and photos, or similarity of start now! Lab on a Chip is therefore New developments at the experimentation and conclusion logic. I taking action, providing help with a few Royal Society of Chemistry am sure this will be possible one day. simple actions. For example, authors are However, I am not an expert and would being encouraged to supply their original Lab on a Chip continues to see a not know how to even initiate such a mask files for publication as Electronic phenomenal growth in submissions as proposal. I would love to be able to feed Supplementary Information (ESI). the reputation of the quality of the a new manuscript into a computer Perhaps we should team up with micro- journal reaches an ever wider audience; program which then gives back a taxo- chip foundries and provide a button on submissions received by the end of nomic descriptor. Perhaps not a Latin the website which can be used to order September 2006 had exceeded the total name (Linnaeus) but a number like the the device in small numbers? The RSC is number received in 2005. Hirsch factor. Google could then be used also going to bring together all the Lab on a Chip papers are published in to search the entire scientific literature Editorial Boards of all their journals in an average of 85 days from receipt— for all similar descriptors. Of course I a single ‘Editor’s Symposium’ meeting in these are the fastest publication times in assume that I’d have to sort the results Brussels next February where the LOC the field, with our nearest competitors taking a minimum of 35 days longer. out manually, because there might be board will discuss exactly the above This is a direct consequence of the highly random similarities (which by the way matters. And we will do more… I am qualified and professional staff at the exist in insect taxonomy as well and are sure… but then I am a terrible optimist! RSC, who are committed to providing dubbed ‘‘mimicry’’). Peer reviewers Andreas Manz the best service in the field in terms of would be provided with a powerful tool Chair, Lab on a Chip Editorial Board to help with their decision, and boring/ friendliness and efficiency. repetitious conference talks would The journal also takes become a thing of the past, as everyone pride in playing its part in could ascertain what had previously been advancing scientific endea- published and not invite speakers intent vour and to this end we have on re-inventing the wheel. developed a unique web resource entitled ‘‘Chips and Tips’’ that provides practical tips and tricks to solve everyday labora- tory issues that never see the light of day in full research publications. Thus helping newcomers to the field and experienced scientists get on with the real science. In addition, 2006 saw the presentation of the first ‘‘Pioneers of Miniaturisation’’ Prize sponsored by Corning Incorporated and Lab on a Chip to encourage and promote the work of young to mid-career scientists to the wider scientific community and highlight the benefits of miniaturised technologies (see below for a full list of LOC sponsored prizes and awards).

RSC Open Science Authors publishing Fig. 1 The photograph shows, on the bottom in RSC Journals three rows, unpalatable butterfly model now have the option species in the family Danaidae (left) and of paying a fee in palatable mimetic forms of female Papilio exchange for making dardanus (right), an African swallowtail spe- their accepted com- cies. Top left is the Papilio dardanus male; top munication, research paper or review right is a non-mimetic, male-like female of the article openly available to all via the same species. Photograph taken by Bernard D’Abrera E 2000 and reproduced with permis- web, with RSC Open Science. The sion from James Mallet (see www.ucl.ac.uk/ scheme is only made available to authors taxome/jim). once their papers have been accepted for publication, following the normal On a more positive note, I am sure that rigorous peer-review procedures (RSC we have a bright future, but we will have Open Science operates in parallel with to create it for ourselves and we’d better the normal publication route, which

12 | Lab Chip, 2007, 7, 11–14 This journal is ß The Royal Society of Chemistry 2007 remains free to authors). Authors who this new functionality and will incorpo- hitting the headlines. The Chemistry have published their work in RSC rate your ideas to develop the service World Podcast interviews high profile journals are also able to retrospectively further. Find out more at www.rsc.org/ scientists about the latest and hottest apply for their work to be included in the sciencecomealive. topics in science, and is free to download scheme. Further information can be These developments demonstrate the at www.rsc.org/chemistryworld. found at: www.rsc.org/openscience. investment in publishing products and services over the past year and 2007 will LOC prizes and awards Technological innovation see us enhancing our products further. Lab on a 2006 has seen RSC Publishing invest Chip actively Impact factors and immediacy index significantly in technological develop- supports the ments across all of its products. The 2005 impact factors, released by research 1 Introduced last year, RSS feeds, or ISI in June 2006, showed an impressive community ‘really simple syndication’, have proved average increase of over 10% for RSC and we do extremely popular with our readers. Journals. Lab on a Chip continues to rise our utmost Subscribers receive alerts as soon as an in impact increasing from 5.0 to 5.3 in to support new talent and new research. Advance Article is published in their 2005. Consequently, we encourage a variety 1 journal of choice, providing both the Calculated annually, ISI impact of conferences through sponsorships, graphical abstract and text from a factors provide an indication of the student awards and prizes all over the journal’s contents page. You can sub- quality of a journal—they take into world. For example, in 2006 LOC spon- scribe via the Lab on a Chip homepage. account the number of citations in a sored the IEEE–EMBS International Subscribers to Lab on a Chip will now given year for all the citeable documents Conference on Microtechnologies in link from journals’ contents lists straight published within a journal in the preced- Medicine & Biology meeting in through to the HTML view of selected ing two years. Okinawa, Japan; sponsorship and articles, in just one quick step. Here Work published in RSC Journals is student awards at the Gordon you can download references to citation also amongst the most topical. The Conference on MEMS Technology & managers (such as EndNote, Ref immediacy index measures how topical Biomedical Applications held in Manager, ProCite and BibTex), sign up and urgent papers published in a journal Connecticut, USA; a Pioneers of for RSS feeds, search for citing articles are, by dividing the number of citations Miniaturisation Award and the Widmer (otherwise known as ‘forward linking’), in a given year by the number of articles Prize at the mTAS International print the article with just one click and published in the journal that year. The Conference on Miniaturized Systems for send the article to a friend or colleague. LOC immediacy index stands at 0.996 Chemistry and Life Sciences, Tokyo, From 2007, authors publishing in RSC for 2005 indicating that almost every Japan; and student awards at Nanotech journals will see their science ‘‘come article is cited in its year of publication. 2006 held in Montreux, Switzerland. alive’’ thanks to an exciting new project These impressive new figures reinforce These prizes/awards and sponsorships pioneered by the RSC. Enhanced HTML the RSC’s reputation as the home of are amongst the many awarded by RSC in RSC articles will allow chemical and exciting new research. Publishing in 2006, a year that has seen biological compounds mentioned in the more than 20 high-profile researchers text to be identified; by clicking on the Changes and developments to gain financial support to present their compound readers will be able to obtain Chemical Science, Chemical work at events throughout the world, in further information about that com- Technology, Chemical Biology and recognition of their research achieve- pound, including a downloadable struc- Chemistry World ments. More than £15,000 (or $30,000) was granted to the recipients, in total, to ture plus a list of relevant subject areas. Showcasing hot science from RSC cover travel expenses to sponsored lec- The RSC is the first publisher to utilise Journals in Chemical Science, Chemical tureships in countries such as China, the International Chemical Identifier Technology and Chemical Biology has Japan, US and UK. (InChI) (a digital equivalent of the proved very popular with readers and LOC intends to sponsor further con- IUPAC name for any particular covalent authors alike. In fact, the free supple- ference awards and prizes in 2007. compound where structures are ments have become so successful that expressed in terms of five layers of from January 2007, all issues will be eight Nanoscience from RSC publishing information—connectivity, tautomeric, pages (in print), contain new article types isotopic, stereochemical, and electronic) and come complete with a fresh new look LOC papers deal- for a project of this type and scope. The for the front page. Supplementary mate- ing with nano- technology will be used to enhance RSS rial will also be available online. technologies will alerts so that future news feeds can Meanwhile Chemistry World, the now also appear include chemical structures and other RSC’s award-winning magazine, on our Nano- enhanced information. RSC Publishing launched two new web features at the science webpage, intends to evolve this project to match end of 2006. The Chemistry World Blog is but it is not just LOC that is publishing author and reader needs so tell us what an interactive forum for news, discussion high-quality papers on the topic—due to you think: we welcome your feedback on and opinion, looking at the science the interdisciplinary nature of the subject

This journal is ß The Royal Society of Chemistry 2007 Lab Chip, 2007, 7, 11–14 | 13 other RSC journals and books also content. To search the collection or for launch to readers of Journal of include related content. This wealth of further information, visit www.rsc.org/ Materials Chemistry and the online nano material has now been brought ebooks. hosts, Physical Chemistry Chemical together in one convenient webpage, Physics, Organic & Biomolecular which is regularly updated with the latest Molecular BioSystems now in Chemistry and Lab on a Chip, has research and books from RSC MEDLINE ensured that Soft Matter received a Publishing. Visit: www.rsc.org/publish- Molecular BioSystems continues to large and interdisciplinary audience ing/journals/nanoscience. strengthen its position and has had an from the outset. Lab on a Chip readers excellent year. From bioanalytical and wishing to continue to read Soft Matter Not just journals…. As well as highthroughput techniques, microarrays now need to recommend the journal an impressive portfolio of prestigious and chip-based microfluidic techno- to their librarian. Fill in the online journals, the RSC has a wide selection logies, to proteomics and biomarkers, recommendation form at www.rsc.org/ of products for anyone with an the journal focuses on the interface libraryrecommendation. interest in the chemical sciences. Visit between chemistry, the –omic sciences the shop at www.rsc.org/shop to and systems biology. The journal is What our authors say browse over 400 book titles, subscribe now indexed in MEDLINE, thus to or purchase an individual article We are always happy to receive feedback improving visibility in the community. from Lab on a Chip or any other RSC from authors, especially if it helps us to Subscribers to Lab on a Chip in 2007 journal, join or renew RSC membership, further improve the publishing experi- will continue to receive free online or register to attend a conference or ence. Because we believe that RSC access to Molecular BioSystems training event. Publishing offers the best service of any (www.molecularbiosystems.org). In addition, RSC Publishing is scientific publisher, we have published a pleased to announce the launch of the selection of the comments we have Soft Matter RSC eBook Collection. RSC books received from authors from around the are now available online and can be It’s official, Soft Matter has separated globe—take a look at www.rsc.org/ easily downloaded as either chapters or from host journal, Journal of Materials authorquotes. books. The collection is fully searchable Chemistry, and is now a fully fledged Harp Minhas and also integrated with RSC journal solo publication. Its availability since Editor, Lab on a Chip

14 | Lab Chip, 2007, 7, 11–14 This journal is ß The Royal Society of Chemistry 2007