Open access: the view of the Public Library of Science

How many authors does it take to publish a high profile or classic paper?

Although the process of publishing a scientific paper has gotten simpler, it is increasingly difficult to publish a paper in high profile journals. We have analyzed the publishing data in the cell biology field and found several alarming trends developing over the last two decades. There is an emerging divide between scientist-run journals and professional-run high profile journals. How did this happen? What should we do? The core issue is whether the current standard for high profile journals hurts rather than helps the scientific discovery process. In this regard, we suggest that the editors and scientists should direct their focus on the potential impact and rigor of the work instead of the "perfection" or "completeness" of the study.