I am a ninth-grade student in Bangladesh. I am alone in this research who is doing a research in neurophotonics. I have a dream to get published in Nature or Science. Can my age hamper my chances to get published there, even if the quality of the work is groundbreaking?
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3Your age is not a problem. However, what you should recognize is that publishing in Nature or Science is very difficult. If you have never published anything before, you will probably not publish there. It needs a lot of experience.– mmhCommented Jun 19, 2015 at 12:28
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If not, can't I get published in Elsveir's journals?– Mobin Ibn MokbulCommented Jun 19, 2015 at 13:26
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You will still need a ton of experience about science in general and your particular field. For example, even before starting a study in neuroscience, you will need an approval from a local ethical committee and comply with the rules laid out in the Declaration of Helsinki. Have you done that? No journal will consider your work without those.– mmhCommented Jun 19, 2015 at 13:36
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2What makes you believe that "the quality of the work is groundbreaking"?– AlexandrosCommented Jun 19, 2015 at 14:12
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1phdcomics.com/comics/archive.php?comicid=1201– Willie WongCommented Jun 19, 2015 at 14:46
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2 Answers
Well, age is not a criteria for accepting or rejecting a publication in any peer review journal, it's the quality of the scientific content that matter. Being 80 years of age doesn't guarantee that you are an excellent researcher. So work on the scientific content of your publication, and if it is ground breaking the for sure everyone will recognise it. So stay focused and work enthusiastically with scientific ethics.
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1Nature and Science both have an "interesting and newsworthy enough for a very wide audience" screening that takes place even before quality of science is assessed. I know that's nor pertinent for this question, but it sort of completes the record Commented Jun 19, 2015 at 13:03
Leaving alone, for the moment, the ninth-grade thing, you are an independent researcher. While there is nothing wrong about being an independent researcher, all US and European journals demand compliance with very high standards associated with human and animal research, and these standards involve submitting protocols to review boards before any work is done.
So, if the work uses any human subjects or animals, an independent researcher must hire such a review board. For animals, it is unlikely that an individual without some major resources can meet the requirements for proper animal husbandry that a review board will demand, so animal research most likely will not be publishable unless you are working with a facility.
If you are not working with humans or animals, nothing would preclude submission to those journals. I the work isn't exciting and newsworthy to a very broad audience, and if it really isn't world class, your chances of publication in those journals will be very low.
My advice would be to keep careful records of your work, and keep working to develop your credentials.
answered Jun 19, 2015 at 16:23
