1. Journal of Physics Special Topics
Mervyn Roy (S6)
www2.le.ac.uk/departments/physics/people/mervynroy

2. Journal of Physics Special Topics
Author, referee and edit papers for the department’s physics journal
Authors – write original, quantitative, physics articles
Referees – critically review other authors’ articles
Editors – review referee reports and make final decision on whether articles are published or not
Run in exactly the same way as a professional journal

3. Why? Practise the skills of a professional research physicist
Transferable skills (employability)
Formulate problems
Communicate scientific results
Give and take professional criticism
Group work
Take part in the formal process of running the journal
Media exposure (work with University press office)
Publications indexed on Google Scholar!

4. Paper appears in Journal
Publish
The process
Thursday
Paper submitted
board meeting
Friday
report submitted
Thursday
board meeting
Friday
Authors formulate problem and write article
Editors distribute paper to referees
Referees review the article
Editors consider referee reports
Revisions required
Authors correct paper
Resubmit for review
Authors correct paper
Decline submission

5. Average quality of work = X%
The marks
Primarily assessed by number & quality of publications & referee reports
Groups ranked by journal points
submission = 1, publication = 2, referee report = 1, press release = 1-3
Each group’s journal points used to generate module mark
points
group
% mark 80 65 50
Group 1
Group 2
Group 3
X %
Points scaled to % mark at end of module.
Average quality of work = X%

6. Assessing the average quality of the work
Determined by quality of papers (and website use)
Mini-REF exercise
random selection of papers re-reviewed by staff
each group nominates their best 2 papers for re-review
ABCD grades modify journal pts & average % (see next slide)
Determined by quality of referee reports
are these clearly written; do they follow the guidelines; are criticisms constructive and accurate?
Determined by quality of editorial board meetings
are these well organised/efficient; are decisions correctly recorded in the website and the minutes; do groups have input?
Determined by quality of submitted press releases

7. ABCD grading modifies journal points: +3 points for A-graded papers, -3 points for D-graded papers (and -1 for the reviewers of these papers)
ABCD grading modifies perception of average quality (see pst-authors-guide)

8. Useful information The journal mr6 website
physics.le.ac.uk/journals/index.php/pst
Past papers
Technical information for using the website
Links to comprehensive guides on mr6 website
mr6 website
www2.le.ac.uk/departments/physics/people/mervynroy
Guide for authors
Style guide / template
Guide for referees
Guide for Editors, and example minutes of the editorial board

9. Authors Writing a paper All papers must follow the PST style guide
www2.le.ac.uk/departments/physics/people/mervynroy/lectures/pst-authors-guide.pdf
All papers must follow the PST style guide
www2.le.ac.uk/departments/physics/people/mervynroy/lectures/pststyleguide.pdf
Submitting a paper to the journal
physics.le.ac.uk/journals/index.php/pst -> ABOUT -> GUIDE FOR AUTHORS
LaTeX typesetting language
online guides or get help from staff (workshop Monday 2pm)
LaTeX template and other files available from mr6 website

10. Writing a paper 1 Find an ‘original’ idea
Physics Challenge style problems
Everyday experience
Fiction/Media
Undergraduate physics
I wonder why… how does that work… what would happen if…
Published PST papers
extensions, errors, suggestions for further work
Papers should be accessible to all MPhys students
Avoid overly specialised material (i.e. projects)
Think about all areas of physics – not just dynamics! (waves, astrophysics, semiconductors, quantum etc. etc.)

11. Writing a paper 2
Develop a (simple) model and calculate something quantitative
Trends, explanations, analysis better than a single number
Can you quantify what your model doesn’t include?
Write the paper
Communicate your results clearly – use a formal writing style, correct grammar, spelling etc. Avoid jargon/acronyms. Keep it simple.
Conform to the style guide
Proof read!
Work as a group – all group members will be authors of each paper, and receive the same module mark

12. Writing a paper 3 What is an acceptable standard?
see previous issues of the journal
make sure the content is appropriate!
peer review – so, ultimately, it depends on your peers
also see PST authors guide
Feedback (how to improve your work)
peer review – via referee reports
also verbally from MR, GW
and as end of module percentage mark

13. Clear writing: active or passive?
It was heard by me on the grapevine
I heard it on the grapevine
Difficulty was experienced in obtaining the product in a high state of purity
The product was difficult to purify
In this paper, a structure is suggested for the salt of deoxyribose nucleic acid
We suggest a structure for the salt of deoxyribose nucleic acid
Most Journals recommend the active voice because it is clearer and more engaging - it is possible (but more difficult) to write well in the passive voice (but never say `This paper calculates’ etc.)

14. Writing a paper: some things to avoid
Unjustified precision
We estimate the mass of a human as 70 kg, g=9.81 ms-2 and F=mg. Therefore the force is N
Writing out arithmetic
F = ma = 70 x 9.81 = N
Using different fonts for symbols in equations when referenced in the text e.g. mass, m = 2 kg, and F = m a
Making over-inflated claims & missing key citations
We are the first… This approximation can be used in all cases…
Assuming readers & referees can read your mind!

15. Time management Managing your time is an important part of the module
10 credit module = 75 hours per group member
Write as many good papers and reviews as you can…
Aim for around 8 6 submitted papers
since 2007 groups have published between around 5 to 15 papers. Module marks from around 55% to 90%
Workload for a typical group
Each group member will write ~2 papers (~5 to 10 reviews)
75 hour module ~2 hrs per review ∴~ hrs per paper
Keep a time management sheet

16. Before Friday noon
Sign up for a group – and nominate ONE group contact
Download an example paper from mr6 website
physics -> people/mervynroy/lectures/
Groups P1, P2, A1, A2: example paper 1
Groups P3, P4, A3, A4: example paper 2
Groups P5, P6, A5, A6: example paper 3
Imagine you’ve written the paper. Change the author names, and change the title to reflect your group name
Submit ‘your’ paper to the Journal – check the website instructions
Read the guidelines for referees and for editors - on mr6 website
Read all the example papers - how good do you think they are?

17. Referees Critically appraise the work of your peers
make a judgement on whether or not it should be published
This is one of the most important roles in science!
Refereeing guidelines
www2.le.ac.uk/departments/physics/people/mervynroy/lectures/pst- referees-guide.pdf
Submitting a review
physics.le.ac.uk/journals/index.php/pst -> ABOUT -> GUIDE FOR REFEREES

18. Resubmit for review, or reject
Refereeing process
Is the physics correct and the paper understandable? no
Resubmit for review, or reject
yes
Is the physics at an appropriate level? no
Revisions required
yes
Is the paper free of minor errors? no
yes
Publish

19. Referees
Reviews should be rigorous, fair, professional – written politely
Criticisms should be constructive – can you suggest ways to improve the work?
Include a brief summary of the work at the start of your report – demonstrates that you have read the paper! And is useful for the authors to see if they have explained things as well as they should.
www2.le.ac.uk/departments/physics/people/mervynroy/lectures/pst- referees-guide.pdf
PST website -> ABOUT -> GUIDE FOR REFEREES

20. Editors Consider referee reports and author correspondence
Have final say on whether or not a paper is published
Confirm authors have made minor corrections requested
Distribute papers to referees – spread workload
This year we will have two editorial boards
one for A-groups made up from members of A-groups
one for P-groups made up from members of P-groups
Membership of the board rotates around group members

21. Editorial board
Everyone takes a turn on the editorial board – employability!
Board membership – 1 from each group (changes each week).
An ‘independent’ chairperson who returns from the previous week’s board. A staff observer (MR, or GW)
Group A
Group B
Group C
Group D
Group E
Volunteers as secretary
Chair group A
WK 2
Volunteers to return as Chair
Chair group E
Group A
Group B
Group C
Group D
Group E
Volunteers as secretary
WK 3
Volunteers to return as Chair

22. Board meetings You must prepare for the board meetings beforehand!
Guides for editors
Physics -> /people/mervynroy/lectures/pst-editors-guide.pdf
physics.le.ac.uk/journals/index.php/pst -> ABOUT -> GUIDE FOR EDITORS
You must prepare for the board meetings beforehand!
Don’t forget to update the website with a record of your decisions
You must minute the meetings – send a pdf copy to mr6 and each a representative of each group

23. Editorial board Consistency is important
The details of how you run the meetings are up to you
but different staff supervisors may offer different advice / input
Consistency is important
role of chairperson, communication between group members
Board has members from all groups concerned - including authors and referees
this has some big advantages
easy resolution of misunderstandings
seeing the process from all sides helps you to write better papers
but there are also some challenges
board members must be ‘fair’

24. Weekly Deadlines Submission of articles Submission of referee reports
Thursdays before 1 pm
Submission of referee reports
s to the editor accompanying resubmission
Editorial board meetings
Fridays from 2.05 pm to 3 pm – room F10 and F11 booked for the board meeting (Q & A at 2 pm in F11)

25. Key dates Question and answer sessions (before board meetings)
Last chance to submit new papers
Thursday 24th Nov - for penultimate editorial board Friday 25th Nov
Science Communication Session – date/time TBD
PST final editorial board
Friday 2nd December - any papers still undergoing review after the final editorial board will count as unpublished
Submission of press release
Friday 9th December – all accepted papers must be published
Submission of module marks to University
End of January