7 ms·

Only some journals require authors to pay to publish. Nature is not one of those journals, and it's still relatively uncommon.

robg 18y ago
I'm not sure what field you're in, but I'm very certain Nature does charge some fees (e.g. color) if there's not page charges. Here from their website: £700 for the first color figure, £250 for each thereafter. http://www.nature.com/nature/authors/submissions/final/forms.html http://www.nature.com/nature/authors/submissions/final/forms... On each of my papers - in very reputable neuroscience journals - we've paid publication costs and fees at about $1000 per paper. And color was essential in each.
- michael_nielsen 18y ago
  Nature (and most journals, so far as I know) charge for colour figures, but they don't have page charges. I just ran through a list of ten well-known physics journals, all from different publishers, and none has page charges, suggesting it's pretty uncommon. Most will charge for colour figures, though, and several request (but do not require) a contribution to publication costs. I've never paid that contribution.
  - robg 18y ago
    I'm told Physics is very different. They're also moving quickly away from peer-review, right? We just had a discussion on that. There are alot of costs in the review process (time and effort). If you decide to sample more broadly across disciplines, I'd be very interested in the results.
    - michael_nielsen 18y ago
      Not sure where you heard that - physics hasn't yet moved much away from peer review. I personally think it will, but it hasn't actually happened.
      - robg 18y ago
        We were a bunch of neuroscientists shooting the breeze at MIT. I'm curious why Physics is different then. Like I said, I've always encountered some publication costs. Without grants, those costs are non-trivial.
    - pfedor 18y ago
      My dad is a chemistry professor and I've never heard about the journals charging the authors. To the contrary, good journals do pay some symbolic fees to the authors.
      - robg 18y ago
        I'd love to know which journals actually pay the authors for their work. The best (Science and Nature) certainly don't. Ask him though about page charges and other fees (e.g. color). I'd be shocked if he never paid them.
        pfedor 18y ago
        OK I'll ask him when I talk to him, but I'm 90% sure that Chemical Reviews is one of the journals which pay. Not Science or Nature, to be sure, but not exactly bad impact factor either.

robg 18y ago

I'm not sure what field you're in, but I'm very certain Nature does charge some fees (e.g. color) if there's not page charges. Here from their website: £700 for the first color figure, £250 for each thereafter. http://www.nature.com/nature/authors/submissions/final/forms.html http://www.nature.com/nature/authors/submissions/final/forms... On each of my papers - in very reputable neuroscience journals - we've paid publication costs and fees at about $1000 per paper. And color was essential in each.

michael_nielsen 18y ago
Nature (and most journals, so far as I know) charge for colour figures, but they don't have page charges. I just ran through a list of ten well-known physics journals, all from different publishers, and none has page charges, suggesting it's pretty uncommon. Most will charge for colour figures, though, and several request (but do not require) a contribution to publication costs. I've never paid that contribution.
- robg 18y ago
  I'm told Physics is very different. They're also moving quickly away from peer-review, right? We just had a discussion on that. There are alot of costs in the review process (time and effort). If you decide to sample more broadly across disciplines, I'd be very interested in the results.
  - michael_nielsen 18y ago
    Not sure where you heard that - physics hasn't yet moved much away from peer review. I personally think it will, but it hasn't actually happened.
    - robg 18y ago
      We were a bunch of neuroscientists shooting the breeze at MIT. I'm curious why Physics is different then. Like I said, I've always encountered some publication costs. Without grants, those costs are non-trivial.
  - pfedor 18y ago
    My dad is a chemistry professor and I've never heard about the journals charging the authors. To the contrary, good journals do pay some symbolic fees to the authors.
    - robg 18y ago
      I'd love to know which journals actually pay the authors for their work. The best (Science and Nature) certainly don't. Ask him though about page charges and other fees (e.g. color). I'd be shocked if he never paid them.
      - pfedor 18y ago
        OK I'll ask him when I talk to him, but I'm 90% sure that Chemical Reviews is one of the journals which pay. Not Science or Nature, to be sure, but not exactly bad impact factor either.