Algorithms Are Opinions Embedded in Code
Would an AI-driven peer review system improve objectivity? Cathy O’Neil, author of Weapons of Math Destruction explains the biases and subjectivity inherent in algorithms.
Countering the Über-Brands: The Case for the Megajournal
Many column inches – right here in the Scholarly Kitchen as well as elsewhere – have been expended on the megajournal and its successes and (perhaps more often), failures. But how might megajournals support the very real need for action to improve the transparency, reproducibility and efficiency of scientific research?
A View from the Outside — Trends and Challenges Consultants See in Scholarly Publishing
Input from more than a dozen consultants portrays an industry struggling to adapt to a dramatically different and rapidly changing information economy.
Illegitimate Journals and How to Stop Them: An Interview with Kelly Cobey and Larissa Shamseer
Illegitimate – or predatory – journals are on the increase. What’s more, authors from high-, middle-, and low-income countries are now known to be publishing in them. Find out why this is the case and how we can work as a community to help stop their spread, in this interview with Kelly Cobey and Larissa Shamseer of Centre for Journalology, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, to coincide with their new paper on the topic in Nature Human Behavior.
Is There a Business Case for Open Data?
Open data is gaining ground, but is there a revenue stream that would help journals recover the costs of gathering, reviewing and publishing data?
Puppetmasters — Who Is Pulling the Strings in the New Information Economy?
Information manipulation is not new, yet everything is different. How do governments, preprints, algorithms, and our own responsibilities intersect? Where does peer review come in now?
Gender Bias in Peer Review: An Interview with Brooks Hanson and Jory Lerback
Earlier this year, an American Geophysical Union analysis of peer review in its journals revealed evidence of gender bias, with women being less likely to be invited to review than men despite being more likely to be the first author of an accepted paper. In this interview, Brooks Hanson (Senior Vice President, Publications) and former Data Analyst, Jory Lerback describe the original study and the AGU’s efforts to address this bias.
Difficulty In Finding Reviewers Taints Editorial Decisions
Journal editors are more likely to reject papers when they experience trouble recruiting reviewers, reports a new study.
Turning a Critical Eye on Reference Lists
Citations and the metrics around their use are an important part of evaluation and promotion of science and scientists and yet, little attention is paid to them in the peer review process. In this post, Angela Cochran makes a call to critically review reference lists and develop standards around what should and should not be included.
Portable Peer Review RIP
After several pivots and failures, it may be time to finally say goodbye to portable peer review.
New Assessment Process Boosts Credibility of Developing-world Journals
New detailed assessments of journals in the Global South will provide reassurance to authors and readers and guide editors on how to improve their journals.
Guest Post — When Metrics and Politics Collide: Reflections on Peer Review, the JIF and Our Current Political Moment
Sara Rouhi from Altmetric reflects on the biases of the “research industrial complex”.
Seven Things I Learned at the Eighth International Peer Review Congress
To round out Peer Review Week 2017, here’s a brief summary of some key takeaways from this year’s Peer Review Congress, held every four years.
Journals Peer Review: Past, Present, Future
Continuing our Peer Review Week celebrations, we asked representatives from three very different organizations – the American Historical Association, BioMed Central and The Royal Society – to share their thoughts on the evolution of peer review for journals from its beginnings through the present and into the future.
Does Born-Digital Mean Rethinking Peer Review?
What kind of peer review is developing to evaluate long-form digital scholarship? A view from AAUP press editors.