Cover Art on Science Journals

November 15, 2006 on 4:50 pm | In Science News & Hot Topics |

An interesting article from the Nov. 6 Chemical & Engineering News, Making the Cover, discusses the pros and cons of including cover art on scientific journals. Stephen Ritter looks at art and aesthetics, publicity, the value (or not) of cover art in an e-journal environment, the advantages and challenges of highlighting that “very important article” on the cover, and the time and dollars that cover art can add to the publication process. While Ritter focuses on American Chemical Society and Royal Society of Chemistry journals as well as Wiley’s Angewandte Chemie, the issues are relevant to other science & engineering disciplines.

The article also serves as a good reminder that “cover art vs. no cover art” cannot be used to distinguish between scholarly/academic and popular sources.