Editorial and peer-review principles
Editors evaluate submitted papers strictly on the basis of scientific merit with the help of peer review reports, without regard to authors' nationality, country of residence, institutional affiliation, gender, ethnic origin, religion, or political views. Editors are not involved in decisions about papers which they have written themselves.
The journal follows a single-anonymized peer-review process (the names of the reviewers are hidden from the author).
Details on the peer-review process, including the responsibilities of editors, reviewers, and the journal, can be found here.
See also MSP's statement of principles and publishing ethics.
General journal policies
Complaints and appeals
Complaints and appeals should be directed to the journal's appeals liaison, who will address the issue in consultation with members of the editorial board.
Copyright and licensing
Information about copyright policy and licensing information can be found here.
Our consent-to-publish form can be viewed here.
Other general policies
For all issues not addressed elsewhere, we will consult the COPE core practices.
Policies for authors
Authors may submit only their own original research, which has not been previously published in any other journal. Authors may not submit work that is currently under consideration for publication in any other journal (including other MSP journals).
Submitted work must include a bibliography listing relevant references.
Intellectual property
Prior to publication, all authors are required to attest that they own the intellectual property represented in the article. The paper cannot be published until each author has signed our consent-to-publish form.
If an article includes experimental data, it is expected that the data are real and represent the authors' own work unless they state otherwise.
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is strictly forbidden. We adhere to the COPE guidelines for dealing with suspected plagiarism. We follow this flowchart to the extent possible.
See also MSP's statement of principles and publishing ethics.
Authorship and contributorship
All named authors must have significantly contributed to the work. Conversely, all researchers who have significantly contributed to the work should be named as authors. Each author must be directly aware that the submission is being made in their name. The submitting author is required to attest that all coauthors have correctly and accurately represented themselves and their own identities. Any changes to the list of authors post-submission must comply with these guidelines.
The authors listed in the published paper will be those shown in the last version uploaded prior to acceptance. Requests to add authors not listed in the accepted version will be summarily denied.
For post-publication name changes, please read our policies here.
Author financial support
Authors should acknowledge financial support when appropriate.
Post-publication corrections
If an author discovers a significant error in their published work, it is the author's responsibility to notify the journal. The Editorial Board or the managing editor may require the author to provide a correction to be published by the journal.
See also MSP's statement of principles and publishing ethics.
Rights after publication
MSP authors retain certain rights after publication. See here.
