话说我老昨天正式向老板汇报说我2月11日起飞回家。老板昨天没来学校，email我一个问题我回复的时候顺手汇报的。我老板貌似当时就急了，飞快的回复说时钟在嗒嗒走我们得赶紧把图做完拿给系主任看。我们系主任非常聪明，老板做出点啥东西来都跟他说，发文章之前更加要把所有的图都拿给他看，得到他的祝福之后才会拿去发表。我心说，你急什么，我知道，图都作的7788了才敢跟您老说我要走。当然还是很循规蹈矩的在回家之前把做出来的图发给老板看，还发了黑白和红白两个版本。红白版本因为做图软件每五分钟自戕一次，就做了一半儿放在了那里。老板当晚回复我说他喜欢红白版本。于是打算今天早晨一到学校就开始继续红白版本的制作。
我到了实验室，发现原来好姐妹今天一早就在做试验了，看见我来了，马上说你的图好看，然后说老板有了新的主意，打算把红圈改成绿圈儿。我乃去找老板，他却去当医生看病人去了。我趴在他桌子上研究了半天他在我的草稿上的修改标记。觉得最好还是等他回来再说，乃退回到我的阴暗角落，把原先盖在红圈上的白圈给放到红圈下面去。这个工程做好，乃开始把一个大图的各个小部分图码放整齐。正码着，听见老板说话，我赶紧出去了。但是，我来迟了来迟了啊！有个经常在我们实验室出没的病理学家业余科学家已经开始跟老板说话了。我对这个业余科学家印象不是很好，因为他经常就做一个实验就特兴奋跑上来说做出了某重大发现，结果重复一遍又没了，再重复一遍又有了；做统计第一次差别不显著，第二次又显著；然后理论特别多，还特别喜欢说， --- 我的人生格言乃是：理论一毛钱一打儿，做出来了才是真的，所以我不太喜欢跟他说话，觉得浪费时间，好在他也不太喜欢跟我说话，偶尔跟我说了一次话，我发表客气意见说你需要在做一个对照实验，其实我想说的是你这个方法还没建立起来呢，结果他说我攻击他---- 呃，这个是题外话。反正我从我的阴暗角落出来寻觅老板的时候，老板已经被他揪住开始说说说。老板呢，又比较有礼貌，不好意思不跟他说话，所以我跟老板摆手招呼过后，在附近晃来晃去，寻觅插嘴机会。终于电话响了，我一接是系主任找老板，赶紧跟老板汇报，老板马上去他的小隔间儿接电话，业余科学家乃终于走了。老板马上风风火火拿起我做出来的图，带着我出门找系主任。结果他已经去壁球场子里等我老板了，于是老板说回来再找他，我乃保证说再做几个版本出来看看哪个最好看。
我于是作了红白，红白绿、黑红白等版本，都做好了打出来再次跟着老板去找系主任。第一次老板跟他谈完了，直接导致图一杯乾坤大挪移，a变 c，c变a，故事的讲法换了个逻辑；上次跟老板带着我跟他会谈导致我们的图一恢复原来顺序，又另外加了4个小图，及其若干电流纪录。他并且指点我寻觅更加美丽的电流纪录给人看。本次去给他看的图多少是最终成品。老板先把红白版本亮出来，3张图排开，摆在桌子上，连我这个制作者都觉得好美丽。系主任问了我几个问题，被我一一答掉，貌似我老通过了主任的测试。俩人主要谈了谈圈儿的颜色，字体，图标应该放横还是摆竖等鸡毛蒜皮事儿，决定的标准都是审稿人智力水平到达那个高度没有。最后老板问道：喜欢这些图么？系主任肯定的说：当然。回到我的阴暗角落就继续修图，下班之前再次把最新版本的图发给老板。
跟好姐妹道别的时候关怀了一下儿他的实验进程，因为我们的图3有一部分是好姐妹的，他还在做实验收数据，前一阵子一直不顺溜，收不到。今天他的纪录就美丽如教科书。我就跟他开玩笑说：看就是得有个死线，一有了死线，所有的事情都进展。好姐妹说：可不是，今天早晨老板一来，马上就跟我说，白某要走了，得赶紧做出来！我跟那儿呵呵笑，心说怪不得你今天这么老老实实趴在这儿做实验呢。
the end
死线的重要性
审稿这回事，真是冤冤相报啊。谁也被审过稿，谁也审过人。在审与被审的时候大家的牢骚和意见都是一样的。为什么审与被审的永远咬不到一块儿去呢？ 
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fogandflower
- Posts: 47
- Joined: 2006-01-19 3:21
Having been on the other side of this process, I have to say time spent on making a paper more readable is not wasted. Of course, the content and data must be solid, but it helps the reviewers and editors tremendously if the paper, including the graphs and tables, are easily understood and clearly presented. You can't imagine how many scientific papers are simply incomprehensible when they are submitted, yet I'm sure the authors are convinced that everything in the paper is clear as daylight.
Easy reading is hard writing. (I'm too lazy to look up the source of this quote.) Most people are not very good at editing their own writing from the reader's point of view. Usually all they have is their own point of view. If it's clear to themselves, how could it be unclear to others? This is why it helps to have a fresh pair of eyes to look at your submission before you send it out. By "fresh" I mean someone who is not involved in the study and looking at it cold.
Easy reading is hard writing. (I'm too lazy to look up the source of this quote.) Most people are not very good at editing their own writing from the reader's point of view. Usually all they have is their own point of view. If it's clear to themselves, how could it be unclear to others? This is why it helps to have a fresh pair of eyes to look at your submission before you send it out. By "fresh" I mean someone who is not involved in the study and looking at it cold.
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fogandflower
- Posts: 47
- Joined: 2006-01-19 3:21
Our group use professional help (editors in department of scientific publication) for abstract, manuscript and grant. Their suggestions definitely made the content more readable.
I was also told to pay extreme attention to the title, abstract and figures since those can catch reviewer's eyes easily.
I was also told to pay extreme attention to the title, abstract and figures since those can catch reviewer's eyes easily.
From our newsletter.
Abbreviations in Headings, Titles, Tables, Figures, and Figure Legends
Although there are no hard and fast rules regarding the use of abbreviations in headings, article or chapter titles, tables, figures, and figure legends, certain conventions are followed by many publishers of journals and books.
In headings and titles: Abbreviations that have already been identified in the text or in a footnote can be used in subsequent headings. However, abbreviations should not be identified in parentheses in a heading if that is where the term is first mentioned. Instead, the term in the heading should be spelled out and the abbreviation identified in parentheses at the first mention of the term in the following text. Some publishers allow abbreviation of common terms (e.g., AIDS) in article or chapter titles without definition. However, it is not appropriate in an article title to give the full term and then identify the abbreviation in parentheses. We highly recommend that authors limit their use of abbreviations in titles to those that would be well-known to readers and that such abbreviations be used only to shorten an otherwise long title.
In tables, figures, and legends: It is OK to use abbreviations in a table title and in the headings and body of a table, but all abbreviations, usually including those already identified in the text, should be identified in a key that's placed at the bottom of the table. The same holds true for abbreviations in a figure or figure legend. Abbreviations should either be identified in parentheses at the first use of the term in the legend or, if used only in the figure itself, at the end of the legend. Any special symbols used in the figure should also be identified in the legend.
Abbreviations in Headings, Titles, Tables, Figures, and Figure Legends
Although there are no hard and fast rules regarding the use of abbreviations in headings, article or chapter titles, tables, figures, and figure legends, certain conventions are followed by many publishers of journals and books.
In headings and titles: Abbreviations that have already been identified in the text or in a footnote can be used in subsequent headings. However, abbreviations should not be identified in parentheses in a heading if that is where the term is first mentioned. Instead, the term in the heading should be spelled out and the abbreviation identified in parentheses at the first mention of the term in the following text. Some publishers allow abbreviation of common terms (e.g., AIDS) in article or chapter titles without definition. However, it is not appropriate in an article title to give the full term and then identify the abbreviation in parentheses. We highly recommend that authors limit their use of abbreviations in titles to those that would be well-known to readers and that such abbreviations be used only to shorten an otherwise long title.
In tables, figures, and legends: It is OK to use abbreviations in a table title and in the headings and body of a table, but all abbreviations, usually including those already identified in the text, should be identified in a key that's placed at the bottom of the table. The same holds true for abbreviations in a figure or figure legend. Abbreviations should either be identified in parentheses at the first use of the term in the legend or, if used only in the figure itself, at the end of the legend. Any special symbols used in the figure should also be identified in the legend.
Of course, for submissions to journals within a specialty area, it is important to explain why this study and findings are ORIGINAL and SIGNIFICANT. No need to go into the theory and background etc.如果会议的稿子，审文章的人都是大拿，也许很specific的地方需要说明白，但是基础性的还是不用多费唇舌的
What I was referring to, however, is the widespread problems people have in describing their METHODOLOGY in a clear, organized, understandable, and logical way. Methodology is the key in evaluating a paper, not conclusions. The reviewers and editors need to be convinced that the authors know what they are doing and what they did is valid and TRUSTWORTHY. If the desciption of the methods is so vague and messed up that nobody can reproduce the results, what credibility do the authors have? That's what I meant by "understandable."
Don't overlook something as trivial as construct tables and figures in a consistent and clear manner. I have seen too many tables and figures that confuse rather than illuminate. Try to read your colleagues' papers and papers in less edited journals and see if you can pick up problems. Anything you can do to make it easier for the reviewers and editors to get through your paper is greatly appreciated and will go a long way to win their favor.