August 03 2012
"How to publish your work in the Physical Review".
Dr. Thomas Pattard (APS Editorial Office, Ridge, NY)
August, Friday 3rd at 11:00. Room: E04.
Abstract:
When you try to publish your work in a peer-reviewed journal such as the Physical Review, it
often appears that authors, referees and editors all speak different languages and pursue
different goals (a "me versus them" feeling). Indeed, the pressure to "publish or perish"
in the modern academic world sometimes seems incompatible with the idea of conveying
actual and useful information to the reader of a journal, who wants to stay up-to-date with
current developments in her/his field of interest. On the other hand, a significant part of
this feeling is rooted in miscommunication that could easily be avoided by a better mutual
understanding of the needs of authors, referees, editors and readers.
In this talk, I will try to give some insight into the publishing process from the
perspective of an editor. I will give a short overview of APS publishing, and the workflow
associated with the handling of a typical manuscript. This will lead us to the question of
what we are looking for in a paper / referee report / cover letter, and how the
communication between all involved parties can be improved. Using examples from actual
communication we receive, I will try to give a few hints that might actually make you a
better author and/or referee. In the last few minutes of the talk, I will briefly discuss
various recent APS initiatives.
