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OCR for page 419
COMMUNICATION IN THE LIFE SCIENCES 419
TABLE 67 Reference Citations in Selected U.S. Publications to Foreign Journals
in 1966 in Selected Fields
BIOCHEMISTRY AND
MOLECULAR BIOLOGY
ECOLOGY AND
PEDIATRICS HYDROLOGY
No. To No. % No. %
TOTAL52,458 100.09,459 100.05,281 100.0
Total Five Selected
Countries6,455 12.31,262 13.3808 15.3
United Kingdom4,839 9.21,032 10.9468 8.9
France251 0.537 0.4156 3.0
West Germany909 1.7174 1.897 1.8
Japan372 0.713 0.149 0.9
U.S.S.R.84 0.26 0.138 0.7
Source: Data from the Biological Sciences Communication Project of the George Washington University, Wash
ington, D.C.
foreign scientists cited U.S. publications, whereas the two patterns in
ecology were much the same (Figure 481. This figure must be interpreted
with some major caveats. While truly reflecting the increasingly self-sus-
taining nature of American science, it also resects (a) the painful fact of
American incompetence in languages other than English and (b ~ an
increasing tendency among scientists outside the United States to send some
of their most significant papers to leading American journals for publica-
tion. The latter practice certainly accounts in part for the inordinately
low level of citation of French, German, and Japanese journals. The
former, however, does not account for the low level of citation of Russian
journals, since the leading Russian journals are available in English
translation.
In sum, this examination of a segment of the world biological literature
confirms the impression gained from many other sources that American
biological science leads the world in the sheer magnitude of the endeavor
and produces science of the first caliber, especially when considered in
proportion to its quantity and scope.
REVIEW ARTXCLES AND DATA COMPILATION
Because of the scale and diversity of the primary literature, there is con-
tinual need for comprehensive review articles. At their best, these contain
new interpretations and ideas as well as systematic examinations of current
OCR for page 420
420 THE ElFE SCIENCES
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OCR for page 421
COMMUNICATION IN THE LIFE SCIENCES 421
Percentage of Citations in Selected Foreign Journals to U.S. Journals (1966)
Percentage of Citations in Selected U.S. Journals to Foreign Journals (1966)
United Kingdom
-
lowest Germany
0
o
.'' m
o
. _
m
Fra nce
Japan
U.S.S.R.
Total Five
Cou ntries
United Kingdom
France
.o West Germany
._
~5
Japan
U.S.S.R.
Total Five
Cou ntries
United Kingdom
o
All]
o
._
Q ~ West Germany
o o
.°
Am
o
Fra rice
Japan
U.S.S. R.
Total Five
Countries
: ~. .. . I
0 10 20 30 40
FIGURE 48 Comparison of the frequency of American citation of foreign literature with the
frequency of foreign citation of American literature. (Source: Biological Sciences Communication
Project, George Washington University, Washington, D.C.)
OCR for page 422
422 THE LIFE SCIENCES
knowledge in given subjects. Such articles can serve not only active mem-
bers of the scientific community but also teachers, policy-makers, mass-
media writers, and other users of biological information.
The Quarterly Review of Biology, Physiological Reviews, the Annual
Review Series,* and the monograph literature fill this urgent need and
should, of course, be stored in an information system. Expansion of such
activity has been urged as essential. Modest financial reward has been an
unsuccessful inducement to scientists at the forefront of research to leave
their laboratories and undertake a task that seems repetitious or an inter-
ruption of their work. Provision of an abundant supply of reprints has
proved more effective persuasion, presumably by satisfying a more funda-
mental urge. Other effective inducements might include provision of
editorial assistants who would undertake the time-consuming chore of
searching the literature for relevant papers and perform other mechanical
tasks such as checking and arranging long lists of references.
However, it is not clear from the personal experience of our panels
that expansion of the biological review literature is imperative. Our study
revealed an annual output of monographs, book chapters, and reviews that,
at least quantitatively, should be adequate to the task of surveillance of the
primary literature and summary and correlation of cogent new develop-
ments. To be sure, the quality of reviews could benefit from more critical
analyses, but it seems likely that coverage in many fields is adequate to the
needs of the user community.
Compilations of biological data, based on careful critical evaluations of
the relative accuracy and reliability of data reported by different investi-
gators, are becoming another useful source of information for life scientists.
Such data books have long been available to physicists and chemists. Be-
cause quantitative data in biology have been relatively few, biologists have
taken little part in activities of this sort in the past, but the situation is
rapidly changing. The Handbook of Biochemistry, which first appeared
in 1968 and which presents data on properties of a great number of
biologically important molecules, has proved tremendously useful. The
: Quarterly Review of Biology. Stony Brook. Foundation, Inc., Stony Brook, New
York. 1 926.
Physiological Reviews. American Physiological Society, 9650 Rockville Pike,
Bethesda, Maryland. 1921.
Annual Review Series. Annual Reviews, Inc., Palo Alto, California. Biological
fields already under periodic review by June 1970 include biochemistry, entomology,
genetics, medicine, microbiology, pharmacology, physiology, phytopathology, plant
physiology, and psychology.
Handbook of Biochemistry: Selected Data for Molecular Biology. H. A. Sober,
Chemical Rubber Co., Cleveland, Ohio, 1968.
Representative terms from entire chapter:
total five
