Making the Right Moves: A Practical Guide to Scientific Management, p. 182.
As your relationships with journal editors develop, you may be asked to review manuscripts submitted by other scientists. Take the task seriously. Do the reviews throughly and promptly. If you don't have time or don't think you have the right expertise, let the editors know right away. They will not hold this against you. A late or weak review, however, could hurt your reputation with the editors. The benefits of serving as a reviewer are potentially great. Not only will you learn about others' research, you will improve your own critical skills and confirm your standing as a knowledgeable scientist in the eyes of the editors. You own future papers will be taken more seriously if you do good reviews.
给中国杂志投稿和给外国杂志投稿不大一样。有的催化文章投中国化学不中,投Journal of Molecular Catalysis A却能中。而有的美国化学会志两页快报投中国化学倒未必会中,因为审稿人看不懂。外国的催化杂志审稿偏重于总体印象,有时候审稿人对实验提不出意见,就说这篇文章没有趣、没有用,还没有达到该杂志的水平,建议投其它差的杂志。越是出名的审稿人,审起稿子越是高屋建瓴,评价该文章在该课题中的地位和意义,而很少死扣字句的错误。
Communicating Science: A Practical Guide, Springer, p. 102.
Before starting on your task, jot down your answers to a list of questions such as:
1) Is this the appropriate journal for publication? If not, can I suggest a better medium? 2) Is this paper significant/important? Why? Why not? 3) Is it comprehensive with respect to its subject matter? 4) Are there omissions? 5) Are there mistakes? Inaccuracies? 6) Is the work reproducible from the evidence provided? 7) Do some of the authors' assertations need to be qualified? 8) Does the paper conform to the high standards as previous contributions from the same group? 9) Is the writing clear and fluid? Can it be improved? How? 10) Are there mispellings? Typos? 11) Is the bibliography (reference) adequant? 12) Is the artwork necessary and complelling? 13) Is the title adequate? 14) Should the abstract be rewritten? 15) Can I suggest cuts in the manuscript? 16) How can I sum up in a sentence or two my overall assessment?
The ACS Style Guide (Third Edition), p. 74.
The entire manuscript should be read carefully and critically. Most reviewers read a manuscript more than once. Manuscripts should be rated on technical quality, significance of the work, importance to the research field, and adequacy of expression. Many reviewers divide their reviews into general comments and specific, detailed comments. In the general section, reviewers draw attention to both the strong and weak points of the manuscript, the concepts, the objectives, and the methods. Like an author writing a manuscript, reviewers should write reviews in a comprehensive but concise manner, addressing the questions presented below:
Suggested Topics for A Peer Review
1) Are the methods (experimental section) adequately described and referenced? 2) Are there any unsupported conclusions? 3) Is there anything that is confusing or ambiguous? 4) Do figures and tables appropriately illustrate the data? 5) Is the introduction clear and informative? 6) Is either the introduction or discussion longer than necessary, and do they make sense in relation to the subject and the data? 7) Although the discussion is the appropriate place for speculation, is it excessive? 8) Are the appropriate references cited? Are the references accurate? 9) Is English usage and grammar adequate? 10) Is the length of the manuscript unwarranted? Suggestions on how a manuscript can be shortened are appreciated by editors. 11) Is the use of color warrented? Printing color is a significant expense for the publisher.
Essential Skills for Science and Technology, Oxford University Press, p. 161.
Critical analysis
1) Is the article appropriate for its target audience? 2) Does the article build on prior research? 3) Does the article reflect a good knowledge or previous literature in the field? 4) Does the authors identify the problem or issue clearly and explain its relevance? 5) Did the authors choose the best research method and approach? Was it executed properly? 6) Were the methodology, findings, and reasons for their conclusions logically and clearly explained? 7) Do the authors make appropriate comparisons to similar events, cases, or occurances? 8) Are the ideas really new or do the authors merely repackage old ideas with new names? 9) Were there adequate and appropriate examples and illustrations? 10) Do the authors discuss everything they promise in the abstract, introduction, and outline? 11) Does the article make a contribution to its field? If not, in what way should it have made a contribution and why didn't it? 12) What are the article's strengths and weaknesses? 13) What are its limitations and boundaries? 14) Did it discuss all the important aspects in its domain thoroughly? 15) Overall, how complete and thorough a job did the authors do? Did they justify their conclusions adequately? Did they provide enough background information to make their work comprehensible? 16) How confident are you in the article's results? Is it convincing?