Editorial pubs.acs.org/ac
Reflections From My First Year
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s 2013 starts, I find myself looking back on my first year as Editor of Analytical Chemistry. I have read the abstracts from nearly 4000 submitted manuscripts (and for many, I have read the entire paper). Although a time-consuming job, being Editor certainly is intellectually stimulating and lots of fun! I am learning about many areas of measurement science that I would not otherwise have been exposed to while working on my own research. Although much of my job involves the day-to-day tasks of evaluating the articles submitted and dealing with a myriad of issues that arise during this process, I was privileged this past year to travel on behalf of the journal, spending 2 weeks in India. The goal was to understand the science being done in that country and to introduce the journal to new audiences. I discovered that in India, enthusiasm for analytical chemistry is high. Clearly, the field of analytical chemistry is having a worldwide impact. Cutting edge analytical chemistry research continues to become more global, and our journal reflects this. While we received more articles from the USA than any other country, China has nearly caught up. Japan, Korea, and Taiwan round out the top five countries, representing a significant shift to Asian submissions over the past 5 years. Of course, Canada and Europe are also major contributors; in fact, we are receiving articles from almost all locations around the world. Times certainly have changed as no single country, not even the USA, accounts for more than 30% of our total submissions. To better reflect this global presence, the composition of our External Advisory Board and Associate Editors’ team is more international than ever before, and I expect this trend to continue. So, as we welcome 2013, first and foremost let me share an Editor’s overarching goal for the coming yearthat I and our talented team of Associate Editors promise to ensure that Analytical Chemistry remains the premier journal in which to publish your most impactful, innovative, and important analytical science in the world. To that end, I am excited that we begin the new year with an excellent special issue of fundamental and applied reviews in analytical chemistry, due to appear later in January. I thank not only Catherine Fenselau for organizing this compilation but also the individual contributors for all of their hard work. We had several virtual issues last year and have more planned in 2013, including one to highlight our Editorial Advisory Board, another on the 75th Anniversary of the Division of Analytical Chemistry, and several others on defined topics in collaboration with other ACS journals. I certainly expect that the field of analytical chemistry will continue to flourish and create the tools needed to solve many research challenges, both applied and fundamental, and that our field will continue to expand in scope and impact. Here’s to an exciting 2013.
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Views expressed in this editorial are those of the author and not necessarily the views of the ACS.
Jonathan V. Sweedler © 2013 American Chemical Society
AUTHOR INFORMATION
Notes
Published: January 2, 2013 1
dx.doi.org/10.1021/ac3037409 | Anal. Chem. 2013, 85, 1−1
