Rebecca Creamer

Editorial Board Member

Department of Entomology, Plant Pathology, and Weed Science
New Mexico State University, USA Read Interview session with Rebecca Creamer

Contact Rebecca Creamer

Department / University Information

New Mexico State University

Biography

Dr. Rebecca Creamer presently working as Associate Professor, Department of Entomology, Plant Pathology, and Weed Science, New Mexico State University. she has done Ph.D in Plant Pathology, University of California, Davis.

Research Interest

Research interest of Rebecca Creamer include Plant viruses, insect vector transmission, viral epidemiology, fungal endophytes, ecology and genetics of locoweed endophytes.

Biography

1. What makes an article top quality? 

Response: I think that the best articles are interesting to a wide audience and present novel ideas and concepts.

2. Do you think that journals determine research trends?

Response: Journals can somewhat determine research trends by deciding the minimum methods and minimum amount of information that justifies an article.

3. What makes a good position paper?

Response: I think that position papers need a specifically stated point of view with sufficient scientific background to provide a basis for the position.

4. What are the qualities you look for in an article?

Response: I look for a strong introduction with a clear set of objectives (why the work was done) with sufficient background information to set the stage for the work, a clear set of methods (how the work was done) including sufficient controls of the correct type and sufficient replication and the correct statistical methods, a clear set of results (what was found) using tables and figures, but not duplicating in the text and figure, and clear conclusions (what does the results mean) that do not overstate the results, but provide a good context and show have the objectives have been addressed.

5. Can you give us a broad indication of the types of themes a scientific journal should cover?

Response: I prefer seeing a mixture of applied and basic research, but the research context is more important than the theme.

6. What sorts of research methods and frameworks do you expect people to use, and how will they balance conceptual and applied research?

Response: The research methods should be appropriate to the research and the objectives, but should include more methods as well as more traditional methods.

7. How would you describe the journal’s mission and editorial objectives to our readers?

Response: To present high quality research and research related information in plant pathology and physiology.

8. If you could be granted dream articles, what would they be on?

Response: They would answer key questions in plant pathology.

9. Are there any particular areas which you would like to see, or expect to see, collaborate?

Response: Not really.

10. How does the research published percolate through to practitioners?

Response: The published research usually makes it to practitioners at meetings or conferences.

11. How can a publisher ensure the authors/readers a rigorous peer review and quality control?

Response: Make sure that instructions to reviewers are very specific about controls, replications, methods to demonstrate a point, sufficient recent background literature, and conclusions that follow from the results. Also to make sure that reviewers know that it is ok to reject manuscripts that are not up to the quality level that the journal requires.

12. Your editorial policy is to be eclectic and welcome perspectives from other disciplines and schools. How does this translate into the types of contributions you encourage?

Response: This means that there is more flexibility in the types of contributions.

13. What do you see as the merits of journals, as opposed to book series, as a means of scholarly communications?

Response: Journals are more up to date than books. Books are already outdated by the time that they are published, since they take so long.

14. How do you differentiate Journal of Plant Physiology & Pathology with other journals in the field?

Response: This journal is more international and more rapid than other journals. It is more likely to accept an editorial and is less biased than other journals against traditional methods in plant physiology and plant pathology.

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