{"id":3372,"date":"2021-12-25T23:37:44","date_gmt":"2021-12-26T04:37:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.ams.org\/beyondreviews\/?p=3372"},"modified":"2021-12-25T23:37:44","modified_gmt":"2021-12-26T04:37:44","slug":"where-to-send-a-paper","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.ams.org\/beyondreviews\/2021\/12\/25\/where-to-send-a-paper\/","title":{"rendered":"Where to send a paper"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Suppose you have just written your first paper in an area and now you want to figure out where to send it.\u00a0 Maybe it’s your first paper ever.\u00a0 (If so, congratulations!)\u00a0 Maybe you normally work in one area, but had a good idea in a neighboring subject that turned into a paper.\u00a0 How can you determine some suitable journals for your paper?\u00a0 A good idea is to ask colleagues.\u00a0 Here is something you can do with MathSciNet, as a supplement to colleagues’ advice or in case no one has any good suggestions.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

I’m going to discuss this by using the example of representations of $p$-adic Lie groups, a subject that is on the boundary of what I know.<\/p>\n

Step 1. <\/strong>Figure out the MSC class that represents the subject area.\u00a0 If you managed to get some results and write a paper on the subject, you probably know a few papers in that area, or maybe some authors who work in the area.\u00a0 For $p$-adic Lie groups, I know that Paul Sally<\/a> worked extensively in the area.\u00a0 Here are three papers by Sally that have “$p$-adic” in the title.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

MR2798422<\/strong>
\nAdler, Jeffrey D.<\/a>\u00a0(1-AMER-MS)<\/a><\/span>;\u00a0DeBacker, Stephen<\/a>\u00a0(1-MI)<\/a><\/span>;\u00a0Sally, Paul J., Jr.<\/a>\u00a0(1-CHI)<\/a><\/span>;\u00a0Spice, Loren<\/a>\u00a0(1-TXC)<\/a><\/span>
\nSupercuspidal characters of ${\\rm SL}_2$ over a $p$-adic field .<\/span>\u00a0(English summary)<\/span>\u00a0Harmonic analysis on reductive,\u00a0p<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>-adic groups,\u00a0<\/em>19\u201369,
\nContemp. Math., 543,<\/a>\u00a0Amer. Math. Soc., Providence, RI,<\/em>\u00a02011.
\n22E50<\/a><\/p>\n

MR1039842<\/strong>
\nSally, Paul J., Jr.<\/a>\u00a0(1-CHI)<\/a><\/span>
\nSome remarks on discrete series characters for reductive $p$<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>-adic groups.<\/span>\u00a0Representations of Lie groups, Kyoto, Hiroshima, 1986,\u00a0<\/em>337\u2013348,
\nAdv. Stud. Pure Math., 14,<\/a>\u00a0Academic Press, Boston, MA,<\/em>\u00a01988.
\n22E50 (22E35)<\/a><\/p>\n

MR0744292<\/strong>
\nMoy, Allen<\/a>\u00a0(1-YALE)<\/a><\/span>;\u00a0Sally, Paul J., Jr.<\/a>\u00a0(1-CHI)<\/a><\/span>
\nSupercuspidal representations of ${\\rm SL}_n$ over a $p$<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>-adic field: the tame case.<\/span>
\nDuke Math. J.<\/em><\/a>\u00a051\u00a0<\/a>(1984),\u00a0<\/a>no. 1,<\/a>\u00a0149\u2013161.
\n22E50<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

The class 22E50<\/strong> is the primary classification for all three, with 22E35<\/strong> as a secondary class on one of the papers.\u00a0 Looking up the descriptions of the classes, we find:<\/p>\n

22E35\u00a0<\/strong>Analysis on $p$-adic Lie groups<\/p>\n

22E50\u00a0<\/strong>Representations of Lie and linear algebraic groups over local fields [See also\u00a020G05<\/a>]<\/p>\n

It helps to know a couple of things here.\u00a0 First, $p$-adic fields are local fields – indeed they are about the only examples of local fields I can think of without going to Wikipedia<\/a> or MathWorld<\/a>.\u00a0 Second,\u00a0 an important tool in studying representations of any sort of group is the analysis of the group’s characters<\/a>, which are functions on the group related to the representations.\u00a0 So, I am confident that\u00a022E50\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>and\u00a022E35<\/strong> are reasonable classes to use, with\u00a022E50<\/strong> likely to be better because “representations” occurs in the description.<\/p>\n

Step 2.<\/strong>\u00a0 Do a Publications Search for MSC 22E50<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\"Screenshot<\/p>\n

There are 1689 matches.<\/p>\n

Step 3<\/strong>. In the search results, look in the sidebar under the heading “Journals”.<\/p>\n

\"Journals<\/strong><\/p>\n

The journals are listed in decreasing order of the number of matches in the search results.\u00a0 Here are the journals that have at least 20 articles with MSC 22E50<\/strong> as the primary class.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Journal<\/strong><\/td>\nCount<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Pacific J. Math.<\/td>\n78<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Represent. Theory<\/td>\n68<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Canad. J. Math.<\/td>\n55<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Duke Math. J.<\/td>\n52<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
J. Reine Angew. Math.<\/td>\n48<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Amer. J. Math.<\/td>\n46<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
J. Algebra<\/td>\n43<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Compositio Math.<\/td>\n37<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
J. Number Theory<\/td>\n37<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Trans. Amer. Math. Soc.<\/td>\n37<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Israel J. Math.<\/td>\n36<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Manuscripta Math.<\/td>\n36<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Invent. Math.<\/td>\n33<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Math. Ann.<\/td>\n33<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Ann. Sci. \u00c9cole Norm. Sup. (4)<\/td>\n29<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Compos. Math.<\/td>\n29<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Proc. Amer. Math. Soc.<\/td>\n29<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Ast\u00e9risque<\/td>\n27<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Int. Math. Res. Not. IMRN<\/td>\n27<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
J. Lie Theory<\/td>\n24<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
J. Inst. Math. Jussieu<\/td>\n23<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Bull. Soc. Math. France<\/td>\n20<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
C. R. Acad. Sci. Paris S\u00e9r. I Math.<\/td>\n20<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n
\n

\u00a0This gives you a list of journals to consider.<\/p>\n

Step 4.<\/strong>\u00a0 These articles are all on representations of groups over local fields, which is going to be a fairly tight match due to the narrowness of the definition of the subject area.\u00a0 Some other classifications are broader, with more variations within the class.\u00a0 Consider, for instance, 94A08<\/strong> Image processing (compression, reconstruction, etc.) in information and communication theory<\/em>.\u00a0 \u00a0This covers a lot of ground.\u00a0 Indeed, a search for MSC Primary <\/strong>= 94A08<\/strong> produces 11986 matches.\u00a0 \u00a0It might be sufficient to find a journal that publishes papers in image processing, but how close to the specific topic of your paper are they?\u00a0 Close enough?\u00a0 To look at the papers on image processing showing up in a particular journal, click on it in the sidebar. The search results are now filtered to include only papers from that journal.\u00a0 You can now look to see if they are close to the topic of your paper.\u00a0 \u00a0If so, click on the journal’s name or abbreviation in any of the matches, which brings you to the MathSciNet<\/strong> profile page for that journal. You can then see information about the most frequently occurring authors in the journal, the most frequent 2-digit subject areas, the journal’s Math Citation Quotient (our computation of the number of citations divided by number of papers), and so on. There will also be a link to the journal’s website, where you will find information about how to submit a paper to the journal.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

This method isn’t perfect, and isn’t a substitute for consulting experts, but it does give you a good list that is based on what the journal has published.<\/p>\n

\n

Some modifications.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Narrow the time-frame.\u00a0\u00a0<\/em>Some journals have been around a long time.\u00a0 For instance, Pacific Journal of Mathematics<\/em><\/a> started in 1951.\u00a0 It has published a lot of papers on representations of $p$-adic Lie groups, but what has it done recently?\u00a0 In Step 2<\/strong>, you could look for papers after the year 2000.<\/p>\n

\"Publication<\/p>\n

This produces 1026 matches.\u00a0 Here are the journals with the most articles meeting the criteria:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Journal<\/strong><\/td>\nCount<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Represent. Theory<\/td>\n63<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Pacific J. Math.<\/td>\n42<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Canad. J. Math.<\/td>\n40<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
J. Number Theory<\/td>\n34<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
J. Algebra<\/td>\n33<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Compos. Math.<\/td>\n29<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Manuscripta Math.<\/td>\n29<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Int. Math. Res. Not. IMRN<\/td>\n27<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
J. Reine Angew. Math.<\/td>\n27<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Amer. J. Math.<\/td>\n26<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Israel J. Math.<\/td>\n23<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
J. Inst. Math. Jussieu<\/td>\n23<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Duke Math. J.<\/td>\n22<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
J. Lie Theory<\/td>\n22<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Ast\u00e9risque<\/td>\n20<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Invent. Math.<\/td>\n18<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Trans. Amer. Math. Soc.<\/td>\n17<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Math. Z.<\/td>\n16<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Proc. Amer. Math. Soc.<\/td>\n16<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Bull. Soc. Math. France<\/td>\n13<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Search MSC Primary\/Secondary<\/em>.\u00a0 Some\u00a0 subject areas have fewer papers than others.\u00a0 For instance, if I had searched for MSC Primary = 22E35<\/strong> and Publication Year > 2000<\/strong>, I would find only 132 matches.\u00a0 The journals with at least 3 papers matching the criteria are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Journal<\/strong><\/td>\nCount<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Int. Math. Res. Not. IMRN<\/td>\n6<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Forum Math.<\/td>\n5<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Pacific J. Math.<\/td>\n5<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Trans. Amer. Math. Soc.<\/td>\n5<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Canad. J. Math.<\/td>\n4<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
J. Funct. Anal.<\/td>\n4<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
C. R. Math. Acad. Sci. Paris<\/td>\n3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Canad. Math. Bull.<\/td>\n3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Israel J. Math.<\/td>\n3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
J. Algebra<\/td>\n3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
J. Inst. Math. Jussieu<\/td>\n3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Manuscripta Math.<\/td>\n3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Proc. Amer. Math. Soc.<\/td>\n3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Represent. Theory<\/td>\n3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

If I loosen the search to be MSC Primary \/ Secondary = 22E35<\/strong> and Pub Year > 2000<\/strong>, the number of matches jumps to 403.<\/p>\n

Combine classes<\/em>.\u00a0 For the image processing example, where there were too many matches, you might search for both MSC Primary\u00a0= 94A08<\/strong> and something for an MSC Primary\/Secondary<\/strong> class.\u00a0 For instance, wavelets are often used in image processing.\u00a0 You could add MSC 42C40<\/strong> = Nontrigonometric harmonic analysis involving wavelets and other special systems<\/em> to the search.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"MathSciNet<\/p>\n

This was effective in that it cut the number of results down to just 217.\u00a0 The journals with at least five articles matching the criteria are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Journal<\/strong><\/td>\nCount<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
IEEE Trans. Image Process.<\/td>\n40<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Int. J. Wavelets Multiresolut. Inf. Process.<\/td>\n29<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Appl. Comput. Harmon. Anal.<\/td>\n16<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
SIAM J. Imaging Sci.<\/td>\n8<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
J. Comput. Appl. Math.<\/td>\n7<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
J. Math. Imaging Vision<\/td>\n5<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n
\n

I hope these suggestions are helpful.\u00a0 There is a lot of information in the Math Reviews Database that powers MathSciNet.\u00a0 It can be used in many different ways to help mathematicians, not all of which are pre-programmed into MathSciNet.<\/p>\n

<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Suppose you have just written your first paper in an area and now you want to figure out where to send it.\u00a0 Maybe it’s your first paper ever.\u00a0 (If so, congratulations!)\u00a0 Maybe you normally work in one area, but had … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

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