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This study sets out to detail the deceptive practice of including stock characters in the editorial boards of journals run by predatory publishers. Stock characters are defined by the author as those that currently (2023) appear 20 or more times on these editorial boards. Predatory publishers are in turn defined by the author as open access publishers in violation of three or more out of eight egregiously 'fatal' criteria such as identity theft and token (or no) peer review. Stock characters (and stolen academic names and affiliations in general) are included in editorial boards to give them an unwarranted appearance of quality and excellence. Ninety‐six of these stock characters were identified, with their numbers of board memberships ranging from 20 to 503 in the current year (2023). Some were cases of total identity theft, some partial identity theft, and some willing compliance. Academics in the latter category could also have records of publications with the predatory publishers in question. Universities typically warn staff and postgraduate students about the dangers of engaging with predatory publishers, but they can be unresponsive or otherwise negative when alerted to instances of such engagements involving their staff. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Editorials have earned a special place among many practices, tools, and policies available to editors for journal advancement. Despite the vital and diverse roles of editorials in academic journals, they have rarely been systematically analysed for common characteristics or patterns. In this study, I approached editorials as a leadership practice of journal editors. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to understand how editors use editorials to lead their journals. To render a manageable set of editorials and, at the same time, to capture the latest trends, I focused on editorials published in 2022 in top journals in the field of organizational behaviour/human resource management indexed by Scopus. The sample consisted of 120 editorials found in 103 journals managed by 21 publishers. I analysed the editorials using qualitative content analysis that was guided by two research questions: (1) How commonly do editors use editorials? (2) What objectives do editors pursue in their editorials? The analyses showed that editorials appear to be neither a regular nor a common practice. An overwhelming majority of editorials were written to validate existing knowledge. The findings raise several important issues, including an unclear contribution of editorials, perceived or factual, to academic journals and the editor's role in the journal development process. Journal editors, editorial board members, publishers, universities, and organizations associated with journals should consider revisiting their policies and practices to ensure a purposeful, meaningful, and systematic use of editorials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peer‐review is the foundation and the safeguard of scientific research. Without the dedication of our reviewers, the journal would not have been successful. In 2023, 269 reviewers completed 434 reviews for the 174 manuscripts submitted to GeoHealth. Our reviewers are from all continents except Antarctica. Besides reviewers from North America, China, Europe, and China, we started to have reviewers from India, Latin America, and Africa. GeoHealth editorial board is committed to expanding the readership, authorship, and reviewership to other countries. If you have already reviewed for us, no matter where or who you are, we hope you and your colleagues will consider GeoHealth a home for your work. Below is the list of reviewers who completed more than two reviews or have outstanding quality reviews. Two of our reviewers are being nominated for AGU best reviewers awards. Plain Language Summary: List of reviewers who completed one or more reviews or have outstanding quality reviews. Individuals in italics provided two or more reviews for GeoHealth during the year. Key Points: The editors thank the 2023 peer reviewers [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Journal of the International AIDS Society (JIAS) expresses gratitude to the peer reviewers, editorial board members, deputy editors, statistical experts, and ethical committee members who contributed to reviewing articles for the journal in 2023. The JIAS acknowledges the importance of their time and expertise in maintaining the quality of the publication. The co-Editors-in-Chief are Kenneth Mayer and Annette Sohn, and the Executive Editor is Marlène Bras. The list of individuals who contributed to the journal is extensive and diverse, representing a wide range of expertise in the field of AIDS research. [Extracted from the article]

Background: Technological advances in skin ultrasonography and magnetic resonance are discussed. Methods: Literature review. Results: 40 publications cited. Conclusion: This article illustrates crucial contributions made by the Editors, the Editorial Board and this Journal to these fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The prevalence of undocumented medical treatments among children is a significant issue, as well as many EU countries lack access to newly developed children‐friendly medicines. Consequently, there is a pressing need for supplementary resources that can facilitate informed decision‐making regarding children's medication. We therefore aim to describe the process of establishing a children's Drug and Therapeutics Committee (cDTC), as well as the preparing and implementation of recommendations for children in the capital region of Denmark. Following the guidelines outlined by the World Health Organization, we established a cDTC, and recommendations for paediatric medication practice were constructed from assessments of medication use patterns among children in the capital region between 2019 and 2021. The recommendations were meticulously crafted based on evaluation of the current marketing authorization landscape and existing best available evidence. In 2019, the capital region established the first cDTC supported by expert councils and an editorial board. A total of 2429 purchase item numbers covering 1 222 846 defined daily doses and 592 088 purchased packages covering 10 200 000 defined daily doses were identified in the secondary and primary sectors, respectively. Three comprehensive lists covering recommendations for newborns and children were published between 2021 and 2020 totaling 331 recommended pharmaceutical products. The recommendations primarily intended for use in the secondary healthcare sector were implemented through the revision of 38 paediatric‐ and six neonatal product ranges throughout capital region. In conclusion, recommendation lists for children governed by a cDTC provide a rational auxiliary tool that can be immediately implemented in the clinic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Josep Rizo is a Professor of Biophysics, Biochemistry and Pharmacology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, where he is Virginia Lazenby O'Hara Chair in Biochemistry. He is particularly interested in the study of the mechanisms of neurotransmitter release and intracellular membrane fusion using structural biology, a variety of biophysical techniques and reconstitution approaches. Jose has been a part of the FEBS Open Bio Editorial Board since 2021. In this interview, he shares his insights into developments in the field of neurotransmitter release, describes his move from Spain to the United States, and discusses how sometimes you need to use both logic and scientific hunches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this special interview series, we profile members of The FEBS Journal editorial board to highlight their research focus, perspectives on the journal and future directions in their field. Professor Andrey Abramov is a cell biologist and biophysicist at University College London's Queen Square Institute of Neurology. He has served as an Editorial Board Member of The FEBS Journal since 2015. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The aim of our study was to investigate the representation of women in the editorial boards of otorhinolaryngology journals indexed in the Science Citation Index‐Expanded (SCIE) database. Methods: We examined the gender distribution of editors‐in‐chief, editorial board members, and associate/section editors in otorhinolaryngology journals indexed in the Web of Science SCI‐E core collection. We also analyzed the number of years the journals have been publishing, their categories (general otorhinolaryngology, otology‐audiology, phoniatrics, rhinology‐allergy), the country and continent of publication, the Journal Citation Indicator (JCI) 2021 values, 2‐year and 5‐year impact factors (IF), H‐index, and quartile rank of the journals. Results: Out of the 54 editors‐in‐chief included in our study from a total of 44 journals, only 6 (11.1%) were women. Women constituted 21.6% of the editorial board members and 35.1% of the associate/section editors. The proportion of women in the editorial boards of journals with a 5‐year impact factor >3.0 was significantly higher compared to others. As the 5‐year impact factor of the journals increased, the number of women in the boards showed a linear increase. When evaluated based on journal categories, phoniatrics journals had higher representation of women in both editorial board membership and associate/section editor roles compared to other categories. Conclusion: The representation of women in the editorial boards of otorhinolaryngology journals is still inadequate. To rectify this situation, it is important for the entire academic community to exhibit a collective attitude rather than individual efforts. Level of Evidence: 2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This editorial provides a summary of the topics and papers selected for the Special Issue on "optimal operation and control of smart energy systems". After undergoing a rigorous review process, 10 papers have been accepted for publication. These papers cover various aspects of smart energy systems and are distributed as follows: control strategy of distributed resources (two papers), optimal operation of energy systems under uncertainties (three papers), defect detection and risk evaluation of energy systems (two papers), low‐carbon economical energy systems (three papers). The Guest Editorial Board hopes this Special Issue can provide valuable information for future research and advancements in the field of optimal operation and control of smart energy systems. This editorial summarizes the topics and papers selected for the Special Issue on "optimal operation and control of smart energy systems". After rigorous reviewing process, 10 papers are accepted for publication. The Guest Editorial Board hopes this Special Issue can provide a valuable information for future research and advancements in the field of optimal operation and control of smart energy systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How people pay is critically important to consumers and businesses alike. Many consumers are choosing to pay for goods and services from an increasing number of options. Tech‐savvy urbanites buy coffee by tapping their phone on a reader. Parents returning from a night out use peer‐to‐peer payment apps, such as Venmo, to pay the sitter. The recent explosion of financial innovations promises faster, more efficient, and cheaper transactions. These increasing digital payment options coincide with decreased number and volume of cash transactions. However, vulnerable populations face more constrained payment choices and often rely exclusively on cash. Without experience, devices, or acceptable credit histories, vulnerable populations may have little access to digital transactions. The advantages of falling digital costs and other benefits thus accrue to the digitally connected. At the same time, those who must transact in coins and paper money are likely to find their relative costs increasing. This paper highlights payment trends and the potential impact on vulnerable populations in the United States as we move toward a cashless society. This paper should stimulate discussions of public policy initiatives to mitigate digital payment issues for vulnerable people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the role and evolution of Editorial Advisory Boards (EABs) in academic journals, specifically focusing on the Information Systems Journal (ISJ). The author explains that while EABs are meant to provide advice to the Editor in Chief and lend respectability to the journal, they are rarely consulted and their composition often lacks diversity. The ISJ took steps to revitalize its EAB by increasing gender and ethnic balance, but ultimately decided to dissolve it due to the journal's maturity and reputation. Instead, a new Editorial Review Board (ERB) was created to recognize and support high-quality reviewers. The article concludes by highlighting the diversity of the ISJ's Senior Editors (SEs) and Associate Editors (AEs) and emphasizing the importance of representation in academic journals. [Extracted from the article]

In this special interview series, we profile members of The FEBS Journal editorial board to highlight their research focus, perspectives on the journal, and future directions in their field. Professor Arun Shukla is a Senior Fellow of DBT Wellcome Trust India Alliance, and Professor and Sonu Agrawal Memorial Chair at the Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, India. He has served as an Editorial Board Member of The FEBS Journal since 2021. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Methods in Ecology & Evolution (MEE) has undergone several changes since the author became the executive editor. These changes include a new team of senior editors and an editorial board, the transition to a gold open-access journal, the requirement for data and code to be included with submissions, and the implementation of double-blind review. Despite these changes, the core mission of the journal remains the same: to promote the development of new methods in ecology and evolution. The journal has a high impact factor and receives a large number of submissions each year, but only a small percentage are accepted. The best submissions are focused on methodology rather than results, and the journal offers different article types to accommodate different types of research. The author encourages potential authors to reach out for guidance on whether their manuscript is a good fit for the journal. [Extracted from the article]

There is evidence that national scientific journals are important for local communities despite their limited audience due to national languages and topics, like in pedagogy. However, it is not easy to assess the level of scientific rigour of local journals, as most do not have available scientometric data and are often published in minority languages. We hypothesize that a possible manifestation of a latent trait of inner authenticity of the scientific journal (meaning the journal is accepted by a community interested in developing the field which conducts internationally accepted research) could be H‐index of the editorial board members. To test this approach, we evaluated H‐index and gender of editorial board members (n = 490) from 17 Czech and Slovak national science‐oriented scientific pedagogical journals which were not indexed or indexed in Erih+ or Scopus, and compared this with the five lowest‐rated journals from the same field indexed in the Web of Science (WoS) database. The H‐index of editorial board members was somewhat higher in indexed journals with those from WoS showing higher scores, and the number of board members with no discernable H‐index was far greater in non‐indexed journals. Editorial boards of journals indexed in WoS were mostly male, compared to a dominance of women on boards of non‐indexed journals. Acknowledging the limited sample, it appears that the H‐index of editorial board members may be a way to value national scientific journals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Key points: Editors of 10 North American Family Medicine journals simultaneously published a Joint Call for Action to address systemic racism and encourage diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility/antiracism (DEIA) initiatives in medicine and medical publishing in January 2021.The efforts of the journals since publication of the joint editorial are summarized and include working to diversify editorial teams, editorial boards and authors; enhanced content about DEIA topics; mentoring of authors who are underrepresented in medicine (URM); and presenting content related to DEIA in Family Medicine publishing at national meetings.Editors had a follow up meeting in November 2022 to continue working toward a common goal of reducing racism and increasing DEIA initiatives in Family Medicine publications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined editorial differences between potential predatory and mainstream journals in the discipline of language and linguistics. A keyword search of the relevant journals on Beall's updated list of potential predatory journals led to a sample of 66 journals. An equal number of journals were selected from those indexed by Web of Science (WoS) via stratified random sampling. Analyses showed that the two groups of journals did not differ in terms of certain publication frequencies, mean number of annual articles, mention of peer review time, availability of the author guides and aims/scope sections, absence of editorial boards, mean number of editorial board numbers, article processing charge (APC) for open access, claimed indexation by ERIC and DOAJ and availability of ISSNs. However, these two groups of journals differed markedly in terms of contact information, years of editorial activity, certain publication frequencies, specialized focus, mention of acceptance rate, mean peer review time, claimed adoption of peer review, submission mode, listing of editors‐in‐chief, relevance of their expertise, mean number of editors, relevance of the editorial board members' expertise, mean APC, claimed indexation by Google Scholar/Scopus/WoS, reporting of fake impact factors, provision of Index Copernicus Value, claimed COPE membership, availability of ethical guidelines and various policies and existence of DOIs. These differences can be used as warning signs that a journal may not be legitimate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The document introduces the incoming editor-in-chief of the journal Epilepsia. The new editor-in-chief is the first person from outside the USA and Europe to hold this position. The previous editor, Dr. Michael R. Sperling, has made significant achievements during his tenure, including increasing submissions, decreasing review timelines, and increasing the impact factor. The new editor, along with the editorial team, aims to assess the current status of the journal and make improvements, such as increasing international representation, organizing webinars and seminars, and maintaining a gender-balanced editorial board. The goal is to strengthen Epilepsia's position as a representative of the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) and contribute to the advancement of epilepsy research globally. [Extracted from the article]

Dr. John Wrightson, a respiratory consultant and Clinical Lead of the Oxford Pleural Unit in the UK, passed away in May 2024. He joined the Editorial Board of Respirology Case Reports as an Associate Editor when the Journal was launched in 2013. Dr. Wrightson was known for his diligence and friendly manner in responding to communications, and he provided helpful feedback to authors. He will be greatly missed by the Editorial staff. [Extracted from the article]

In this special interview series, we profile members of The FEBS Journal editorial board to highlight their research focus, perspectives on the journal and future directions in their field. Fumiyo Ikeda is Professor at the Ubiquitin Biology Laboratory, Graduate School of Frontier Biosciences, Osaka University (Japan). She has served as an editorial board member of The FEBS Journal since 2021. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information on Summer 2023, Volume 60, Number 2 issue of the "American Business Law Journal" is presented, including information for contributors, editorial board and table of contents.

In this special interview series, we profile members of The FEBS Journal editorial board to highlight their research focus, perspectives on the journal and future directions in their field. Ana García‐Sáez is Professor at the CECAD Research Center, Institute for Genetics, University of Cologne (Germany). She has served as an Editorial Board Member of The FEBS Journal since 2021. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]