Wood and Fiber Science
Technical Notes
In addition to research papers, authors are invited to submit Technical Notes to the Journal. A Technical Note is a concise description of a new research finding, development, procedure, or device.
Length: The length should be no more than two printed pages in WFS, which would be five pages or less of double-spaced text (TNR12) with normal margins on 8.5 x 11 paper, including space for figures and tables. In order to meet the limitation on space, figures and tables should be minimized, as should be the introductory, and literature review and references.
Review and publication: The Journal will attempt to expedite the review and publication process. As with research papers, Technical Notes must be original and go through a similar double-blind, peer-review process. Manuscripts to be considered as Technical Notes should be submitted directly to the Editor as a single Word file.
The rationale for Technical Notes
- They provide an early opportunity to report a significant finding, which could take years to complete as a full research study.
- Many researchers do “scoping studies” that never lead into a full project and yet have valuable information for others who might want to pursue follow-up work.
- Technical Notes can serve as a useful publication on which to base and support a research proposal.
- Some “original research” manuscripts submitted to WFS may not meet reviewers' approval because of a limited number of specimens or variables (the most common criticism), and yet could easily be reduced to a Technical Note, provide the author with at least something to show for the work, and give the readers possible ideas to pursue.
Formatting and Style
Follow the directions on the SWST Web page for Research Contributions, except:
- Minimize the length of Abstracts and number of Keywords
- Minimize number of headings (for example, do not use “Introduction”)
- Provide figures that can be reduced to 1/3 of a journal column (and be readable)
- Keep conclusions/recommendations/references to a minimum
Page charges
Members: $100 per page
Non-members: $135 per page
Frank Beall, Editor
frank.beall@berkeley.edu
