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Microsoft Academic Search: a Phoenix arisen from the ashes?

Microsoft Academic Search: a Phoenix arisen from the ashes?

A first small-scale case study suggests that the new incarnation of Microsoft Academic presents us with an excellent alternative for citation analysis.

A new complementary index for analyzing research performance

A new complementary index for analyzing research performance

A researcher collaborating with many groups will normally have more papers (and thus higher citations and h-index) than a researcher spending all his/her time working alone or in a small group. While analyzing an author’s research merit, it is therefore not enough to consider only the collective impact of the published papers, it is also necessary to quantify his/her share in the impact. For this quantification, here I propose the I-index which is defined as an author’s percentage share in the total citations that his/her papers have attracted.

The ecstasy and the agony of the altmetric score

The ecstasy and the agony of the altmetric score

Altmetrics have gained momentum and are meant to overcome the shortcomings of citation-based metrics. In this regard some light is shed on the dangers associated with the new “all-in-one” indicator altmetric score.

The correlation between editorial delay and the ratio of highly cited papers

The correlation between editorial delay and the ratio of highly cited papers

Ideally, in a reviewing process, it is generally easier for referees to make faster and more reliable decisions for high quality papers, which ideally and on average will later attract more citations. Therefore, it is possible that the editorial delay time—the time between dates of submission and acceptance or publication—is correlated to the number of received citations, as has been weakly confirmed by previous studies.

Individual bibliometric assessment at University of Vienna: from numbers to multidimensional profiles

Individual bibliometric assessment at University of Vienna: from numbers to multidimensional profiles

This paper shows how bibliometric assessment can be implemented at individual level.

Why the referees' reports I receive as an editor are so much better than the reports I receive as an author?

Why the referees' reports I receive as an editor are so much better than the reports I receive as an author?

Authors tend to attribute manuscript acceptance to their own ability to write quality papers and simultaneously to blame rejections on negative bias in peer review, displaying a self-serving attributional bias.

The journal coverage of Web of Science and Scopus

The journal coverage of Web of Science and Scopus

The objective of this research is to describe the journal coverage of those two databases and to assess whether some field, publishing country and language are over or underrepresented.

Investigation of the degree to which articles supported by research grants

Investigation of the degree to which articles supported by research grants

This study uses a bibliometric method to examine the relationship between two journal characteristics during 2009–2013: the article processing charges and the percentage of published articles based on work that is supported by grant-funded articles.

A human right to citizen science

A human right to citizen science

The flourishing of citizen science is an exciting phenomenon with the potential to contribute significantly to scientific progress. However, we lack a framework for addressing in a principled and effective manner the pressing ethical questions it raises. We argue that at the core of any such framework must be the human right to science.

Incidence of data duplications in a randomly selected pool of Life Sciences

Incidence of data duplications in a randomly selected pool of Life Sciences

This study questions the reliability of life science literature, it illustrates that data duplications are widespread and independent of journal impact factor and call for a reform of the current peer review and retraction process of scientific publishing.

Lessons from the Séralini GM case

Lessons from the Séralini GM case

The publication, retraction and subsequent republication of the Séralini study raise important scientific and ethical issues for journal editors. Decisions to retract an article should be made on the basis of well-established policies. Articles should be retracted only for serious errors that undermine the reliability of the data or results, or for serious ethical lapses, such as research misconduct or mistreatment of animal or human subjects.

How have the Eastern European countries of the former Warsaw Pact developed since 1990? A bibliometric study

How have the Eastern European countries of the former Warsaw Pact developed since 1990? A bibliometric study

The study aims to shed light on international collaboration by researchers from the Eastern European countries

Social capital in academia

Social capital in academia

This paper provides useful insights for the design of networks that promote research productivity. Overall, dense networks negatively affect the creation of new knowledge. In addition, the analysis shows that a division of labor in academia, in the sense of interdisciplinary research, increases the productivity of researchers. It is also found that the position in a network is critical. Researchers who are central tend to create more knowledge.

Competitive funding, citation regimes, and the diminishment of breakthrough research

Competitive funding, citation regimes, and the diminishment of breakthrough research

Highly fragmented and competitive system can undermine efforts to foster groundbreaking research.

Competitive research grants and their impact on career performance

Competitive research grants and their impact on career performance

The role of competitive funds as a source of funding for academic research has increased in many countries. For the individual researcher, the receipt of a grant can influence both scientific production and career paths.

A cross-disciplinary analysis of the presence of 'alternative metrics' in scientific publications

A cross-disciplinary analysis of the presence of 'alternative metrics' in scientific publications

An analysis of the presence and possibilities of altmetrics for bibliometric and performance analysis is carried out.

Journals, repositories, peer review, non-peer review, and the future of scholarly communication

Journals, repositories, peer review, non-peer review, and the future of scholarly communication

Essay on the problems relating to reliance on subject-specific journals and peer review.