How to Get a Paper Published?How to Get a Paper Published?

Aumnad Phdungsilp

Department of Energy Management, Faculty of Engineering Dhurakij Pundit University, Bangkok,

Thailand E-mail: aumnad@dpu.ac.th

Self-introductionSelf-introduction

• Name: Aumnad Phdungsilp, M.Sc., Tekn. Lic. (Energy Engineering)• Research interests:• Integrated climate, energy and environmental modelling• Path towards low-carbon society• Urban energy use and carbon emissions• Application of industrial ecology• Low-exergy analysis for buildings and the built

environment• Engineering and public policy related to energy and

climate studies• Futures studies in energy systems

• On-going researches:• Policy and planning of city carbon budgets (DPU)• Climate change adaptation and traditional knowledge

(Funded by DPU and collaboration with UNU-IAS)• Modelling of climate, land-use, energy and water

interactions (Collaboration with IAEA and ICTP)

How to Get a Paper Published?How to Get a Paper Published?

• My immediate response to this is “START WRITING”.

• 123,000,000 web links (in English), accessed on 8 April 2010

• 445,000 web links (in Thai), accessed on 8 April 2010

• Why don’t start from national conferences e.g., E-NETT, ME-NETT, EECON, etc. “You cannot teach a man

anything, you can only help him find it within himself”

- Galileo Galilei (1564-1642)

Outline of PresentationOutline of Presentation

• Set Goal

• Be Prepared

• Train to Win

• Clear the Mind

• Learn from your Opponents

• Pay Attention to Details

• Never Give Your Opponents

a Second Change

• Never Stop Learning

This presentation outline was prepared based on the Book of Five Rings written

by Japan’s most famous samurai – Miyamoto

Musashi (1584-1645)

Set GoalSet Goal

“All achievement starts with

goals. Ambitious goals will

help you focus your energies,

abilities and action to

maximum effect.” –

Miyamoto Musahi’s Book of

Five Rings

Be PreparedBe Prepared

Processes at the Journal

• Editor-in-Chief ==> Corresponding Editor ==> Two or Three Referees

• Referee’s comments ==> Corresponding Editor

• Editor decides whether or not referee’s comments are

acceptable/sufficient.

• Editor ==> Author(s) ==> What action is required?

• Action required might be:

• Minor corrections as outlined by referee;

• Major correction/re-write, but not requiring referees to see it again;

• Major correction and re-submission;

• New data/analyses suggested – come back within timeframe; and

• Reject outright – don’t re-submitting – “WE DON’T WANT THIS”

Train to WinTrain to Win

• Choose the journal(s) or

conference(s).

• Read the rules for authors.

• Write/modify the paper according to

the format.

• Proof read prior to submission.

• Have someone else experienced in

your field read the paper and provide

feedback – listening but don’t quarrel.

• Submit the manuscript/paper.

• Deal with the referee’s comments.

• Return the revised version (quickly)

with a letter detailing your responses.

If “A” equals successThen, the formula

A = X + Y + ZX is work, Y is play, andZ is keep your mouth

shut

Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

Clear the MindClear the Mind

Typical Layout of a

Scientific Manuscript

• Title page

• Abstract

• Introduction

• Methodology & Data

• Results

• Discussion

• Conclusion

• Acknowledgement

• References

“A university lecturer who does no research is not unlike a school

teacher.”

- James A. Olson

Learn from Your OpponentsLearn from Your Opponents

Dealing with referee’s

comments

• Deal with each referee in turn –

don’t jump from referee to referee.

• Agree, wherever possible – keep a

list of your changes, page-by-page,

line-by-line.

• Where you disagree – explain how

and why you disagree and give a

rationale for your disagreement.

Pay Attention to DetailsPay Attention to Details

• Read and re-read the referee’s

comments.

• Respond to each and every comment

specifically.

• Sometimes referee missed the point

or don’t understand – gently explain

where you made it in the text.

• Write a detailed explanatory letter to

the Editor.

• listing what changes you have

made

• justify where you have disagree

Never Give Your Opponent a Second ChanceNever Give Your Opponent a Second Chance

• Re-read the comments and make

changes to the paper as suggested.

• Determine whether more

data/analyses are required.

• Be humble, admit errors and

acknowledge where you could have

written something better.

• Please remember, referee is a

voluntary work (in some journals).

TÄNKA FRITT ÄR STORTMEN TÄNKA RÄTT ÄR

STÖRREUppsala University, Sweden

Never Stop LearningNever Stop Learning

“The most incredible thing about Miyamoto Musashi

is that he himself had no mentor or teacher. There is

no record of Musashi having been trained by his

father or anyone else.”

– Boyé Lafayette De Mente in Samurai Strategies

•Do not give up if it takes attempts to get published – it is a steep learning curve.

•The paper must be written well.

•The paper must make a significant contribution to the field.

•There is no paper so awful.

•The paper must be sent to an appropriate journal/conference and conform to the guidelines.

SummarySummary