PLOS ONE

PLOS ONE
Title	PLOS ONE
Publication history	2006–present
Publisher	Public Library of Science
Country	United States
Eissn	1932-6203

PLOS ONE is a peer-reviewed scientific journal published by the Public Library of Science, with the support of National Institutes of Health, Wellcome Trust, and Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The journal is led by Damian Pattinson, with the help of Larry Peiperl and Irene Pizzie, and has been at the forefront of open-access publishing, alongside other prominent journals like Nature Communications and Science Advances. PLOS ONE has been publishing research in various fields, including biology, medicine, physics, and computer science, with contributions from renowned researchers like Stephen Hawking, Neil deGrasse Tyson, and Jane Goodall. The journal's editorial board consists of experts from prestigious institutions like Harvard University, Stanford University, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Introduction

PLOS ONE is a megajournal that publishes research from various disciplines, including genetics, neuroscience, ecology, and biotechnology. The journal's aim is to make scientific research more accessible and transparent, with the help of open-access policies and Creative Commons licenses, similar to those used by Wikipedia and arXiv. PLOS ONE has been publishing research on various topics, including climate change, cancer research, and artificial intelligence, with contributions from researchers at University of California, Berkeley, University of Oxford, and California Institute of Technology. The journal's articles are indexed in prominent databases like PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science, and are cited by other reputable journals like Nature, Science, and Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

History

PLOS ONE was launched in 2006 by the Public Library of Science, with the goal of creating a peer-reviewed journal that would publish research from all areas of science and medicine. The journal's first editor was Chris Surridge, who was later succeeded by Peter Binfield and Damian Pattinson. PLOS ONE has been publishing research continuously since its launch, with a growing number of articles and authors, including Nobel laureates like James Watson and Francis Crick. The journal has also been at the forefront of open-access publishing, with the support of organizations like National Science Foundation, European Research Council, and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. PLOS ONE has been publishing research in collaboration with other prominent journals like PLOS Biology, PLOS Medicine, and PLOS Computational Biology.

Publication Process

The publication process of PLOS ONE involves peer review, where manuscripts are reviewed by experts in the field, including researchers from University of Cambridge, University of Chicago, and Columbia University. The journal uses a single-blind peer review process, where the reviewers' identities are not disclosed to the authors, similar to the process used by Journal of the American Medical Association and New England Journal of Medicine. PLOS ONE also offers the option of post-publication peer review, where readers can comment on and review articles after they have been published, similar to the process used by F1000Research and ScienceOpen. The journal's articles are published under a Creative Commons license, which allows for the free reuse and distribution of the material, with the support of organizations like Creative Commons and Open Access Scholarly Publishers Association.

Impact and Reception

PLOS ONE has had a significant impact on the scientific community, with over 200,000 articles published since its launch, and has been cited by other reputable journals like Cell, The Lancet, and Journal of Clinical Oncology. The journal's articles have been viewed millions of times, and have been shared on social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook. PLOS ONE has also been recognized for its innovative approach to open-access publishing, and has received awards from organizations like SPARC and Open Access Now. The journal's impact factor, as measured by Thomson Reuters, is comparable to that of other prominent journals like Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and Journal of Biological Chemistry.

Controversies

PLOS ONE has been involved in several controversies, including a retraction scandal in 2015, where several articles were retracted due to falsified data, similar to the scandals that affected The Journal of Experimental Medicine and Journal of Cell Biology. The journal has also been criticized for its publication fees, which can be a barrier to authors from low-income countries, including researchers from University of Nairobi, University of Lagos, and University of Cape Town. PLOS ONE has responded to these criticisms by introducing waivers and discounts for authors from low-income countries, with the support of organizations like World Health Organization and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

Metrics and Indexing

PLOS ONE is indexed in several prominent databases, including PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science, and is tracked by Altmetric, which measures the journal's impact on social media and other online platforms, similar to the metrics used by Nature and Science. The journal's articles are also archived in PubMed Central and DOAJ, which provides permanent access to the journal's content, with the support of organizations like National Library of Medicine and Directory of Open Access Journals. PLOS ONE's impact factor, as measured by Thomson Reuters, is comparable to that of other prominent journals like Journal of the American Chemical Society and Physical Review Letters. The journal's metrics are also comparable to those of other megajournals like Scientific Reports and Nature Communications.

Category:Scientific journals