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

Tue Apr 14 15:58:54 CDT 2015

It would be completely pointless to treat name authorities as citations! For one thing, certain Turks would rub their hands with glee at the prospect of all those citations for renaming homonyms! For another thing, it makes no more sense than to cite the person who first coined any term used in the article, or a person who helped to invent any concept used therein. Should we cite Linnaeus every time we use the Linnean system of naming? Should we cite Hennig every time a cladistic concept is used? Should we cite Thomas Edison if we mention a light bulb?

Stephen

--------------------------------------------
On Wed, 15/4/15, Frank T. Krell <Frank.Krell at dmns.org> wrote:

 Subject: RE: [Taxacom] are journal-ranking algorithms code-compliant?
 To: "mivie at montana.edu" <mivie at montana.edu>, "deepreef at bishopmuseum.org" <deepreef at bishopmuseum.org>, "'Dan Lahr'" <dlahr at ib.usp.br>, "'Stephen Thorpe'" <stephen_thorpe at yahoo.co.nz>
 Cc: "'TAXACOM'" <taxacom at mailman.nhm.ku.edu>, "penev at pensoft.net" <penev at pensoft.net>
 Received: Wednesday, 15 April, 2015, 9:44 AM

 It doesn't help the
 impact factor, but it helps citation counts of authors (i.e.
 us taxonomists). So it would be good for our metrics rather
 than for the journals' metrics.
 Frank

 Dr. Frank-T.
 Krell
 Curator of Entomology 
 Commissioner, International Commission on
 Zoological Nomenclature
 Chair, ICZN ZooBank
 Committee
 Department of Zoology 
 Denver Museum of Nature & Science 
 2001 Colorado Boulevard 
 Denver, CO 80205-5798 USA 
 Frank.Krell at dmns.org

 Phone: (+1) (303) 370-8244 
 Fax: (+1) (303) 331-6492 
 http://www.dmns.org/science/museum-scientists/frank-krell
 lab page: http://www.dmns.org/krell-lab

 The Denver Museum of Nature
 & Science aspires to create a community of critical
 thinkers who understand the lessons of the past and act as
 responsible stewards of the future.

 -----Original Message-----
 From: Taxacom [mailto:taxacom-bounces at mailman.nhm.ku.edu]
 On Behalf Of Michael A. Ivie
 Sent: Tuesday,
 April 14, 2015 2:39 PM
 To: deepreef at bishopmuseum.org;
 'Dan Lahr'; 'Stephen Thorpe'
 Cc: 'TAXACOM'; penev at pensoft.net
 Subject: Re: [Taxacom] are journal-ranking
 algorithms code-compliant?

 If anyone is thinking that citing the paper is
 going to help impact factors, think again, as only the
 citations in the first 2  years post publication are
 counted.  The half-life of a taxonomic paper may be 50
 years, but that does not matter.

 Mike

 On
 4/14/2015 2:35 PM, Richard Pyle wrote:
 >
 I have always treated name authorities as citations (i.e.,
 included the full literature citation in the
 bibliography).  In the days when paper-based publication
 dominated and every character on the printed page was
 precious, editors would push back.  Now, there doesn't
 seem to be as much (if any) resistance.
 >
 > Aloha,
 > Rich
 >
 >> -----Original Message-----
 >> From: Taxacom [mailto:taxacom-bounces at mailman.nhm.ku.edu]
 On Behalf 
 >> Of Dan Lahr
 >> Sent: Tuesday, April 14, 2015 1:56
 AM
 >> To: Stephen Thorpe
 >> Cc: TAXACOM; penev at pensoft.net
 >> Subject: Re: [Taxacom] are
 journal-ranking algorithms code-compliant?
 >>
 >> Hi all,
 >>
 >> This
 discussion has brought back an issue that I often wondered
 about.
 >>
 >>
 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.
 >>
 >> best,
 >>
 >> dan
 >>
 >> __________________________________
 >> Daniel J. G. Lahr
 >> PhD, Assist. Prof.
 >> Dept of Zoology, Univ. of Sao Paulo,
 Brazil Office number: + 55 (11) 
 >>
 3091 0948 http://www.ib.usp.br/zoologia/lahr/
 >>
 >>
 >> On Mon, Apr 13, 2015 at 10:08 PM,
 Stephen Thorpe 
 >> <stephen_thorpe at yahoo.co.nz
 >>> wrote:
 >>> Doug Yanega said [Quote]So, if
 Zootaxa went from 25% of all names to 
 >>> 100%, ...?[Unquote]
 >>>
 >>> It
 might not look too good if the ICZN ever tried to declare
 Zootaxa 
 >>> as the sole valid
 journal for zoological nomenclature, since it is 
 >>> privately owned by an ICZN
 commissioner. Even if he sold it 
 >>> beforehand, its market value would
 be greatly increased if this were 
 >>> known
 >> to
 be in the pipeline.
 >>> At least it
 would solve the problem that the electronic amendment 
 >>> seems to have been written with
 the Zootaxa publishing model firmly 
 >>> in mind (and little or no thought
 given to other publishing models), 
 >>> though one could perhaps see the
 whole thing as someone playing a 
 >>> long game for personal gain.
 I'm not suggesting, of course, that 
 >>> this is the case, but only that it
 might look that way.
 >>>
 >>> Also, the microbiology system is a
 bit pointless. It simply creates 
 >>> two different systems of
 nomenclature, one just slightly more 
 >>> "official" than the
 other. For most intents and purposes, candidatus 
 >>> names are just fine as names for
 taxa, and their validation in IJSEM 
 >>> adds nothing but a bureaucratic
 rubber stamp. I guess that there is 
 >>> a bit of bureaucrat in every
 scientist, defines as making things 
 >>> overly complicated for no
 practical gain.
 >>>
 >>> Stephen
 >>>
 >>>
 --------------------------------------------
 >>> On Tue, 14/4/15, Doug Yanega
 <dyanega at ucr.edu>
 wrote:
 >>>
 >>>   Subject: Re:
 [Taxacom] are journal-ranking algorithms code-compliant?
 >>>   To: "Roderic
 Page" <Roderic.Page at glasgow.ac.uk>,
 "TAXACOM" < 
 >>> taxacom at mailman.nhm.ku.edu>
 >>>   Received: Tuesday, 14
 April, 2015, 1:18 PM
 >>>
 >>>   On 4/13/15 4:44
 PM,
 >>>   Roderic Page
 wrote:
 >>>   > Hi
 Doug,
 >>>   >
 >>>   > Alas that’s
 not how
 >>>   impact
 factor works. It’s a function of both the  > number of

 >>> articles published by a
 journal,  and the number of  > citations, 
 >>> see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impact_factor
 >>>   >
 >>>   > Given that
 most
 >>>   taxonomic
 work is likely to few citations (certainly  > over the

 >>> two-year period typically
 used  when calculating impact  > factor).
 >>>   Consider Zootaxa, far
 and away the largest journal in  > 
 >>> zoological taxonomy. In 2013
 approximately  a quarter of all 
 >>> published  > animal names were
 published in Zootaxa, but its impact 
 >>> factor in  the  > same year
 was 1.060  > 
 >>> http://www.mapress.com/zootaxa/support/impactfactor.htm
 >>>   >
 >>>   > A mega journal
 for
 >>>   taxonomy is
 pretty much exactly the wrong strategy  > to maximise

 >>> impact factor.
 >>>   >
 >>>   So, if Zootaxa went
 from
 >>>   25% of all
 names to 100%, you're saying that  its impact factor

 >>> would DECREASE?
 >>>
 >>>   Also, while I see
 your point
 >>>   in
 terms of the status quo, are you not  among the people 
 >>> advocating that scientific  names
 that are digitally  published get 
 >>> automatically linked back to their
 original publications?
 >>>
 >>>   If this becomes
 common practice, will that  not mean that every 
 >>> time a  scientific name  appears
 in print, it will *automatically* 
 >>> create a trackable, quantifiable
 citation event? This is  more a 
 >>> matter of how people track 
 citations, and is *also* presumably 
 >>> subject to change as technology
 evolves. I admit that I assume it  
 >>> will change to our advantage, and
 in  precisely this way. Do you not see this happening?
 >>>
 >>>   Sincerely,
 >>>
 >>>   --
 >>>
 >>>   Doug Yanega     
 Dept. of Entomology
 >>>       
 Entomology Research Museum
 >>>   Univ. of California,
 Riverside, CA 92521-0314
 >>>   
   skype: dyanega
 >>>   phone: (951)
 >>>   827-4315 (disclaimer:
 opinions are mine, not UCR's)
 >>>             
    http://cache.ucr.edu/~heraty/yanega.html
 >>>      "There are some
 enterprises
 >>>   in
 which a careful disorderliness
 >>>
 >>>   
   is the true method" - Herman Melville,  Moby Dick,
 Chap. 82
 >>>
 >>>   _______________________________________________
 >>>   Taxacom Mailing
 List
 >>>   Taxacom at mailman.nhm.ku.edu
 >>>   http://mailman.nhm.ku.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/taxacom
 >>>   The Taxacom Archive
 back to 1992 may be  searched at:
 >>> http://taxacom.markmail.org
 >>>
 >>>   Celebrating 28 years
 of
 >>>   Taxacom in
 2015.
 >>>
 >>>
 _______________________________________________
 >>> Taxacom Mailing List
 >>> Taxacom at mailman.nhm.ku.edu
 >>> http://mailman.nhm.ku.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/taxacom
 >>> The Taxacom Archive back to 1992
 may be searched at:
 >>> http://taxacom.markmail.org
 >>>
 >>>
 Celebrating 28 years of Taxacom in 2015.
 >>>
 >>
 _______________________________________________
 >> Taxacom Mailing List
 >> Taxacom at mailman.nhm.ku.edu
 >> http://mailman.nhm.ku.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/taxacom
 >> The Taxacom Archive back to 1992 may
 be searched at:
 >> http://taxacom.markmail.org
 >>
 >> Celebrating
 28 years of Taxacom in 2015.
 >
 _______________________________________________
 > Taxacom Mailing List
 >
 Taxacom at mailman.nhm.ku.edu
 > http://mailman.nhm.ku.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/taxacom
 > The Taxacom Archive back to 1992 may be
 searched at: 
 > http://taxacom.markmail.org
 >
 > Celebrating 28 years
 of Taxacom in 2015.

 --
 __________________________________________________

 Michael A. Ivie, Ph.D.,
 F.R.E.S.

 Montana Entomology
 Collection
 Marsh Labs, Room 50
 1911 West Lincoln Street
 NW
 corner of Lincoln and S.19th
 Montana State
 University
 Bozeman, MT 59717
 USA

 (406)
 994-4610 (voice)
 (406) 994-6029 (FAX)
 mivie at montana.edu

 _______________________________________________
 Taxacom Mailing List
 Taxacom at mailman.nhm.ku.edu
 http://mailman.nhm.ku.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/taxacom
 The Taxacom Archive back to 1992 may be
 searched at: http://taxacom.markmail.org

 Celebrating 28 years of
 Taxacom in 2015.