Commentaries [Neurosurgery Wiki]

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### **Academic Publishing: A Complete Overview**  

#### **1. What Is Academic Publishing?**  
Academic [[publishing]] refers to the process of **writing, reviewing, and disseminating** research through **scientific journals, books, and conference proceedings**. It is the primary way researchers share their findings with the scientific community.  

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### **2. Types of Academic Publications**
#### **a) Journal Articles**  
- **Original Research Articles** – Present new findings based on experiments or studies.  
- **Review Articles** – Summarize and analyze existing research on a topic.  
- **Case Reports** – Describe unique or rare cases in clinical sciences.  
- **Short Communications** – Brief reports on important new findings.  

#### **b) Conference Papers**  
- Presented at **academic conferences** and published in **proceedings**.  
- Often used in **computer science, engineering, and physics**.  

#### **c) Books & Book Chapters**  
- Used in **humanities and social sciences**.  
- Can be **monographs** (written by one author) or **edited volumes** (multiple contributors).  

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### **3. The Academic Publishing Process**  
#### **Step 1: Research & Writing**  
- Conduct original **experiments, surveys, or theoretical work**.  
- Write the **manuscript** following journal guidelines (abstract, introduction, methods, results, discussion).  

#### **Step 2: Choosing a Journal**  
- Select a **relevant** and **high-impact** journal.  
- Consider factors like **scope, audience, impact factor, and open-access policies**.  

#### **Step 3: Peer Review**  
- Submit to the journal → Editors **screen for quality and plagiarism**.  
- Sent to **peer reviewers** (experts in the field).  
- Reviewers assess **quality, originality, and methodology**.  
- Possible outcomes: **Accepted, Minor Revisions, Major Revisions, or Rejected**.  

#### **Step 4: Revisions & Resubmission**  
- Authors **respond to reviewer comments** and revise the manuscript.  
- Resubmit to the journal for final evaluation.  

#### **Step 5: Publication**  
- If accepted, the article undergoes **copyediting, formatting, and proofing**.  
- Published **online or in print**.  
- Indexed in databases like **PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, or Google Scholar**.  

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### **4. Open Access vs. Subscription-Based Publishing**
#### **Open Access (OA)**
- Articles are **freely available** to everyone.  
- Authors may pay **Article Processing Charges (APCs)**.  
- Examples: **PLOS ONE, BMC, MDPI, Frontiers**.  

#### **Subscription-Based Journals**
- Readers need a **subscription** or **university access** to read articles.  
- Example: **Elsevier, Springer, Wiley, Nature, Science**.  

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### **5. Impact Factor & Citation Metrics**
- **Impact Factor (IF)** – Measures a journal’s influence (based on citations).  
- **h-Index** – Measures an individual researcher’s impact.  
- **Altmetrics** – Tracks social media mentions, downloads, and online discussions.  

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### **6. Common Challenges in Academic Publishing**
- **Rejections** – Many papers get rejected before acceptance.  
- **Publication Bias** – Journals prefer **positive results** over negative ones.  
- **Plagiarism & Ethics Issues** – Strict guidelines on research integrity.  
- **Predatory Journals** – Fake journals that publish low-quality work for money.  

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### **7. Tips for Successful Publishing**
✅ Choose the **right journal** for your research.  
✅ Follow the **journal’s formatting and submission guidelines**.  
✅ Write **clearly and concisely**.  
✅ Ensure **data accuracy** and **methodological rigor**.  
✅ Address **peer reviewer comments** professionally.  
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{{rss>https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/rss/search/1R7Q-39Fj8fZks76cuj1b8gqH1-htDbDg7h21hyfuqr6sMLcIn/?limit=15&utm_campaign=pubmed-2&fc=20250122135541}}

Publishing is difficult and tiring, and in a clinically active field like neurosurgery, it can become all the more punishing. Yet it remains the only true measure of scientific work and discovery. Losing such a valuable resource to predators causes loss of academic recognition, career sabbaticals, and monetary loss and also denies the scientific community and world, in general, its benefits. 
((Deora H, Tripathi M, Chaurasia B, Grotenhuis JA. Avoiding predatory publishing for early career neurosurgeons: what should you know before you submit? Acta Neurochir (Wien). 2021 Jan;163(1):1-8. doi: 10.1007/s00701-020-04546-9. Epub 2020 Aug 26. PMID: 32845360.)).

===== Commentaries =====

The world is unique. It revolves only around affluent people. They have made rules only for their own [[benefit]]s. It also applies for [[journal]]s. The scientific [[article]] [[publication]] in [[journal]] revolves only around journals, with [[author]]s and [[reviewer]]s doing everything from backstage making them profit and supporting their business. Authors who have done hard work for their [[research]] work have to pay for publication either in the form of article processing charge (APC) or later to buy own pdf article after publication. Reviewers are also being cheated by getting nothing for their review process who also imposes substantial amount of time behind improving the authors manuscript. In return they don't even get free [[pdf]] and have to buy it later after publication
((Chaurasia B. Reviewers side. Turk Neurosurg. 2024 Aug 16. doi: 10.5137/1019-5149.JTN.46896-24.3. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 39840574.))
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1. Profit-Centric Model of Journals
Many journals operate as for-profit entities, relying on a model that disproportionately benefits publishers at the expense of researchers and reviewers.
Authors not only conduct and fund their research but also pay article processing charges (APCs) to have their work published. Even after publication, they often face barriers to access their own work unless additional payments are made.
2. Uncompensated Labor of Reviewers
Reviewers invest significant time and expertise in improving manuscripts but often receive no monetary compensation.
The lack of incentives or rewards for reviewers, such as free access to the final publications or discounts on publishing, highlights the inequity in this system.
3. Barriers to Accessibility
Even after paying APCs or submitting to journals without fees, access to published research can remain restricted due to paywalls, limiting the dissemination of knowledge.
4. Reinforcing Inequality
Wealthy institutions or researchers can afford high APCs, while those from underfunded institutions or countries face challenges in publishing their research.
The current model may inadvertently exclude voices from diverse and underrepresented backgrounds, further perpetuating a cycle of inequity.
Possible Solutions
Open Access Models:

Transitioning to open-access journals that do not charge APCs or offer waivers for low-income researchers.
Supporting initiatives like Plan S, which advocates for open-access publishing.
Compensation for Reviewers:

Introducing monetary or non-monetary incentives for reviewers, such as access to journal subscriptions, discounts on APCs, or recognition programs.
Government or Institutional Funding:

Governments and research institutions could subsidize the costs of open-access publication to make research universally accessible.
Reforming the Publishing System:

Encouraging community-driven or nonprofit publishing platforms that operate on minimal costs.
Increasing transparency in how APCs are utilized and ensuring fair distribution of profits.

There is a need for systemic changes in scientific publishing to ensure fairness, accessibility, and equity for authors, reviewers, and readers alike. 
===== Choosing a journal =====
Submitting a [[manuscript]] to an unsuitable journal is a common mistake, and can cause journal editors to reject the manuscript without even sending it for peer review. Choosing a journal that matches your study is thus very important because it makes it more likely that your manuscript will be accepted. Some factors to consider are:

The topics the journal publishes. If your research is applied, you should target a journal that publishes applied science; if it is clinical, you should target a clinical journal; if it is basic research, you should target a journal that publishes basic research.
The journal’s target audience. If you think researchers in other fields will be interested in your study, a journal that covers a broad range of topics may be best. On the other hand, if only researchers in your field are likely to want to read your study, then a field-specific journal would be best.
The types of articles the journal publishes. For example, if you want to publish a [[Review]] Article, find out whether the journal publishes these. If you wish to present a case study or a theorem, ensure that the journal you are targeting actually publishes the type of manuscript you wish to write.
Length restrictions. Does the journal limit the number of words in the articles it publishes? Can your manuscript meet its requirements?
reputation of the journal. A journal’s factor of impact is only one measure of its reputation, but not always the most important. You need to consider the prestige of the authors that publish in the journal, and the size of the journal’s readership. Objectively consider how important your research is and what level of journal it is best suited for; otherwise, you may find yourself wasting your valuable time submitting to one journal after another.
Other factors to consider: Does the journal usually publish articles quickly; is the “time to publication” important for you? Would you prefer an [[open access]] journal that might give much greater exposure to a wider audience?
Types of journal manuscripts
You should put some thought into choosing your [[target journal]] before you start writing your manuscript. When looking for suitable journals in which to publish your own results, start with what you have read. You should already be familiar with published studies that are similar to yours. Which journal were those studies published in? The same journals may be appropriate for your manuscript, so make a list of them. If you need more journals to consider, you can do literature searches for other published articles in your field that are similar in scope and impact on the field, and see where they were published.

When you have a list of potential target journals, visit and read the websites for these journals. Every journal should have a page that provides instructions or guidelines for authors, including information on many of the factors listed above.

More on instructions for authors
Journals on your list that are not a match for your manuscript based on the factors listed above should be eliminated from consideration. Among the remaining journals, it is likely that one or more will stand out as a very good candidate. Consider if any additional experiments will give you a better chance of achieving publication in your top choice. If you are in a hurry to publish, consider which of the remaining journals offers rapid publication; if none do, consider which has the highest publication frequency. If your main goal is to reach as many readers as possible, strongly consider candidate journals that provide an open access option. Open access allows anyone to read your article, free of charge, online, which can make your article more likely to be read and cited.

When you have chosen the journal you think is the best fit for your study and your goals, it is usually a good idea to also identify your second- and third-choice journals. That way, if your paper is rejected from your first-choice journal, you can quickly submit to your second-choice journal.

===== Predatory Journals =====

[[Predatory Journals]].