Pennsylvania Academy of Science

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PENNSYLVANIA ACADEMY OF SCIENCE JOURNAL INFORMATION FOR  AUTHORS 

EDITORIAL POLICY AND FORMAT 

The Journal of the Pennsylvania Academy of Science publishes original papers, research notes,  commentary, and review articles in the natural, physical, engineering, and social sciences. All  papers must discuss the relevance of the data presented and a clear interpretation of its meaning  in view of current knowledge of the discipline concerned.

Authors are requested to examine recent issues of the Journal for general style of the journal.  Papers are accepted for consideration at any time. Submitted manuscripts are accepted for review  with the understanding that the same work has not been published, copyrighted, or submitted for  publication elsewhere and that all persons cited as a personal communication have consented to  be cited. Additionally, submission of the manuscript is a representation that all the authors for  the said manuscript and the institution where the research was carried out have approved its publication. Signed authorization will be required as appropriate.

We request you submit names, email addresses, as well as the professional area of expertise  of three potential reviewers of your manuscript. The reviewers must be outside the author’s  institution, possess knowledge of current research in the area of study, and generally be  professionally qualified to referee the paper. The peer reviewing process is the Editor’s  responsibility, and the reviewers are selected at the discretion of the Editor.

All authors are requested to conform to the following:

1. General Format. All manuscripts should be typed using Times New Roman font, size 12  point, and double spaced, with 3 cm margins all around submitted as Microsoft Word files. Do  not use single spacing anywhere (including Literature Cited). Paragraph indentation should be by  tab only (not spaces or paragraph indent).

The journal uses a double-blind review process; please remove all references to or clues about  your identity as author(s) from the main text and footnotes. The file should be in “Normal”  style with no tracked changes, hidden text, or comments. Article title and the author’s name(s) are obtained from the information entered in the Editorial Manager website (see point 19) and  therefore should not be included in the manuscript. Manuscripts documents should be organized  as follows: (1) Abstract and key words, (2) Introduction, (3) Materials and Methods, (4) Results,  (5) Discussion, (6) Acknowledgements, and (7) Literature Cited. All pages of the text, Abstract through Literature Cited, should be numbered at the bottom right. Manuscripts must be  submitted in English.

2. Title. Brief and to the point. It should inform the reader of the subject of the paper. The title  should be written in title case (capitalize each major word).
3. Abstract. A clear and concise paragraph which summarizes the research. For research articles,  the abstract is limited to 250 words, and for Notes abstracts are limited to 150 words.
4. Headings. Main headings are in CAPITAL letters and left justified. Subheadings are left  justified in Title Case and Italics.
5. Introduction. The introduction should be concise and offer only that information necessary to  orient the reader to the purpose and scope of the paper. It should state the reasons for the work  and cite only published literature relevant to the subject. The introduction should include a  clearly stated hypothesis and/or objective.
6. Materials and Methods. Describe materials, methods, and equipment. Avoid repeating  previously published details, unless modifications are extensive. The necessity of conciseness  should not lead to omission of important study design details necessary for others to repeat the  work. When applicable, describe the study design and justify its use.
7. Results and Discussion. The Results section is a clear and concise account of the findings.  Data should be presented in the most efficient manner, either in text, tables, or illustrations. All  tables and illustrations must be referenced in the text. The Discussion section should extend or  contradict current published information on the subject. Limit the discussion to the relevant  subject and avoid speculation. Clearly relate your results to your hypothesis or objective as stated  in the introduction.
8. Acknowledgements. The source of any financial support received for the work being published  must be indicated in the Acknowledgments section. The usual format is as follows: “This work  was supported by Public Health Service grant CA-01234 from the National Cancer Institute.”  Recognition of personal assistance should be included and may be given as a separate paragraph,  as should any statements disclaiming endorsement or approval of the views reflected in the paper  or of a product mentioned therein.
9. Appendices. Appendices that contain additional material to aid the reader are permitted.  Titles, authors, and reference sections that are distinct from those of the primary article are not  allowed. If it is not feasible to list the author(s) of the appendix in the byline or the  Acknowledgments section of the primary article, rewrite the appendix so that it can be  considered for publication as an independent article, either full-length paper or Note style.  Equations, tables, and figures should be labeled with the letter “A” preceding the numeral to  distinguish them from those cited in the main body of the text.
10. In Text Citations: In all but the Literature Cited section, cite all works by author and year.  For works with one or two authors, include names in each citation, e.g., (Smith and Reif 1984),  or, if authors’ names are used in the text- Smith and Reif (1984); for works by three or more  authors, use et al. (no preceding comma and no italics) after the first author, e.g., (Gur et al.  1983), or, if the authors’ names are used in the text – Gur et al. (1983). If multiple citations are  used in the same sentence, place references after each point if possible – “common species in the  Delaware Water Gap include small-footed bats (Schell et al. 2021), Swainson’s thrush (Gross  2010), and timber rattle snakes (Castellano et al. 2003)”, otherwise list references in  chronological order, oldest to newest – (Castellano et al. 2003, Gross 2010, and Schell et al.  2021). Research Notes with fewer than five references should be cited within the other sections  of the manuscript thereby eliminating the need for a Literature Cited section. When references

are cited within the text of other sections, include authors by last name only, and do not use et al.  in the citation, e.g., for a journal article – (Genys, Harman, and Fuller 1984, Proc. Pa. Acad. Sci.  58:67-69), or if authors are used in the text – Genys, Harman, and Fuller (1984, Proc. Pa. Acad.  Sci. 58:67-69); for a book – (Snedecor and Cochran, 1976, Statistical Methods, The Iowa State  University Press, Ames, IA, 237-238), or, if authors are used in the text – Snedecor and Cochran  (1976, The Iowa State University Press, Ames, IA, 237- 238).

12. Literature Cited. Except for superscript notation in tables, do not use footnotes. Use separate  Appendices (see above) rather than an Endnotes section if additional supplementary text material  is required. Place appendices after the Literature Cited section. Include a Literature Cited  section: list references in alphabetical order by first author. Include only published references  cited in the manuscript; unpublished work normally will be cited as personal communication  (pers. comm.) in other sections of the manuscript, e.g., J.R. Halma (pers. comm.) or (J.R. Halma,  pers. comm.). List all authors and full citation in the Literature Cited section. Italicize but do not  abbreviate serial names. Use the following format and style for the Literature Cited section:

Journal- Schell, J. M., E. J. Rollinson, and H. Whidden. 2021. Detection and distribution of  easter small-footed bats (Myotis leibii) in the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area.  Journal of the Pennsylvania Academy of Science 94: 7-24.

Section from an edited book– Gross, D. A. 2010. Swainson’s Thrush. In M. A. Steele, M. C.  Brittingham, T. J. Maret, and J. F. Merritt, eds. Terrestrial Vertebrates of Pennsylvania. The  Johns Hopkins University Press. Baltimore, MD, p. 215-218

Book (Complete work)-Turner, M. G., R. H. Gardner, and R. V. O’Neill. 2001. Landscape  Ecology in Theory and Practice: Pattern and Process. Springer-Verlag New York, Inc. New  York, NY.

Internet – Pennsylvania Natural Heritage Program. 2021. Pennsylvania Conservation Explorer.  Available at https://conservationexplorer.dcnr.pa.gov/. Accessed 3 November 2021.

13. Short-format Submissions: Research Notes  

Papers submitted as short communications with an abstract of 150 words or fewer are classified  as Research Notes. Research Notes must contain the same basic quality of content and order of  presentation as more substantial papers having content separated by section. Citations must  follow the same format as articles.

14. Tables and Illustrations. Tables must have a title, be numbered, and typed in a separate MS Word document. Computer generated images or scans should be submitted as Tiff or JPEG files.  Provide the legends for all illustrations in consecutive order on a separate page.
15. If animals are used in the research, the author(s) must state in the material and method  section that the study was conducted in accordance with the guidelines laid down by the U.S.  Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare (or individual country of origin) and that the research was  approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee. All human subjects research, and

all other activities, which in part involve human subject research, must be reviewed and  approved by the institutions IRB committee.

16. There are no page charges for publication in the journal, however one of the authors must be  a member of the Pennsylvania Academy of Science. Galley proofs will be sent to the authors for  checking.
17. Editorial Policy. Every paper is reviewed by the Editor and selected professional referees.
18. Correspondence. Address all inquiries relating to publication in the Journal to the Editor:  Stephen G. Mech, Department of Biology, Albright College, PO Box 15234, Reading, PA  19612-5234. e-mail: JPAS@press.psu.edu.

19. Manuscript submission: Manuscripts may be submitted through the Editorial Manager for the Journal of the Pennsylvania Academy of Science: http://www.editorialmanager.com/jpas.