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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 ...
0 votes
1 answer
162 views

Do conference abstracts by other groups preclude publication?

N.B. This question is about physics (if you want it really specific: applied physics, adjacent to chemistry). This means that (a) abstracts are typically very short compared to a full paper (around 1-...
2 votes
1 answer
1k views

How to do short research projects with professors?

I am a physics student looking to apply for PhD positions. To increase my chances of getting selected and to increase my exposure to research, I want to publish research papers. The only research I ...
11 votes
3 answers
3k views

Is it a good idea, for a young researcher, to submit to arXiv a "mediocre" paper?

I'm a PhD student in physics, working on some projects with my advisors, which are hopefully going to be published soon. I have a profile on ResearchGate, on which I posted my theses, a poster, and a ...
4 votes
2 answers
294 views

Emphasis on explaining background knowledge in PL; not much so in physics?

As a CS-Physics double major undergrad entering my senior year, I have begun reading a handful of articles from both fields. Specifically, I have read some articles from programming language-related ...
10 votes
4 answers
5k views

Do people care about single-author works in quantum information theory?

I am a junior postdoc (completed one and a half years) working in the field of quantum information theory. I was told by my PhD advisor that single-author papers don’t really matter in physics. They ...
5 votes
1 answer
492 views

Disadvantages/risks of publishing new raw data as one of a group of instructive examples while planning to publish a full analysis of the data later?

We have a few 2D low energy electron diffraction LEED images (field is Physics/Surface Science) that are currently not yet published, the analysis is not complete nor their implications fully explored....
3 votes
0 answers
99 views

I see these types of plots a lot in older publications. What software/method is used to make this plot? [duplicate]

Anyone know what software or method is used to make these classic black and white publication figures with all caps axis labels and typically a gridded background? Just curious because I have seen ...
14 votes
2 answers
2k views

Convention on embedding three pairs of items in a single sentence using parentheses

I am writing in a description of three items in a thesis on Particle Physics, and I can do it in one line in theory. If there were just two items, e.g. A and B, which produce results C and D, I could ...
1 vote
2 answers
201 views

strategy of publication fee for a junior faculty member in math/phys fields

Most good journals don't charge a mandatory publication fee. Many open access only journals aren't that good and accept papers easily. For a junior faculty member who has much money for publication in ...
10 votes
1 answer
3k views

How does one keep hammering on another study in preprints so forcefully that one gets temporarily banned from posting to arXiv?

The September 26, 2022 news item in Science ‘Something is seriously wrong’: Room-temperature superconductivity study retracted discusses one individual who levied substantial criticism of the study, ...
1 vote
1 answer
1k views

If I write a paper as PI, is it best to be first or last author? [duplicate]

I'm a physicist at a national lab. I recently became head of a group at my lab and am currently writing a journal paper with a few of the people in my group. Is it better to put myself as first author ...
0 votes
1 answer
165 views

Can I publish plots for already derived and plotted data with different values?

I am doing MS Physics. If I take some previously derived results and plot them for different values, can I publish this work? If I do so, will it be like a review work? The plots are already there in ...
-1 votes
1 answer
304 views

Can I do publish my paper without APC? [closed]

Now a days,I have no money to pay for Article Processing charge (APC) since I have no money support foundation.I want to publish my paper without paying any amount of money in an international journal ...
12 votes
1 answer
3k views

Does adding a co-author with a high citation record in a paper have an impact on the peer-review process?

While going through some papers in my research area. I have noticed the presence of an author X with a high citation record (+3000), on several research papers. Digging deeper, I have discovered that, ...
0 votes
1 answer
161 views

Can I publish something which is more like a study and which does not contain any concrete results?

I am a theoretical physics researcher. I have not published any papers yet, so I do not have that much experience in publishing a paper. Though I am a Ph.D. student, I am also working independently on ...
20 votes
10 answers
7k views

Should I tell my supervisor about my upcoming paper?

I'm doing a PhD on theoretical physics. The last months, I'm working on a paper that my supervisor is not aware of. I'm now finishing the paper. The idea of the paper is closely related to my PhD ...
0 votes
0 answers
40 views

Citing programming packages [duplicate]

I wanted to ask how to cite python packages into a scientific article. I used a code package for my project and I can not find a scientific publication of the package I used. Exist a standard to cite ...
0 votes
0 answers
979 views

# as abbreviation of "Number of"/"Count of"

I'm writing a scientific paper, and I seen a lot of times the abbreviation # for 'number of' or similar, for example if we are counting events, I seen expressed the results as, # type1 = 100, # ...
8 votes
3 answers
2k views

Scientific paper with 3D scatterplot in supplementary information; I can add a video but how to let readers rotate/zoom interactively?

When publishing in the physical sciences the main paper is usually something 2D, you can read it online or print it. Many journals support supplementary data in the form of pdf files and videos. It is ...
1 vote
0 answers
47 views

I have developed a tool which I think can benefit others. Can I publish this to a journal? [duplicate]

I'm a physicist and have written a tool which greatly simplifies my job. Instead of needing to worry about implementation details I can now simply input my data and the software will do all necessary ...
3 votes
2 answers
1k views

Publishing a physics paper when you are outside academia?

I'd like to publish a paper in a cosmology journal. However, I've been outside academia for about 3 years since completing my masters. Is there any platform where I can share my idea and get feedback ...
1 vote
0 answers
65 views

Pursuing a UK PhD with a Greek BSc + research experience [duplicate]

I am beginning my final semester of my 4-year undergraduate program, studying Informatics (Computer Science) in Greece, and I expect to graduate this September. I would like to pursue a PhD in the ...
0 votes
1 answer
296 views

How can I ease in to the research arena?

I'm a first year graduate student and my age is 24. I got a degree in statistics, but it was not that interesting. I barely got into a below average grad school program in mathematics. I want to ...
6 votes
2 answers
2k views

My paper is rejected repeatedly without naming a technical flaw [duplicate]

My theoretical physics paper is being rejected repeatedly at the editorial stage, without undergoing peer review. However, every rejection explicitly states that there is no technical error in my line ...
4 votes
4 answers
397 views

Would it be inappropriate to complete this project on my own?

About a year ago, I quit my PhD in mathematics. At the time, I was working on a project given to me by my former advisor. His contributions were as follows: Explaining the basic idea of the project, ...
1 vote
1 answer
8k views

What niche is PRResearch supposed to fill that the other APS journals don’t already cover?

I read the description of the new journal PRResearch on the APS website, but I am still confused. APS publishes specialized journals, including PRA/B/C/D/E, for each major branch of physics, and ...
5 votes
2 answers
2k views

Example of joint submission to PRL, PRA

We are thinking about a joint submission to Physical Review Letters, and PRA per these guidelines. I'm however not entirely sure how the two submissions should be exactly related, e.g. how much ...
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 ...
1 vote
2 answers
2k views

What is the formal process for a theory to get accepted by the science community? [duplicate]

Question description so that anyone can evaluate and answer accordingly Since last many years, I have self-studied a subject that is Theoretical Physics - Cosmology, Time and Space. I have never got ...
0 votes
2 answers
303 views

How does one manage to "time stamp" their physics paper without submitting it to a preprint server like arXiv?

Say, I have a paper written up. I wish to publish it in a reputed journal without submitting it to arXiv. The first journal(A) I submit it to rejects it. I send the paper to a 2nd journal (B) for ...
1 vote
3 answers
302 views

Writing a book expanding on a previous review paper?

After writing a review paper on a specific topic, is it common to write a book to expand the review paper in a more pedagogical way, and to include more subtopics/content? Also, since published papers ...
7 votes
2 answers
1k views

Plagiarism between a Physical Review Letters paper and a previous arXiv preprint

I am a PhD student and today, a PRL paper has been published in which a part of its main section reports the same results as our arXiv preprint, that was submitted also to PRL (and to arXiv) at the ...
43 votes
7 answers
13k views

Will a paper be retracted if a flaw in released software code invalidates its central idea?

Say I have written code that performs a physics calculation. After this, I get a paper published based on the results of the code. In the interest of advancing the progress of science, I upload the ...
2 votes
1 answer
311 views

I am extremely passionate about entropy/physics, but I don't think I can get into grad school. What can I do to pursue these topics sustainably? [closed]

I am a recent graduate in Chemical Engineering from the University of Maryland with a 2.94 GPA and a 3.01 major GPA and I am completely obsessed with entropy and the foundations of quantum physics. I'...
5 votes
1 answer
235 views

How do researchers use published plots?

I was wondering how people deal with data represented with plots (of any kind) in a published paper, in particular for what regards Physics. When doing theoretical research (but not only), often you ...
1 vote
0 answers
114 views

Looking for an endorser to publish on arxiv.org as well as other suggestions [duplicate]

My grandfather, a long since retired professor, recently finished a very long in the making paper, which tries to cover a lot of ground around physics and general nature science. He is very old-school,...
-1 votes
1 answer
1k views

Life cycle for Physical Review Letters [duplicate]

What is the average time does it take from the time you submit your paper to the time is it published in Physical Review Letters?
4 votes
1 answer
275 views

Graduate courses or research experience for PhD admissions: Which is more important? [closed]

I am currently at a crossroads, deciding between several MS program offers. I have the choice to do a research based masters, where I would take very few graduate courses but focus almost solely on ...
0 votes
1 answer
958 views

How to explore Physics research as an undergraduate, keeping in mind the ever increasing weight on publications? [closed]

I am currently 3rd year Physics UG and have been working on Cosmology for past 3 years. I want to explore different areas like QFT, Quantum Gravity and maybe a bit of basic Math research as well, ...
27 votes
2 answers
1k views

Why do citations in physics journals leave out the article title?

I'm not a physicist but I read the occasional physics paper. Coming from another discipline I find it odd that most article references in physics journals leave out the article title - this seems like ...
9 votes
6 answers
2k views

How can a prospective PhD student know beforehand which universities have the most reputable teams/supervisors?

I am interested in astronomy/astrophysics and cosmology. It is my understanding that choosing the best supervisor/team to work with for the PHD is more crucial than choosing the best (and most ...
4 votes
3 answers
5k views

Article got accepted into PRL -- do I pay the costs?

Last week we got an article accepted into PRL (Physical Review Letters). As is standard, they afterwards sent out an email saying To help defray editorial and production expenses, APS, a not-for-...
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. ...
14 votes
2 answers
530 views

How does a book editor's scientific reputation affect how the work of the chapter authors is evaluated?

When considering to publish a paper in a research journal, the journal's reputation itself is what people usually care about, rather than the editor's expertise and scientific status (although high-...
22 votes
4 answers
9k views

What are pre-print repositories for math and physics alternative to ArXiv?

Are there other widely used academic pre-print repositories other than ArXiv? My interest is especially towards mathematics and physics. If possible, one characteristic that I'd like to find in other ...
16 votes
1 answer
419 views

History of mega-collaborations

Curiosity spurred by this recent question: what were the first mega-collaboration papers (hundreds/thousands of authors)? Which institution/project/experiment started them? How were they received at ...
8 votes
1 answer
1k views

Authorship disagreement

I'm in physics where the order of authors is meaningful. The first author is the lead author and the last author is the principal investigator. I am an undergraduate who has collaborated on a topic ...
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 ...
2 votes
1 answer
1k views

Is first authorship a big deal (in terms of highlighting it on CV, etc.)? [duplicate]

From August 2015 through August 2016 I was on a Nuclear/Radiation Physics based work placement in a scientific research institute, between my second and third years of my university Maths degree. I am ...

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