[Purposes] This paper aims to discuss the improving effect of publishing a special issue before the conference on the influence of the journal. [Methods] Taking the practice of Science & Technology Review in publishing the special issue of the annual meeting of the China Association for Science and Technology from 2016 to 2022 as an example, based on statistical data from CNKI, this article adopted statistical and comparative analysis methods to analyze the effectiveness of the special issue before the conference from both quantitative and qualitative perspectives. [Findings] The special issue before the conference has significant advantages, which can effectively improve the academic influence of the journal, enhance the journal's ability to serve national strategies, and elevate the publishing service level of the journal. These advantages benefit from solid organizational support, authoritative topic setting, effective solicitation methods, and diversified promotion channels of the special issue. [Conclusions] Publishing a special issue before the conference is an innovative practice in the field of special issue publication for scientific journals. It provides an effective way for scientific journals to enhance their influence and popularity and expand the exchange of academic conference results.

[Purposes] This study aims to explore optimization strategies for virtual issues topics in medical and scientific journals by investigating the experiences of conducting virtual issues in medical and scientific journals. [Methods] Data related to virtual issues from Chinese Journal of Neuro-psychiatric Diseases and Sun Yat-sen University Journal of Medical Sciences were collected and analyzed thoroughly. The current status of utilization and implementation paths of virtual issues were examined. Six aspects were summarized including timeliness, topic selection, copyright issues, dissemination forms, virtual academic communities, and reader needs. Furthermore, a questionnaire survey was conducted among authors to further understand their perceptions of virtual topics, disseminate information about virtual topics, and increase the visibility of the journals and virtual issues. [Findings] The optimized strategies for virtual issues in medical and scientific journals are summarized as follows: paying attention to timeliness with reference to the cited half-life of disciplines; planning comprehensively with diverse topic selection; addressing copyright issues by obtaining authorization letters; promoting multi-dimensional dissemination; attracting readers by developing virtual academic communities; and conducting questionnaire surveys to analyze demand-oriented feedback. According to the results of the author questionnaire, 55.97% of the respondents have paid attention to the virtual issues of the two journals; 85.54% agree with their articles being selected for virtual issues, and 76.10% express willingness to give online or offline lectures on their papers. Additionally, 79.31% of the respondents are "very satisfied" with the journals, while 20.69% are "somewhat satisfied". [Conclusions] Medical and scientific journals should be guided by readers' perspectives. Combining scientific papers into virtual issues with multiple modes and diversified dissemination can enhance the scope of scientific research information sharing and the speed of dissemination and circulation which plays a significant role in promoting the development of journal.

[Purposes] This paper aims to explore the effective method for scientific journals to better serve national scientific and technological innovation and major strategic needs, as well as its impact on the journals' quality and influence. [Methods] By selecting topics in alignment with national major needs and scientific and technological development strategies, Science & Technology Review published some special issues such as "Suggestions for the 14^th Five-Year Plan" and "Strategic Scientists". Taking the special issue of "Suggestions for the 14^th Five-Year Plan" as an example, this paper analyzed its influence and summarized its achievements by using the data of CNKI. [Findings] By capturing key points in timelines and selecting attractive topics derived from national major strategies and needs, scientific journals can attract high-level academic experts to independently write or participate in drafting articles. This not only provides intellectual support for the innovation and development of national science and technology, but also significantly increases the cited frequencies, downloads, new media readings, and retweets of journals. [Conclusions] By selecting topics derived from the national major strategies, scientific journals can not only play an important role in serving national scientific and technological innovation and development, promoting the development of disciplines, and cultivating excellent scientific and technological talents, but also effectively enhance their academic quality and social influence.

[Purposes] By comparing the advantages and differences between Hubei Province and other provincial-level administrative regions with well developed scientific journals, this study provides references for the scientific layout and precise measure implementation of scientific journals in Hubei Province. At the same time, this study can provide ideas and data for other regions to position their advantages and disadvantages in journal development and formulate policies to promote the progress of world-class scientific journals in China from a regional perspective. [Methods] Using comprehensive data such as domestic and foreign scientific papers and scientific journal databases, we determined the list of regions with first-class scientific journals in China. We then measured the gap in first-class scientific journals between Hubei Province and other regions. Considering the support for scientific journals in terms of funding, policies, and other aspects in Hubei Province, we proposed measures for boosting the scientific journal industry in this province. [Findings] There is a significant gap between Hubei Province and regions with first-class scientific journals. The overall quality of scientific journals in Hubei Province remains to be improved, and this province has a limited number of high-level international journals. The policies supporting the development of scientific journals cover a narrow scope and the intensity is low. Moreover, the R&D funding is insufficient. [Conclusions] Hubei Province and other regions with similar development status should seize the opportunity of journal establishment and mobilize local high-quality scientific and educational resources to promote the creation of high-level journals. The international databases can be leveraged to popularize the journals and attract high-quality scientific research achievements. Measures should be taken to enhance the financial support and expand the journal coverage. On the basis of the existing high-quality journals, efforts should be made to identify key funding targets, enhance policy effectiveness, promote the high-quality development of regional scientific journal publishing, and assist in the building of world-class scientific journals in China.

[Purposes] Taking the publishing institutions and journals of Public Library of Science (PLOS) as examples, we study the code sharing policies of academic journals, aiming to provide references for the journals in China to optimize the open science policy. [Methods] We employed literature analysis and web survey to study the evolution, main contents, and development trends of the code sharing policies of PLOS. [Findings] The code sharing policies of PLOS have been separated from the data policies. The mandatory code availability statement and supporting policies of PLOS have improved the code sharing rate of papers published in the journals, which is conducive to the reproduction of research and the improvement of research efficiency. [Conclusions] In the era with in-depth development of open science, the code sharing policies of academic journals is still in its infancy compared with the data policies. The code sharing policies tend to develop in coordination with the data policies and follow the FAIR principles, which has reference value for the formulation of code sharing policies by academic journals in China along with data policies.

[Purposes] This article aims to explore measures for scientific journals to address the crisis of paper reproducibility through case analysis, so as to help scientific journals better play the role of academic gatekeepers. [Methods] This article conducted an in-depth analysis of the implementation process, experimental results, and reasons for low reproducibility of the Reproducibility Project: Cancer Biology (RP: CB) through online research and literature review methods and explored the process and results of the RP: CB. [Findings] The replicability data of the RP: CB has generated a total of 158 effects, including positive and ineffective effects. For the original positive effects reported in numerical form, the median effect size of the repeated experiment is only 0.43, which is 85% lower than the median of the original effect size of 2.96. This indicates that the results of the repeated experiment are far from reaching the effect size of the original research results. [Conclusions] Scientific journals can promote the development of scientific research towards transparency and repeatability by using a new generation of journal evaluation system, namely TOP Factor, increasing the proportion of registered reports and publications, and calling on researchers to pay attention to the repeatability of research.

[Purposes] This study aims to build a fusion mode of blockchain technology and open peer review, solve some problems existing in the open peer review mode, and explore a high-quality academic review system for scientific journals. [Methods] By analyzing the necessity and problems of open peer review mode and the characteristics of blockchain and IPFS technologies, the fusion mode of blockchain technology and open peer review was constructed. [Findings] By applying blockchain and IPFS technologies to an open peer review mode, the problems of identity authentication and participation scope of all parties involved in the review are effectively solved through smart contracts and channel capabilities. Two intangible and tangible incentive mechanisms are put forward, forming effective constraints while enhancing the enthusiasm of all parties involved. [Conclusions] Blockchain technology can effectively solve some problems existing in the current open peer review. While ensuring fairness and openness, it can also effectively ensure the security and privacy of information of all parties involved. However, there is still a long way to go before the fusion mode is implemented, which needs in-depth study in terms of policy, infrastructure, and technology.

[Purposes] This study analyzes the characteristics of domestic and abroad Gold OA journals and Diamond OA journals indexed in the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), aiming to provide reference for the development of OA journals in China. [Methods] We retrieved and analyzed the subjects, languages, Creative Commons (CC) license, peer review modes, publishing status, and other characteristics of global and domestic Gold OA journals and Diamond OA journals indexed in the DOAJ. Furthermore, we analyzed the publishing status and editors' awareness of OA journals in China through a questionnaire survey, on the basis of which the development strategies of OA were summarized. [Findings] Among the 20015 OA journals indexed in the DOAJ, English-language journals (16111) account for the vast majority. Among them, 66.26% are Diamond OA journals, which are mainly in social sciences. CC BY is the primary type of CC licenses, followed by CC BY-NC-ND and CC BY-NC. The peer review modes are scattered. DOAJ only indexes 318 China's journals, which are different from the global journals indexed in the DOAJ. The English-language journals of China slightly outnumber Chinese-language journals. Gold OA journals (65.41%) account for a higher proportion of China's OA journals, which are mainly scientific, technical, and medical (STM) journals. The most commonly used CC license is CC BY-NC-ND (72.32%), and single-blind and double-blind peer review types are dominant modes. The questionnaire survey results show that many editors in China are not familiar with the DOAJ, and those indexed in the DOAJ only account for a small proportion in China's OA journals. Bronze OA is the main OA mode adopted by China's journals. The journals selected for the "Excellent Action Plan for China's STM Journals" and newly established English-language journals mostly adopt Diamond OA. [Conclusions] At present, the proportion of Gold OA and Diamond OA journals in China is relatively small, and Bronze OA journals account for the highest proportion in China. Compared with Gold OA and Diamond OA journals, Bronze OA journals have insufficient clear OA declarations and copyright agreements. Clear regulations on the retention and transfer of copyright, as well as strict implementation of the CC license, can help OA journals regulate the scope of rights and obligations of all users. Golden OA and Diamond OA are the development directions of OA journals in China. Referring to the inclusion evaluation criteria of the DOAJ would be helpful for the OA development of STM journals in China.

[Purposes] This study aims to enhance the ability of medical journal editors to identify suspected academic misconduct in multiple submissions and to provide reference for improving the accuracy of initial review of manuscripts. [Methods] The manuscripts rejected due to multiple submissions by the Journal of Sun Yat-sen University (Medical Sciences) from January 2021 to December 2021 were included in this study. We traced the publishing situations of these manuscripts and analyzed the behavior of multiple submissions, journal issues republishing these manuscripts, inclusion status by databases, and the portrait of first authors suspected of multiple submissions. [Findings] In 2021, a total of 91 manuscripts of suspected multiple submissions are published after being rejected, of which 55 have changes in the authors' names and affiliations at the time of publishing. Out of the 91 manuscripts, 77 (84.6%) are published in core journals. Specifically, 27 (29.7%), 17 (18.7%), and 68 (74.7%) manuscripts are published in journals included in A Guide to the Core Chinese Journals, CSCD, and CSTPCD, respectively. The first authors of 214 manuscripts of suspected multiple submissions include 60% females and 40% males. Among them, 54% has medium-grade professional titles and 34% holds deputy senior professional titles, in addition to undergraduates and postgraduates. The vast majority of the authors have bachelor's or master's degrees. The authors mainly have the affiliations of tertiary hospitals in non-provincial capitals and non-municipalities directly under the central government. Most of them are clinical doctors in departments of internal medicine, surgery, and imaging. [Conclusions] It is recommended that medical journals strictly implement the three-level review and three-time proofreading system and prevent academic misconduct by establishing a technical process for detecting academic misconduct, strengthening academic integrity education for authors, and establishing an academic integrity alliance to share academic misconduct data.

[Purposes] This study aims to analyze the characteristics of selected F5000 pharmaceutical papers and provide guidance for the high-quality development of Chinese pharmaceutical journals. [Methods] Pharmaceutical papers included in the F5000 platform from 2018 to 2022 were collected, and information such as cited frequency, download frequency, Chinese library classification number, source of research institutions, and funding status was obtained through CNKI. Excel 2010 software was used to statistically analyze the data. [Findings] A total of 542 F5000 pharmaceutical papers are obtained from 15 journals, with a median of 1400.50 downloads and 54.50 citations, respectively. The selected papers come from universities and research institutes of traditional Chinese medicine in major regions such as Beijing, Jiangsu, and Tianjin, and the download and cited frequencies of papers from research institutes of traditional Chinese medicine are relatively high. There are a large number of papers included in disciplines such as traditional Chinese medicine pharmacology, traditional Chinese medicine chemistry, and pharmacology. The download and cited frequencies of papers in disciplines such as traditional Chinese medicine chemistry, pharmaceutical organization, and traditional Chinese medicine pharmaceutical organization are relatively high. The vast majority of papers （469） have received funding at different levels. There are 18 authors with a publication volume of more than two articles, and their papers are published in relatively fixed journals. Among them, six authors have neither master's or doctoral degrees nor associate or senior professional titles. [Conclusions] Pharmaceutical journals should attach importance to basic research, methods, and review papers on traditional Chinese medicine and increase the proportion of editorial board members and young editorial board members in high-level paper production areas such as Beijing and Jiangsu. They should also establish a long-term awareness of talent cultivation and grow together with outstanding young scholars.

[Purposes] Under the competitive pressure of numerous emerging English journals, taking an earlier established English scientific journal as an example, this study explores how the journal reforms and breaks through to find a development path that suits itself. [Methods] Taking the first optical English journal in China, Chinese Optics Letters (COL), as an example, this study focused on the exploration and practice of a series of reforms and innovations in COL and summarized them. [Findings] COL has vigorously promoted its internationalization, digitization, and clustering development through a series of measures such as reforming previous editorial boards, transforming editorial work modes, improving paper quality, and strengthening journal characteristics, which help COL to successfully attract high-quality manuscript sources and maintain its mainstream position in the optical field. Its international influence and impact factor have continued to increase, with the impact factor increasing from 0.804 to 3.5, leaping to the Q2 zone of the journal in optics and ranking among the top in terms of number of publications. [Conclusions] The development path of COL has a certain degree of universality and feasibility, which may provide a reference for other scientific journals in China.

[Purposes] This paper aims to explore the multi-journal submission (MJS) in Cell Press, analyze its positive role in enhancing the publication process of submission and review, and provide a reference for the innovation of submission and review processes in Chinese scientific journals. [Methods] Through network research and comparative analysis, the workflow, advantages, and disadvantages of the MJS in Cell Press were systematically reviewed. [Findings] The MJS improves the matching degree between manuscripts and journals, enriches authors' submission paths, helps journals retain high-quality manuscripts, optimizes the submission experience and service, and elevates the influence of publishing groups through the process of parallel submission of multiple journals, negotiation among multiple editors, review by multiple reviewers, and construction of multiple target journal clusters. In addition, this MJS also has problems such as a heavy editing workload and waste of review resources. [Conclusions] The MJS in Cell Press can be taken as a reference to explore innovative submission, review, and other publishing processes of Chinese scientific journals. Journals with sufficient conditions can explore the MJS by creating journal clusters, expanding the editorial and review team, and establishing an integrated publishing platform.

[Purposes] This study focuses on the cover stories of Nature from 2020 to 2022 and analyzes the expression and methods of visual rhetoric, so as to provide new insights and references for the cover design of scientific journals in China. [Methods] Based on the theory of visual rhetoric, a case analysis approach was employed to investigate 153 covers of Nature between 2020 and 2022. Through a comparative analysis of the visual rhetoric features of these cover stories, the methods of visual rhetoric were summarized. [Findings] The analysis reveals that the cover stories of Nature have systematic visual rhetorical logic and methods, including metaphors and metonymy in narration, accumulation and succession in composition, and exaggeration and simulation in modeling. [Conclusions] To more effectively harness visual rhetoric for the dissemination of scientific information on covers, scientific journals should integrate a variety of visual rhetoric methods. This involves employing simple and easily understandable symbolic narratives, methodically arranged compositions, and visually rich and prominent modeling, so as to optimize the visual expression of their covers.

[Purposes] In order to assist high-quality development of the dissemination capacity of scientific journals, this work addresses the challenge of precise matching between push contents and receiving targets and explores strategies and approaches to improve the effectiveness of email push. [Methods] Based on the 34 precise email push practices conducted in the International Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy and Materials and Chinese Journal of Engineering from November 2022 to October 2023, the inner relationship among email reading rate, jump rate through link clicks, distribution of users reading email, the push content, and receiving targets was discussed, and the specific improvement methods and strategies for the next step were proposed. [Findings] The relevance and type of push contents, the matching principle of receiving targets, and email title and layout are key factors to improve the effectiveness of precise email push. [Conclusions] The accuracy of matching between the push content and receiving targets affects the effectiveness of email push. It is necessary to refine the user profile to improve email reading rate and jump rate through link clicks, so as to promote the efficient dissemination of academic achievements.

[Purposes] This study aims to learn about the international influence of China's social science journals indexed by SSCI and develop the measures to enhance the journal influence. [Methods] We collected the information about the number, impact factor, 5-year impact factor, immediacy index, cited half-life, and journal citation index (JCI) of journals indexed by SSCI in six major developed countries (the United States, Japan, Germany, the United Kingdom, France, and the Republic of Korea) and five BRICS countries (China, South Africa, India, Brazil, and Russia). Furthermore, the above indicators of journals indexed by SSCI were compared between China and other countries. [Findings] China's social science journals indexed by SSCI rank third in 11 countries in terms of the impact factor and 5-year impact factor, fourth in terms of the immediacy index, and first in terms of JCI (1.04), which indicate the high overall influence and academic quality of the social science journals in China. However, the cited half-life of SSCI journals in China (5.2) is the shortest among the 11 countries, indicating that China's social science journals indexed by SSCI need to publish papers of far-reaching values in the future to enhance the notability and total cites of journals. [Conclusions] China's social science journals indexed by SSCI should take timely measures to enhance their short-term and long-term academic influences.

[Purposes] We compares the objective performance of China and other 16 countries in terms of the number of JCR journals, the number of Documents in JIF Journals (JIF papers), and academic paper outflow in the last 20 years. This study aims to reveal the status of journal development and paper outflow in major countries globally and the global status and shortcomings of China's journal publishing industry, so as to provide reference for the development of China's academic journals. [Methods] Using the JCR database, we retrieved and counted the JCR journals and Q1 journals from 2003 to 2022 in the United States, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Germany, Spain, Switzerland, China, Italy, Brazil, Russia, France, Japan, Poland, Canada, India, Australia, and Republic of Korea. The analysis module of InCites was used to analyze the JIF papers and Q1 papers published by authors and journals in these 17 countries from 2003 to 2022. [Findings] The JCR journals in the United States and the United Kingdom account for more than 50% of the global total, while those in China and other major countries account for less than 3%. The number of JIF papers published in China and India, the two developing countries, keeps rapid growth from 2003 to 2022, while that in other countries shows a significant decline around 2020. In 2022, China surpasses the United States and becomes the country with the largest number of JIF papers. Academic paper outflow exists in most countries, especially in China, Russia, France, and India. The JIF papers are mainly published in journals of the United States, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Germany. [Conclusions] The outflow of JIF papers from China is severe and aggravating. Despite the progress in the construction of high-quality journals in China, efforts should be made to keep the growing. In addition to focusing on the establishment and cultivation of high-level academic journals, attention should also be paid to the development of journals in other levels.

[Purposes] This study analyzes the research topics of papers published in international journals, aiming to reveal the distribution characteristics and development status of research topics in the globe and provide references for improving the academic quality of Chinese scientific journals. [Methods] The paper-level classification system of CWTS Leiden Ranking was employed to study the research topics of papers published in the international journals in library science and information science. According to the research topics, we classified the journals with concentrated topics and scattered topics and analyzed the distribution characteristics and research status of these topics. [Findings] The international journals in library science and information science mainly involve 17 micro-fields. Most journals in library science have concentrated topics, which mainly include information literacy, network search, knowledge organization, health science, and peer review. The journals in information science mostly publish scattered topics, which include digital learning, organizational research, bibliometric analysis, and online review. [Conclusions] Through the positioning and analysis of research topics at the paper level, we can identify the main research topics and discover interdisciplinary and emerging research areas. It provides ideas for improving the utilization rate of papers in Chinese scientific journals, directions for topic design by journal editors, accurate topic positioning for indexing agencies and search engines, and help for authors to select journals and submit manuscripts.