[Taxacom] are journal-ranking algorithms code-compliant?

[Fred Schueler]

Quoting Dan Lahr <dlahr at ib.usp.br>:

> Assume that the authority placed after a name, besides being metadata that
> objectively establishes unambiguous taxon identity, is ALSO a citation.
> This should actually mean that taxonomic descriptions are in fact highly
> cited.

> Perhaps it is easier to start actually adding authority citations in the
> references list.  This would certainly increase IF, not to mention it may
> increase objectivity in some works. I am not entirely sure what the
> down-side to doing this would be.


* Bill Brown suggested this back in the 1960s, just on epistemological
grounds, before there were journal- or citation-ranking systems. The  
problem, to my mind, is that since the proper thing to cite is not the  
original author of the name, but the revision that embodies the  
species concept to which the name, as used, refers, so if the original  
author was also included names would look something like

  Xus yus ((McGooby), Peterson 2013)

This would be valuable, and would boost citations for current  
taxonomic works, but it would be a different format from the  
conventionally written author of the name.

fred.
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