Chem. Res. Toxicol. 2010, 23, 1
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Editorial A New Decade I cannot believe it is 2010! Where did the past decade go? I’m still scarred by the fears that life as we know it would end because of a computer glitch in Y2K. Yet, we have survived after all. The end of a decade reminds us of the inexorable march of time and gives us pause to reflect on recent accomplishments and hopes for the future. Chemical Research in Toxicology is now publishing in its twenty-third year, and we’ve got plenty to be proud of. But it seems the evolution of scientific publishing is occurring so rapidly that to look back for more than a year is almost overwhelming. I will therefore focus just on the accomplishments of 2009. This past year witnessed a lot of developments at CRT that reflected new opportunities and the changing landscape of scientific publishing: • We expanded our highlights of articles published in CRT and elsewhere through the In This Issue and Spotlights features. These have been very well-received and provide a monthly overview of important developments in chemical toxicology. • We published a special issue in February devoted to research on drug metabolites in safety testing. This is a critical concern in the pharmaceutical industry, and CRT has played a leading role in publishing research in this area. • We published our first “condensed” journal in July. The rotated and condensed print format is a reflection of the realities of scientific publishing and not only saves money on color printing but also saves paper. Since the overwhelming majority of subscribers to all journals now obtain access via the Internet, this seems to be an inevitable step toward an all-electronic format. The electronic version of CRT is packed with so many features that cannot be accommodated in the paper version that it is hard to argue with the formatting change. • We presented our first Thematic Compilations of articles published in CRT. These virtual issues highlight multiple articles focused on a specific area. I edited a Thematic Compilation on Nanotoxicology (http://pubs.acs.org/page/crtoec/thematic/nanotoxicology.html), Fred Guengerich edited one on Reactive Drug Metabolites (http://pubs.acs.org/page/crtoec/thematic/reactivemetabolites.html), and Kent Gates edited one on Chemistry and Biology of DNA Damage (http://pubs.acs.org/page/crtoec/thematic/dna-damage.html). Additional Compilations are being developed. Not only are Thematic Compilations a great way to get current with the forefront of a field, they are also a valuable teaching aid. The most exciting development from our standpoint has been a 29% year-over-year increase in COUNTER (Counting Online Usage of Networked Electronic Resources is an international initiative setting standards that facilitate the recording and reporting of online usage statistics in a consistent, credible, and compatible way)-compliant article requests to the Web edition of the journal by researchers worldwide. Readers must like what we are publishing, which is the ultimate testament to its value. It is also reassuring to authors that their publications will be read. A lot happened in 2009, but we’ve already got some exciting new developments planned for 2010. They include a special issue on Metal Toxicology and several new features that we will announce shortly. Keep checking our Web site or the condensed print issue to regularly follow our evolution and hang on tight. It will be 2020 before you know it. Lawrence J. Marnett Editor TX9004314
10.1021/tx9004314 2010 American Chemical Society Published on Web 01/18/2010
