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Why Publish in GSA Today?

Mihai N. Ducea, Dept. of Geosciences, University of Arizona, contributions to a topic (several hard-core papers published in top-
Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA, and Faculty of Geology and ical journals) to cap that with a GSA Today science article, because
Geophysics, University of Bucharest, 010041, Bucharest, it can reach much further than the “normal” papers. Ideally, a
Romania, ducea@arizona.edu; and Peter Copeland, Department paper aimed at a graduate student–level hits the best. We live in a
of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Houston, time when it is increasingly difficult to find up-to-date textbook
Houston, Texas 77204, USA, copeland@uh.edu material especially for the more advanced student (such as those
taking graduate courses), and review papers come in handy for
GSA Today may seem like an odd place to publish one’s science. that purpose. GSA Today science articles fill that niche perfectly,
It looks more like a magazine that informs the Society of timely competing with other reputable outlets like the influential
matters, such as meetings, honors, and other aspects that pertain magazine Elements or the iconic Annual Reviews of Earth and
to the monthly life of this incredible organization. But this color- Planetary Sciences series. A simple but comprehensive review
ful society magazine is effectively an open-access publication that on a hot topic is probably the best type of science article that
also produces highly cited peer-reviewed papers; it leads all GSA GSA Today can have on its cover.
journals in the number of online hits and downloads per article Excellent contributions are also interdisciplinary papers that
and has an excellent record in citations among peer journals. reach into new directions for geosciences, and that would otherwise
Manuscripts go through a thorough review process and, once have a hard time fitting into a “normal” journal. Technological
published, have cleared the highest standards for any geoscience advances (descriptions of new apps and new methods of surveying
journal. GSA Today has published classic geoscience papers since rocks in the field) are also excellent contributions because they
1991 and continues to receive some of the boldest, most intriguing, teach us of what new cool tools are available.
and potentially paradigm-shifting papers in geology. Least successful articles in GSA Today are new contributions
GSA Today is not currently in a crisis when it comes to manu- that are highly specific to a discipline and contain a lot of new
script submission, but the number of submissions is fluctuating. data. Such submissions do happen, and in some cases, they see
They come in waves, at times too many, but with lulls in between as the light of day, if reviews are positive. Those types of articles,
well. Some authors submit manuscripts that may not best resonate we would argue, should go instead to a highly specialized journal.
with the readership, even though their general topic is well within Another very popular type of submission in recent years con-
the scope of the journal. Because of that and because of the recent sists of social science/social justice or geo-education pieces. The
explosion of new journals on the market, the Society asked us (the Society is deeply involved in increasing the diversity of its con-
current editors) to provide a short piece reminding the more experi- stituency and of our community in general. Therefore, such papers
enced researcher why it is still a great idea to publish in GSA Today are in theory needed; we encourage authors to investigate the
and drawing the younger researchers into it as well. We also explain Groundwork format for those. As far as the main science article,
what we think is an ideal scientific contribution for this outlet. it is difficult for editors with experience and expertise in earth
There are limitations on what GSA Today can offer, and we will science to review (or even identify appropriate referees for) manu-
list them below, but we would argue, it is also an excellent scene to scripts whose main focus lies not on rocks and minerals but lies
be able to highlight one’s discoveries, from the review type convey- more in the domains of sociology, social work, law, and related
ing in one short article several recent advancements made by a fields. Current and former editors of GSA Today agree that the fea-
group in a field to new directions in geosciences, which would oth- ture science articles should be concerned with earth materials and
erwise have a difficult time fitting into a regular journal. Moreover, processes, not the people who are studying them. Nevertheless,
because every GSA member gets this magazine either in print or via Groundwork articles are good vehicles to communicate the latest
online links, GSA Today is one of the most visible venues for circu- adjustments in the way we do our work (e.g., teaching in times of
lating scientific results in the earth sciences. COVID) or a variety of other topics.
As editors of GSA Today, perhaps the most interesting and chal- Groundwork articles are short and usually describe social
lenging part of the job is the incredibly different set of subjects science issues that are relevant to the Society or communications
we are confronted with from one submission to another. We see on news or tools of professional interest. Although there is a
articles on the role of new phone apps as field tools, articles on tighter constraint on the number of words, there is no limit as to
new educational directions in geoscience, provocative tectonics what subject these shorter pieces discuss, so long as they are of
hypotheses, and reviews on the origin of metals—the diversity of broad interest to the Society members.
topics goes on. With a science paper in GSA Today, authors can An interesting and little-explored type of article is “Rock Stars,”
draw attention to their topic from across all subdisciplines of our which are short papers dedicated to legends of geosciences, people
great science. who are no longer with us but have influenced deeply the evolution
There are three main categories of contributed manuscripts of knowledge in geology. We need more such contributions, and the
for GSA Today (science articles, Groundwork articles, and Rock impression is that we are in particular need of such short papers that
Star pieces), and Figure 1 outlines the main features expected for honor non–North American “rock stars,” the biggest names in this
each type. science from all corners of the world. It would help the Society be
Science articles are relatively short and can be beautifully illus- the home of a more international base, but it would also help the
trated. In fact, we invite any scientist that has made a series of average North American geoscientist learn about the history of this

4 GSA Today | December 2021