Flow Of Scientific Progress Creates Wave Of New Journals

The world of scientific publishing never ceases to change. Each year, while some journals go out of business, new ones appear, their publishers intent on filling a void in a particular subject's literature or augmenting the existing publications in that field. In addition, journal titles may change or publications may merge to create new journals with completely different titles. In 1989, the Philadelphia-based Institute for Scientific Information (ISI) added more than 100 titles to its existing Science Citation Index (SCI) coverage of 3,170 journals in the physical and life sciences and other technical areas such as air and waste management and fluid dynamics. Last year, however, two fields alone--neuroscience and pharmacy/pharmacology--contributed more than 18 percent of the new titles. The accompanying Table 1 lists the neuroscience and pharmacy/ pharmacology titles added to SCI in 1989. Some publications, such as the Journal of Neural Transmission (General Section and Parkinson's Disease and Dementia Section), Molecular and Chemical Neuropathology, Critical Reviews in Neurobiology, Pharmacological Research, and DICP--The Annals of Pharmacotherapy are not new journals, but already established publications with altered titles. Another journal, Acta Pharmaceutica Nordica, originated in 1938 but over the years has incorporated several existing periodicals while retaining its original title. Other journals on the list are new only to SCI, such as Acta Neuropathologica and Farmaco. They may have been passed over for coverage in ISI's products in previous years because of irregular publication or language/translation difficulties. At least four journals on the list are brand new--that is, they began publishing in 1989. These periodicals include the European Jour- nal of Neuroscience, the Journal of Neuroendocrinology, Chirality, and the European Journal of Pharmacology--Molecular Pharmacology Section. Oxford University Press publishes two of these new journals: the European Journal of Neuroscience and the Journal of Neuroendocrinology. The European Journal of Neuroscience provides scientists with a broad view of neuroscience research, ranging from behavioral to molecular neuroscience, with a European focus. The Journal of Neuroendocrinology is a publication that integrates endocrinology and neuroscience, including invertebrate, vertebrate, and clinical endocrinology. Chirality presents papers pertaining to molecular symmetry with an emphasis on the pharmacological, biological, and chemical properties of chiral molecules--in particular, those molecules used for drugs, pesticides, and xenobiotics (drugs or other foreign substances that affect living organisms). The European Journal of Pharmacology--Molecular Pharmacology Section is a new supplement to the well-established European Journal of Pharmacology, started in 1967. This supplement publishes original research papers about the molecular level of interaction of various substances in biological systems. None of the 19 journals in neuroscience or pharmacy/pharmacology added to the SCI in 1989 ranks high in impact: All are simply too new to SCI coverage for ISI to calculate this measure of a journal's importance to the research community. ("Impact" is a measure of the citation rate of the average article published in a journal over a given period.) In the years to come, these journals will face stiff competition from older, well-established journals and review periodicals, such as those listed in Tables 2 and 3. Table 2 shows the top five journals in neuroscience, while Table 3 lists the high-impact journals in pharmacy/ pharmacology, according to ISI's 1989 impact factor calculation. Impact for 1989 was determined by dividing the number of citations a journal's 1987 and 1988 articles received in 1989 by the number of articles the journal published during the same two years. The top neuroscience journal from 1989 is the Annual Review of Neuroscience, one of 27 different journals presenting original reviews on various scientific topics published by Annual Reviews Inc. of Palo Alto, Calif. (The Scientist, March 5, 1990, page 20). Review journals are often citation achievers in any field because they summarize a large body of current or past research in a single paper. The Annual Review of Neuroscience also ranked first in impact among neuroscience journals in 1988; in fact, over the last 10 years, it has occupied the first or second position in every year but one--1984. The journal with the second highest impact is Trends in Neurosciences; it also held this position in 1988. Trends has ranked in the top five since 1986. Neuron is third in 1989 impact, with a value of nearly 10; Progress in Neurobiology is fourth, at 8.1; and another review journal--Brain Research Reviews ranks fifth, with an impact factor of 6.7. Among pharmacy/pharmacology journals, a review journal also holds the top spot. Pharmacological Reviews, with an impact of 23.7, was the third highest ranked review journal in all fields in 1989, as well as the fifth highest of all journals--review and nonreview--that same year. This journal is firmly entrenched in first place, having held this position among pharmacy/pharmacology journals for seven of the last 10 years. Reviews of Physiology, Biochemistry, and Pharmacology ranks second in impact (9.7). It too has consistently appeared in the top five high-impact pharmacy/pharmacology journals for nine of the last 10 years. Another periodical in the series from Annual Reviews Inc., Annual Review of Pharmacology and Toxicology, holds the third position, with a 1989 impact of 7.0; while Trends in Pharmacological Sciences and the British Journal of Pharmacology round out the list of five, holding fourth and fifth place, respectively. The British Journal of Pharmacology is the only journal of this group devoted solely to publishing original research papers. This journal was established in 1946 and is the official organ of the British Pharmacological Society and is also the oldest of the 10 high-impact journals examined in this study. Trends in Pharmacological Sciences, an ier publication begun in 1979, is a compendium of news, articles, and reviews. None of the high-impact journals from either field, neurosciences or pharmacy/pharmacology, started publishing after 1981. It stands to reason that a periodical must be available to its readership for at least several years before it can establish enduring credibility among its targeted readers, as well as to attract the papers that contain the hottest research of the time. Abigail Grissom is a freelance science writer based in Drexel Hill, Pa.

Flow Of Scientific Progress Creates Wave Of New Journals

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