La lluita per publicar

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Al THES hi he vist l’article Pursuit of knowledge is being hamstrung by heavy-handed editing que proporciona una visió crítica de l’actual lluita per publicar en revistes indexades, i oblidar una mica la tradició de publicar llibres (sobretot a l’àmbit de ciències socials i humanitats).

Consecutive research assessment exercises have taught British scientists to bypass book publication as they travel the one true road to career success: distilling ever larger and more overhead-laden grants into extended abstracts for publication in top-ranked journals. Unfortunately, anyone hoping that this intense literary selection pressure would generate profound and enjoyable reads will be disappointed by the present content of most science journals. Increasing rejection rates and ever more intrusive editing are combining to render them superficial and tedious.

I per una altra part, hi ha una gran pressió dels editors envers els revisors (referees):

Tim Birkhead … has noted the damage caused by the pressure for near-instant peer review of manuscripts, but he did not fully explore the psychological consequences of formatting a review for a highly prescriptive website. Unsurprisingly, shoehorning hurried comments into electronic boxes has brought a formulaic box-ticking mentality to the entire review process. Allies say “yea” and detractors say “nay”, typically with minimal justification. Nay-sayers are more likely to triumph in the present environment, where an editor’s primary role is finding reasons to reject perfectly valid scientific outputs in order to maximise the journal impact factor. Gentle rejection is effected by recommending that further research be done, while firmer condemnation is easily achieved by identifying any element of the text as heterodox.

Cada cop costa més fer de revisor. No hi ha prou temps per llegir tranquil.laments els manuscrits, per buscar bibliografia… A més, es tracta d’una activitat transparent, no queda registrada enlloc del sistema universitari i de recerca.

El darrer paràgraf de l’article del THES és clar i català. Deixem que siguin els lectors els àrbitres primaris de la bona ciència, més que no pas els editors.

We scientists can continue to sacrifice increasingly large proportions of sound research on the altar of orthodoxy, indulging in ever more time-consuming self-censorship. But we might make better use of our time by allowing readers, rather than editors, to be the primary arbiters of good science. If we maintain our present authoritarian course, science will continue to lose students and public support to the arts, where self-expression is still grudgingly permitted.

És una opinió.

One thought on “La lluita per publicar

  1. Molt adient ara que han sortit els resultats del RyC i es confirma el publish or perish, amb l’afegit d’haver-ho de fer a revistes d’IF alt amb independència del teu tema de recerca.

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