Page 45 - How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper, 8th Edition 8th Edition

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Chapter 5
How to List the Authors and Addresses

Few would dispute that researchers have to take responsibility for papers that have their names on them. A senior laboratory figure who puts
his or her name on a paper without direct supervision or involvement is unquestionably abusing the system of credit. There have been
occasions where distinguished scientists have put their names irresponsibly on a paper that has turned out to contain serious errors or fraud.
Rightly, some of them have paid a heavy price.
—Editorial, Nature, p. 831, 26 June 1997

The Order of the Names

"If you have co-authors, problems about authorship can range from the trivial to the catastrophic" (O'Connor, 1991).

The easiest part of preparing a scientific paper is simply the entering of the bylines: the authors and addresses.
Sometimes.

I haven't yet heard of a duel being fought over the order of listing of authors, but I know of instances in which
otherwise reasonable, rational colleagues have become bitter enemies solely because they could not agree on whose
names should be listed or in what order.

What is the right order? Unfortunately, there are no agreed-upon rules or generally accepted conventions. Some
authors, perhaps to avoid arguments among themselves, agree to list their names alphabetically. In

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the field of mathematics, this practice appears to be universal. Such a simple, nonsignificant ordering system has
much to recommend it, but the alphabetical system has not yet become common, especially in the United States.

In the past, there has been a general tendency to list the head of the laboratory as an author whether or not he or she
actively participated in the research. Often, the "head" was placed last (second of two authors, third of three, etc.). As
a result, the terminal spot seemed to acquire prestige. Thus, two authors, neither of whom was head of a laboratory or
even necessarily a senior professor, would vie for the second spot. If there are three or more authors, the "important"
author will want the first or last position, but not in between.

A countervailing and more modern tendency has been to define the first author as the senior author and primary
progenitor of the work being reported. Even when the first author is a graduate student and the second (third, fourth)
author is head of the laboratory, perhaps even a Nobel Laureate, it is now accepted form to refer to the first author as
the "senior author" and to assume that he or she did most or all of the research.

The tendency for laboratory directors to insist upon having their own names on all papers published from their
laboratories is still with us. So is the tendency to use the "laundry list" approach, naming as an author practically
everyone in the laboratory, including technicians who may have cleaned the glassware after the experiments were
completed. In addition, the trend toward collaborative research is steadily increasing. Thus, the average number of
authors per paper is on the rise.

Definition of Authorship

Perhaps we can now define authorship by saying that the listing of authors should include those, and only those, who
actively contributed to the overall design and execution of the experiments. Further, the authors should normally be

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