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Happy 25th birthday Toxicon
Taricon, Vol . 25 . No . 1 . pp. 1-2 . 1987. Printed in Great Britain .
oa1 -0101/97
s3 .00+ .00 Peraamon Journals Ltd.
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR HAPPY 25TH BIRTHDAY TOXICON
a talmudic saying (Pirke Aboth, 17) that while there are several crowns in this world, "the crown of a good name excels them all" . As Toxicon celebrates its 25th Anniversary year, all of us celebrate its good name. A good name in scientific publishing does not come easily, it requires outstanding scientists who are willing to publish in the journal, libraries who are willing to subscribe, a quality publisher who is willing to stick through the hard times even when the journal is not making money, an outstanding editorial council who are willing to devote their time and efforts, not for monetary reward but only for a 'thank you' and the knowledge that they are stimulating the development of their scientific discipline . In all of these respects Toxicon has been blessed. FIN RUSSELL, back in 1962, did not have to recognize the need for a journal devoted to toxinology nor did he have to almost single-handedly get the journal started, but he didl Pergamon Journals did not have to encourage us to publish with their support and financial backing, even though as a new journal we would be a financial loss, but it didl An outstanding group oftoxinologists did not have to say yes, we will take time from our busy schedule to be members of the Editorial Council and help develop standards of excellence for the journal, but they did! Most importantly, however, you the readers, subscribers, contributors and members of the International Society on Toxinology did not have to stick by the journal and offer advice and assistance, even in those early years when manuscripts and subscribers were few, but you didl Does this satisfaction with our accomplishments mean we can rest on our laurels or at least relax a bit? Nol No person, Society or Journal stays in the same position ; we all are moving either forward or backward relative to the accomplishments of others or relative to the abilities we have or the goals which we set for ourselves. Whether applied in a spiritual, materialistic or scientific sense the message is the same, strive for excellence, work harder and do not be satisfied with yesterdays goals and accomplishments. What should our goals be for the next 25 years? What would we like the Editor of Toxicon to say in the year 2011 about the accomplishments of Toxicon . Perhaps comparing 1963 to now will give an insight into where we may be in 2011 . In volume 1 of Toxicon (1962-1963) we published 4 issues and 256 pages; starting in volume 25 (1987) we will publish 12 issues per year and expect to publish about 1400 pages. As late as 1969, when I took over as editor, we were rejecting about 20% of the manuscripts received and were only receiving about 100 per year; in 1985 we received about 200 manuscripts and rejected about 4010 . Likewise, in terms of subscriptions to Toxicon there has been a slow THERE is
2
Letter from the Editor
but steady progress, so that now Toxicon will be found in almost twice as many libraries as it was in 1965 . The progress of Toxicon, however, cannot only be judged in quantitative terms of numbers of pages published or subscriptions received, but more importantly, must be evaluated in terms of quality of manuscripts published. While increases in numbers of manuscripts received and per cent rejection rate certainly suggests an improvement in quality, I rely for my evaluation in this regard more on the comments I receive from you, the readers of Toxicon, comments such as "Congratulations, Toxicon has really improved", "What a change, now my co-authors want to publish in Toxicon" or "Why was my manuscript rejected, the one I published 10 years ago was no better" . In the last questionnaire I sent in 1985 to the members of the Editorial Council of Toxicon, 70 -98% (depending on subject area of articles) of those expressing an opinon said the scientific standard of articles published in Toxicon is good or excellent. While I take a measure of pride for whatever contribution I have made toward this progress, a greater pride should be had and a greater contribution was made by other people, some already mentioned, who devoted themselves to Toxicon. People such as FIN RUSSELL who started the journal from scratch in 1962, so that I could have a going concern in 1969 when I took over ; friends and associates, such as GERHARD HABERMEHL, who as Assistant Editor of Toxicon has made my job a whole lot easier; a devoted and outstanding Editorial Council who have always worked with me unstintingly for our common goal of improving the quality of Toxicon . Finally, a special thanks is due to my editorial assistant, my wife SYBIL, without whom I could not have survived these past 17 years as editor . And so as we pat ourselves on the back for the accomplishments of the past 25 years, let us also give a quick kick to the seat of our pants so that we get going and make sure that the next 25 years will be better than the last. PHILIP ROSENBERG
Editor
oa1 -0101/97
s3 .00+ .00 Peraamon Journals Ltd.
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR HAPPY 25TH BIRTHDAY TOXICON
a talmudic saying (Pirke Aboth, 17) that while there are several crowns in this world, "the crown of a good name excels them all" . As Toxicon celebrates its 25th Anniversary year, all of us celebrate its good name. A good name in scientific publishing does not come easily, it requires outstanding scientists who are willing to publish in the journal, libraries who are willing to subscribe, a quality publisher who is willing to stick through the hard times even when the journal is not making money, an outstanding editorial council who are willing to devote their time and efforts, not for monetary reward but only for a 'thank you' and the knowledge that they are stimulating the development of their scientific discipline . In all of these respects Toxicon has been blessed. FIN RUSSELL, back in 1962, did not have to recognize the need for a journal devoted to toxinology nor did he have to almost single-handedly get the journal started, but he didl Pergamon Journals did not have to encourage us to publish with their support and financial backing, even though as a new journal we would be a financial loss, but it didl An outstanding group oftoxinologists did not have to say yes, we will take time from our busy schedule to be members of the Editorial Council and help develop standards of excellence for the journal, but they did! Most importantly, however, you the readers, subscribers, contributors and members of the International Society on Toxinology did not have to stick by the journal and offer advice and assistance, even in those early years when manuscripts and subscribers were few, but you didl Does this satisfaction with our accomplishments mean we can rest on our laurels or at least relax a bit? Nol No person, Society or Journal stays in the same position ; we all are moving either forward or backward relative to the accomplishments of others or relative to the abilities we have or the goals which we set for ourselves. Whether applied in a spiritual, materialistic or scientific sense the message is the same, strive for excellence, work harder and do not be satisfied with yesterdays goals and accomplishments. What should our goals be for the next 25 years? What would we like the Editor of Toxicon to say in the year 2011 about the accomplishments of Toxicon . Perhaps comparing 1963 to now will give an insight into where we may be in 2011 . In volume 1 of Toxicon (1962-1963) we published 4 issues and 256 pages; starting in volume 25 (1987) we will publish 12 issues per year and expect to publish about 1400 pages. As late as 1969, when I took over as editor, we were rejecting about 20% of the manuscripts received and were only receiving about 100 per year; in 1985 we received about 200 manuscripts and rejected about 4010 . Likewise, in terms of subscriptions to Toxicon there has been a slow THERE is
2
Letter from the Editor
but steady progress, so that now Toxicon will be found in almost twice as many libraries as it was in 1965 . The progress of Toxicon, however, cannot only be judged in quantitative terms of numbers of pages published or subscriptions received, but more importantly, must be evaluated in terms of quality of manuscripts published. While increases in numbers of manuscripts received and per cent rejection rate certainly suggests an improvement in quality, I rely for my evaluation in this regard more on the comments I receive from you, the readers of Toxicon, comments such as "Congratulations, Toxicon has really improved", "What a change, now my co-authors want to publish in Toxicon" or "Why was my manuscript rejected, the one I published 10 years ago was no better" . In the last questionnaire I sent in 1985 to the members of the Editorial Council of Toxicon, 70 -98% (depending on subject area of articles) of those expressing an opinon said the scientific standard of articles published in Toxicon is good or excellent. While I take a measure of pride for whatever contribution I have made toward this progress, a greater pride should be had and a greater contribution was made by other people, some already mentioned, who devoted themselves to Toxicon. People such as FIN RUSSELL who started the journal from scratch in 1962, so that I could have a going concern in 1969 when I took over ; friends and associates, such as GERHARD HABERMEHL, who as Assistant Editor of Toxicon has made my job a whole lot easier; a devoted and outstanding Editorial Council who have always worked with me unstintingly for our common goal of improving the quality of Toxicon . Finally, a special thanks is due to my editorial assistant, my wife SYBIL, without whom I could not have survived these past 17 years as editor . And so as we pat ourselves on the back for the accomplishments of the past 25 years, let us also give a quick kick to the seat of our pants so that we get going and make sure that the next 25 years will be better than the last. PHILIP ROSENBERG
Editor