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18 votes
10 answers
4k views

What are good reasons for declining to referee a manuscript that hasn't been posted on arXiv?

This question is inspired by the comments under this answer, specifically the points raised by user TimRias. The discussion was about a paper submitted to Physical Review D (PRD), a journal covering ...
0 votes
6 answers
2k views

Is it normal for journal reviewers to reject submissions based on non-scientific reasoning? [closed]

Is it normal for reviewers to use nonfactual statements as reasons to reject journal submissions? Here, nonfactual statements will be defined as statements that are in contradiction with verified ...
32 votes
11 answers
12k views

Is humor unacceptable in referee reports?

I am from a country where humor is a part of the culture, and I recently prepared the following referee report: The manuscript solves an interesting problem, but, unfortunately, the authors are a bit ...
-2 votes
2 answers
1k views

How can a paper be accepted by Physical Review Letters? [closed]

In the first round, we get two reports from the Editor. Referee A just rejected it and referee B said that he is not sure. Since referee A had made a mistake, we appealed to this manuscript. At the ...
2 votes
3 answers
521 views

How to respond to a reviewer's comment when he is asking for experimental data but your paper is based on theoretical calculations?

We submitted a research paper in physics. In this paper, we take structural parameters from the experimental work and then perform simulations using density functional theory and present our results. ...
0 votes
1 answer
118 views

Importance of peer-reviewed proceedings in particle physics

How important can be peer-reviewed proceedings based on talks on work-in-progress? Do they carry equal importance like a publication in a journal and count as an independent publication even though ...
2 votes
2 answers
4k views

Should I appeal my paper's rejection in PRL?

My manuscript in PRL was rejected after two rounds, although apparently quite narrowly. First round the paper was sent to two referees. One was very supportive to accept, and the other provisionally ...
1 vote
1 answer
150 views

Guide to reviewing a scientific article [duplicate]

I'll be reviewing a scientific article soon and I've not done this before. It'll be reviewing a popular article on an astrophysical topic. Undergraduate level but I'm open to any level of guidance. ...
1 vote
1 answer
420 views

Deadline for resubmission in Physical Review E [closed]

As the title suggests, does anyone what is a typical deadline for the resubmission in the mentioned journal? As it was not specified anywhere.
0 votes
2 answers
133 views

What is the workflow of an editor in this case? [closed]

I am rather new to the academic so I am bit insecure about the whole process. I have a small question regarding the publication process. Context: Recently I submitted a paper to a physics journal. ...
8 votes
1 answer
15k views

My manuscript status says that one referee sent a message but not a report

About three weeks ago, I submitted a paper to a highly reputable physics journal. (I had another paper recently published in this journal as well.) I have been checking the status continuously, and ...
5 votes
2 answers
5k views

Should I ask the Editor for a third Referee when the answer of first two Referees do not agree?

I submitted a theoretical paper to Physical Review Letters, and the editor answered that it can be published in Physical Review but it seems not suitable for a Letter given the Referee responses. ...
9 votes
3 answers
1k views

Can post-docs serve as reviewers for grant proposals?

I am always hearing that being a grant reviewer is a great experience in learning how to write proposals. I am a post-doc with an eye on an academic career so would like to do this. Does it happen? ...
20 votes
2 answers
882 views

References/resources on problems surrounding peer review in physics?

I was watching this video on YouTube (this is the second part of it) and it motivated me to ask this question. From the videos: ....that's the good aspect of peer review. It should work to sift ...
18 votes
3 answers
2k views

Personal advantages of being a referee once you quit science?

I previously asked this question in the physics forum (tag soft-question), but was convinced that it better suits in the academia forum. So I deleted it and posted it here. I was recently asked to ...