Online Editorial Research Articles

The Spectre of Communism in US China Policy: Bipartisanship in the American Subconscious

Recent survey research suggests that, on average, Americans of all political stripes hold more positive attitudes towards the Chinese people than they do towards the Chinese government. This tendency appears more pronounced, however, among Republicans and conservatives, who are significantly more negative about the Chinese government than Democrats and liberals. 1 What best explains these two findings? In the wake of the January 2010 ‘Google Incident’ and the Obama administration’s announcement of continued arms sales to Taiwan, a February 1st People’s Daily Online editorial declared that ‘Cold War thinking’ continues to bias Americans against China. American ideology, it argued, is imbued with a ‘deeply-rooted hostility against and fear of ... communism’. 2 After 30 years of reform and opening, China today is arguably communist in name only. Could it be that communism is nonetheless what best explains American attitudes that are more negative towards the Chinese government than towards the Chinese people? Bipartisan American ambivalence about the Chinese government may stem in part from a common Liberalism, a celebration of individual freedom set against the idea of tyrannies or despotisms of either the left (communism) or right (fascism). Indeed, communism and fascism are often conflated in the American mind as totalitarianism—total state control and total loss of individual liberty.

Combining peer review and metrics to assess journals for inclusion in Scopus

Peer review has been in place for centuries as an accepted process to validate manuscripts submitted for publication in scientific journals. Yet a similarly rigorous assessment of content also happens a level up, when looking at the quality of journals that apply for indexing in bibliographic databases. Scopus, an abstract & citation database provided by Elsevier, indexing 18,000 scientific titles, is receiving an increasing number of title suggestions; in 2009 this grew to almost 5,000 in that year alone. Some of the suggested journals are dedicated to niche areas and/or are published in other languages than English. To ensure a fair and transparent evaluation of these titles and to address the rising interest in being indexed, Scopus redesigned its entire title evaluation process – basing it on a metrical scorecard and on the principles of peer review. By developing an online editorial system – the Scopus Title Evaluation Platform (STEP) – Scopus also created the prerequisite of an improved communication with publishers and editors about their journals.

New section—Rediscovering the Physical Exam

Beginning with this issue, The Journal will publish “typical” physical examination features—both normal findings as well as classic features of diseases. This new section, “Rediscovering the Physical Exam,” will utilize descriptive text and well-illustrated examples. The Editors hope that you, our readers, will find this new section to be of value, as a tool to help sharpen diagnostic skills and as a reminder of important physical findings. If you are interested in submitting a manuscript to this section of The Journal, please review The Journal's Guide for Authors (http://jpeds.com/authorinfo#redis). Although at least one publishable figure is required for the print issue, we strongly encourage you to also submit online-only figures, illustrations, video and audio clips, etc. After the manuscript has been properly formatted, please upload it through The Journal's online submission and editorial system (http://ees.elsevier.com/jpeds). Please feel free to contact The Journal ( [email protected] ) with any questions or comments. Article page 691 ▸ Differentiating a Mendosal Suture from a Skull FractureThe Journal of PediatricsVol. 157Issue 4PreviewA 6-day-old infant was brought to her pediatrician with a right clavicle fracture. This injury could have happened at birth; however, the history provided by her mother was concerning enough that a skeletal survey and additional tests were performed and child protective services was notified. The lateral skull film seemed to show an occipital skull fracture (Figure 1), and the results of computed tomography of the head showed a single defect in the bone window that seemed to correlate with the finding on plain film. Full-Text PDF

Oral Radiology adopts an innovative system for online submission, editorial processing, and publication

Oral Radiology adopts an innovative system for online submission, editorial processing, and publication

Networked Music & Soundart Timeline (NMSAT): A Panoramic View of Practices and Techniques Related to Sound Transmission and Distance Listening

In 2008, Jérôme Joy initiated the ‘Networked Music & SoundArt Timeline’ (NMSAT)—a monitor on the history of networked music and sound. The Timeline is maintained by the NMSAT Development Committee, consisting primarily of researchers and artists from partner institutions. The team is complemented by a pool of authors and editors contributing to Locus Sonus's projects (such as, for instance, members of WLP – World Listening Project) and individuals who are part of other collaborative projects. The Committee has two major objectives: to amend and expand the existing database comprised currently of more than 2,000 entries and approximately 550 reference articles (NMSAT v.1.090319, March 2009); and to support the online technical and editorial development of the project. This article describes the current state of the timeline and the way in which it has been structured, as well as its evolution towards an open resource database accessible through a variety of specialized interfaces. NMSAT is part of the Locus Sonus research program and provides an essential historical backbone to practice-based artistic research and the exploration of developing technologies.

Attitudes Differ for Online Reporting versus Editorials

In the comparison of user and professionally developed online content, readers did not consider the source as significant when they assessed the fairness, believability or quality of an opinion piece.

Notice from the Editorial Office

As part of our continuing efforts to support both authors and reviewers, we are pleased to announce that the Japan Journal of Nursing Science has now adopted Manuscript Central, a web-based submission and peer review system. The new system brings with it a whole host of benefits including: Quick and easy submission, full correspondence tracking and manuscript status updates, 24 h access, significant decrease in peer review times, and consequently the realization of a rapid decision making process. From June 1, 2008, all submissions to the journal must be made via the online editorial office. Full instructions and a help facility are available at the Japan Journal of Nursing Science, Manuscript Central™ site: (http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/jjns). Manuscript submission is a step-by-step process needing little special preparation other than having all parts of the manuscript in an electronic format and having access to a computer with an Internet connection and a web-browser. Detailed help and instructions are provided on-screen. If you do not have Internet access or cannot submit online, the Editorial Office will help with online submissions. Please contact the Editorial Office by e-mail, jjns-editorial@primeassociates.jp. A completed submission is confirmed by email immediately and your paper will then enter the editorial process. Your manuscript will have a unique manuscript number and you can check the progress of your manuscript at any time by visiting the site with your ID and password. Manuscript review will also be handled online. Reviewers will be given an ID and password, full instructions, and access to the paper at http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/jjns. The review form and comments can be completed online and immediately made available to the Editorial Office and the Editor. With this exciting introduction of the online editorial office system, we look forward to receiving quality papers for peer-review and possible publication in the Japan Journal of Nursing Science.

Progress in IJCB: Online editorial workflow and e-publishing

It is indeed a great pleasure to bring forth the first ever ‘Online’ Issue of our very own Indian Journal of Clinical Biochemistry (IJCB). In my more than 30 years of constant association with the Association of Clinical Biochemists of India (ACBI), I have seen the most competent people at the helm, working hard to take the journal to greater heights. The zeal of these people motivated me to work to the best of my ability and attach another feather to the Journal. I believe each and everyone associated with the ACBI would be very delighted to know that IJCB is launching its very first Online Issue and from now on, each quarterly issue of the Journal would be available on our website (www.ijcb.co.in) as soon as it is published. Moreover, the ACBI life members will be privileged to access the publications without paying any extra fee. The Journal will also be available on Springer ’s content platform the Springerlink (www.springerlink.com), which is world’s most comprehensive online collection of scientific, technological and medical journals, books and reference works. As we are all aware, Internet has made the world smaller and more accessible, therefore IJCB’s multiple content Websites will be available in every corner of the world, attracting more academicians, scholars, researchers, young biochemists and students. The Journal’s Websites will also be allowing wider coverage of population and hence tapping those readers who did not have access to the IJCB. In the last few years the Journal has changed for good and can proudly be rated among the best publications currently being published worldwide, with respect to the variety of its intellectual/scholarly input and stimulating content.

Goodbye

In 2002, the editorial office of the Journal of Andrology migrated eastward from Minneapolis after 10 years in Minnesota and went to New York, where it operated out of a cubicle at the Population Council and the office of the chair of the Department of Urology at Weill Cornell Medical College. Although this transition was only five years ago, it marked another era for the journal. During our time as editors, processing of manuscripts, spanning file submission to final publication, became a completely digital process. The editorial office ceased to be a major customer of Federal Express and relied more heavily on local information technology personnel to transmit files. The passage of the physical to virtual reality culminated in a decision in 2005 to administer the editorial office out of Madison, Wisconsin, with Jansen Editorial Services and use the online manuscript tracking system of HighWire Press. Many aspects of the journal's operations have become automated, but the fundamental parts of being an editor have been retained. That comes down to the humbling responsibility of defining the clinical and basic science of andrology. Although we grew accustomed to the winnowing of submitted manuscripts and the selective acceptances for publication after receiving the critical appraisals and evaluations of our reviewers, the thrill of being at the forefront of andrology research was sustained. We remain grateful to the American Society of Andrology for entrusting us with this responsibility and shall fondly remember interactions with all of the various people with whom we came into contact. We cannot go without naming a few: our section editors and members of the editorial board, the ad hoc reviewers, the two chairs of the Publication Committee (Bernard Robaire and Marvin Meistrich), Jennifer Bellask, the editorial assistant who was instrumental in setting up our office shop in New York, and Judy Jansen and her staff for moving the journal to online editorial management. Under the capable direction of the new team of editors—Bud Burnett, Sally Perreault, and Jay Sandlow—the journal will undoubtedly change, which we support, to reflect the ongoing progress of our field. We do not know what the next report of a genetic deletion affecting spermatogenesis or future advance in culture and genomic manipulation of spermatogonial stem cells will be, but we expect that the most interesting and exciting results of the world's andrological investigators will continue to grace our pages.

Establishing an online editorial and publishing system: One-year experience with the Journal of Research in Medical Sciences

Although numerous published materials recommend journals to become online, few of them mention the transitional period, and to our knowledge none of them propose a rational evidence based approach to overcome the difficulties inherent in this time period. Studying the experiences of different journals during their transition into online business may help to delineate prominent factors affecting the whole process and its final outcome. In this article the story of a particular medial journal (Journal of Research in Medical Sciences) to change into an online practice is presented hoping to share experiences with other journals around the world.

Online-The Future of Newspapers? Germany's Dailies on the World Wide Web

The research project “Online – the future of newspapers?” examined the producers, their products and the users of German online newspapers. The study on online editorial boards was carried out in the form of a standardized mail survey of all 81 daily newspapers with a WWW presence in May 1997 (return quote: 78%). A questionnaire for the users was placed in the Web, where it could be accessed via links to the homepage of 27 online papers (2524 respondents). In addition five individual websites of newspapers were examined (semi-structured oral interviews with the heads of the editorial boards, content analysis). Almost half of the staff in online editorial boards have journalistic duties. Technical duties are of growing importance. The majority of online editorial boards surveyed depend on the editorial decisions of the print editors. The news sections in online papers consist mainly of duplicates of the printed “parent” paper. Articles for the online version are rarely edited. Very few external links and no graphic or sound effects were added. About two-thirds of users would have chosen the print newspaper and just under a third would have preferred the online version if only one of the versions had been available. The case studies show that online publishers and users base their activities and/or expectations on the print newspaper and use or design their product accordingly.

Editorial

Editorial

State of the ASAIO Journal

This has been a year of high activity for the Journal. With the cooperation and joint efforts of the authors, section editors, editorial board members, and reviewers, the Journal has experienced a period of improvement in volume and quality. Major Advancements Under the leadership of President Gerson Rosenberg and the 2004–2005 Board of Trustees, three major advancements have been achieved: (1) the launching of an online editorial management system, (2) the addition of a Pediatrics Section to the areas covered by the Journal, and (3) the inclusion of a historical article in each issue. Editorial Management System Publisher Lippincott, Wilkins and Williams provided access and training for an online editorial management system which was launched April 20, 2004. All aspects of manuscript management can now be performed online—from submission by authors, through the review process, to release to publication. The system provides excellent capability for compiling and reporting statistical data. New Pediatrics Section By invitation, Managing Editor, Betty Littleton, attended the First International Conference on Pediatric Mechanical Circulatory Support Systems and Pediatric Cardiopulmonary Perfusion, held in Hershey, PA, May 19–22, 2005. Editor, Jay Zwischenberger, and conference organizers, Drs. Gerson Rosenberg and Akif Undar, from Penn State University College of Medicine, had discussed and decided that introduction of a Pediatric Circulatory Support and Cardiopulmonary Perfusion Section could be facilitated through the review and publication of manuscripts developed by conference participants. The entire September–October 2005 issue of the Journal was devoted to Pediatric articles. This section will add a new dimension to the scope of the ASAIO Journal and, hopefully, generate new members and subscriptions. Dr. Akif Undar has graciously agreed to serve as Section Editor for Pediatrics. Historical Manuscripts Through the efforts of Mark Kurusz, CCP, UTMB, Coordinator for Project Bionics, we are publishing historical articles of interest to ASAIO readers in each issue of the Journal. Mark has contacted ASAIO members as well as other groups to solicit manuscripts. Manuscript Review Process The ASAIO Journal is extremely fortunate to have such a strong complement of people assisting with the review of manuscripts. The editors and reviewers have helped tremendously by completing timely and thorough reviews. While review turnaround time improved greatly after initiating communication by e-mail, it is expected to be further facilitated by the online system. In most cases, we are getting a response to the authors within about 2 months. Tracking the reviews is much simpler, and we will be able to determine productivity for each reviewer. There is always room for more reviewers, and we encourage all members to participate in this vital function.Figure: Joseph B. Zwischenberger, MD, EditorSolicitation of Manuscripts Efforts continue with regard to solicitation of manuscripts with various groups being contacted by the editorial office. The 2005 ASAIO abstract presenters were contacted and encouraged to submit manuscripts, a number of which appear in this issue of the Journal. At the Journal meeting during the Conference, Section Editors were charged with the responsibility of soliciting manuscripts within their respective sections. Future Direction Traditionally, the ASAIO Journal has published manuscripts which may be somewhat immature and preliminary but contain a kernel of innovation in the research reported. As the number of submissions continues to increase, some thought must be given to the scope of the Journal and the criteria for accepting manuscripts. While we want to continue to provide a voice for a somewhat unique group of researchers, the integrity of the Journal must be upheld. Over the next year, our editors and reviewers will be working to formulate guidelines which will preserve the essence of the Journal while improving quality. Members are encouraged to offer comments in this regard.

Letters to Sarah: analysis of email responses to an online editorial

An editorial opposing the violence being perpetrated on the Palestinians by the Israeli government that was written on the Common Dreams website prompted several hundred email responses to the author. The essay had been reposted to many listservs and other websites around the world. In a case study approach, we track the repostings and qualitatively and quantitatively analyze the responses to that editorial, to determine the nature of the discourse in an electronic environment. The study found that readers of the essay were prompted to write to the author largely when they agreed with her position because of their political or religious views, linked to their own experience or feelings, wished to relate their own personal stories, and when they were male.

Hypertension —Opportunities and Challenges

We greatly appreciate the privilege and challenge of serving as stewards of Hypertension for the next 5 years. Serving the journal is a privilege because Hypertension , since its inception, has been the premier journal in its field. At the same time, we face the challenge of increasing competition from other cardiovascular and hypertension journals, and we must rapidly adapt to the growing movement toward electronic publishing. The fact that Hypertension serves a broad readership with diverse research and clinical interests is a challenge and an opportunity. Although it is unlikely that we will please everyone, we keep such a goal in mind. Our intention is to publish in Hypertension original research papers, reviews, and special articles of such high caliber that they will receive the highest approval of those most competent to judge them. Hypertension was born in 1979 under the pioneering editorship of Harriet Dustan and her associate editors, Suzanne Oparil and Henry Overbeck, who clearly articulated the guiding principles of the journal:1 “Its editors are committed to developing a journal of high quality that is broadly based and covers all aspects of the field, not just a part of it—a journal that explores new areas, not just those that are already accepted as important. The field of hypertension is multidisciplinary, and the journal will serve a purpose only if it provides bridges among the many disciplines. It must stimulate thought and air scientific controversies. It must be a forum not only for results of laboratory investigation but also clinical research. It must inform its readers of events happening outside the laboratory and the medical center that may impinge on the ability to do research or on the care of hypertensive patients. It must serve the science of hypertension and promote the better care of hypertensive patients.” …

Suitability of Boophilus annulatus Replete Female Ticks as Hosts of the Nematode Steinernema carpocapsae

Entomopathogenic nematodes have achieved a place in biological control programmes because of their effectiveness, speed of action, innocuousness to non-insect targets and simplicity of mass production. However many challenges derived due to the lack of knowledge in some critical steps from laboratories to their use in the fields, have to be resolved in order to improve their performance and to reduce the mass production costs. For those reasons, studies on entomopathogenic nematology have increased considerably in the last few decades. Also, there have been important changes in the ways that results are published; many of them relate to major transformations in scientific trends. Using bibliometric tools we characterize variations in number, types of journal, countries of origin, research topics and the number of participating countries, of 1923 papers (from 1980 to 2010) reported in several on-line editorial databases.

Survival of earthworms exposed to Neoaplectana carpocapsae nematodes

Entomopathogenic nematodes have achieved a place in biological control programmes because of their effectiveness, speed of action, innocuousness to non-insect targets and simplicity of mass production. However many challenges derived due to the lack of knowledge in some critical steps from laboratories to their use in the fields, have to be resolved in order to improve their performance and to reduce the mass production costs. For those reasons, studies on entomopathogenic nematology have increased considerably in the last few decades. Also, there have been important changes in the ways that results are published; many of them relate to major transformations in scientific trends. Using bibliometric tools we characterize variations in number, types of journal, countries of origin, research topics and the number of participating countries, of 1923 papers (from 1980 to 2010) reported in several on-line editorial databases.