Guidelines for Authors (Cave & Karst Science)

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Scope of Articles

Our gold standard is a fully-peer-reviewed scientifc paper. However, we have introduced further categories that set a progressively lower hurdle than a full peer review. The categories are listed below.

In addition, recipients of research grants from BCRA are required to publish a paper or report in Cave and Karst Science. Authors of online lectures and of talks at BCRA's cave science symposiums are also encouraged to contribute to the journal . We also encourage cavers who have an interest in science to send us reports or a brief note for the forum section.

Photo Features – new in 2022

As an experiment, to see if we can encourage more cavers to submit articles to Cave & Karst Science, we have created – in volume 49(2); August 2022 – a Photo Feature category of submission, comprising three photographs and a brief explanation of their scientific significance. We hope that readers will find this of interest and will consider submitting photographs and appropriate short texts for future Photo Features. It is also hoped that inclusion of these ideally short and pithy contributions might stimulate equally tightly targeted correspondence. Subject to receiving suitable material, our ambition is to include at least one such feature in each future Cave and Karst Science issue.

David Lowe, editor C&KS, writes... The essential idea of the Photo Feature is to present a brief illustrated comment about a topic that will inform those with interests in any aspect(s) of the cave and karst sciences, but there is also scope for a wider interpretation of the idea. For example, as in the Forum of Cave & Karst Science 49(3), a simple point of obvious cave and karst interest might prompt lateral thinking into other, perhaps only tenuously related, areas of interest. In other words, I think that potential contributors need to know that they do not have to produce a mini-thesis restricted just to caves and karst. Let the imagination spin and see what comes out of the prompting photograph(s)!

Examples of recent Photo Features

GUNN, John. (2022). Bubble Springs Cave, Lathkill Dale, Derbyshire: Britain's youngest limestone cave. Cave and Karst Science 49(2), p84. Contents of volume 49(2). Download article doi.bcra.org.uk/cks146084.f

SIMMONDS, Vince. (2022). A 15th century inscription at Dead Man's Cave, Giggleswick in the Yorkshire Dales. Cave and Karst Science 49(3), p136. Contents of volume 49(3). Download article doi.bcra.org.uk/cks147136.f

SIMMONDS, Vince. (2023). Derived or 'unconformable' corals, exposed in Land of Hope and Glory, Wookey Hole, Mendip, UK. Cave and Karst Science 50(1), p48. Contents of volume 50(1). Download article doi.bcra.org.uk/cks148048.f

Manuscript Style

Text should be presented in a style as close as possible to that used by Cave and Karst Science. Subheadings within an article should follow our practice. Further detailed information is available on the inside front cover of each issue – see Guidelines in C&KS 50(3), December 2023

Publication Fees

If your manuscript is accepted for publication, you will have the option of publishing your article either as Open Access or Subscription Access.

Open Access means that the article can be freely downloaded, and that it will be marked as meeting the open access requirements of UKRI.org. Subscription Access means that access requires the reader to obtain a user ID and to log in. User IDs are issued free to BCRA members. A free monthly login is available to all applicants and there are other login options, for which the reader needs to pay a subscription fee.

The usual cost for publishing your article as Open Access is £75 per printed page but if the author is a BCRA Member then this is reduced to £50. In some instances BCRA funding may be available to support these costs, so please enquire with the editors. The charges apply to Papers, Reports and Features. There is no fee for publishing your article as Subscription Access.

IP Access v. Password Access

The online version of Cave & Karst Science usually requires readers to log in with a User ID and Access Code. There are exceptions to this for Open Access articles, and other items that are marked as free downloads. Institutions such as libraries and academic bodies can also make use of IP-based access, where the institution will be logged in automatically if its Internet IP addresses have been registered with us. This facility also extends to caving clubs but please note that you must have a fixed (not dynamic) IP address for this to work. For further info see BCRA Online Publications.

How to Submit Your Manuscript

Further information on...

... is available on the inside cover of each issue of Cave & Karst Science.

 View the Guidelines in Cave & Karst Science 50(3), December 2023.

Also see...

Summary Info for Authors | Copyright | Editorial Advisory Board



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This page, http://bcra.org.uk/pub/candks/guidelines.html was last modified on Wed, 03 May 2023 15:51:36 +0100