Tuesday, July 31, 2018

AND Media, a "Google Partner Network"

Today's email is not from a journal publisher -- flaky, predatory, or otherwise -- at least, not one that I can locate. It purports to be from Google News, Google News (Partnered Company), and AND Media Ltd ( Google Partner Network). The message has the deceptive title "You are Featured in Google News" -- no such luck. The claims are rather silly -- "you can even apply for grants from the government or university by publishing your work in Google News"!

The domain name oasispub.co.in suggests an Indian origin. ICANN does not show registration data, but a whois search on domaintools.com shows registration to "Student" in India in June 2018. The website oasispub.co.in is a blog (with no content) called "Oasis Cart – One shopping destination." Neither Mapquest nor Google Maps recognizes the email's street address in Massachusetts.

Under these circumstances, it is difficult to imagine why anyone would send "your opinion article" or "your research work" to this "Google Partner Network." I submitted an inquiry to Google News and will supplement this posting if I learn more.

UPDATE (August 23, 2018): Apparently Google could not care less who advertises itself as a "Partnered Company." So far, I have received no reply to my inquiry there. In response to a second spam on Aug. 19, I asked Jennifer Ballard, "Before I send an article, could you provide more information about AND Media Ltd – who is on the editorial board, whether you pay for articles, what subjects are of interest, etc.?" No reply so far.
Email
  • From: Google News [google-news@oasispub.co.in]
    Sent: Sunday, July 29, 2018 3:39 PM [and again
    Subject: You are Featured in Google News
    Hello Dr.David H Kaye,
    I am Jennifer Ballard, Editorial Assistant for Google News contacting you with the reference from our Editorial Board.
    We are looking for experts like you in the medical field. Many top medical researchers are going unnoticed due to predatory journals are taking up the lead. You would get nothing but a published article in that journal and they don't add any value to your hard work.
    We at Google News (Partnered Company) are going to take your research to the world by publishing your opinion article in our news website. This way, your research will get noticed by many people and you can even apply for grants from the government or university by publishing your work in Google News
    Google News receives millions of visitors daily from all over the world, and it is one of the top news websites in America. If you think that your research work is not getting enough exposure, we can help you feature you and your research work in Google News. All we need is a news article especially written for Google News by explaining in detail about your research, so that common people can understand it and send it to us so that we can publish your article with us. If you want us to write the news article for you, just send us your articles, so that our editors can write about you and your work and will publish the same in our news website.
    This will help you in getting high impact factor and more citations for your articles and also increases your credibility.
    If you are interested in our proposal, just send us your articles or published article link, so that we can send you more details.
    All the best
    Jennifer Ballard, | Editorial Assistant,
    AND Media Ltd ( Google Partner Network)
    3164 Christie Way Salem,
    Massachusetts 01970, USA
  • From: google news [google-news@webgroup.in]
    Date: Sun 8/19/2018 1:29 PM [and Sun 7/29/2018 3:39 PM]
    Subject: Your are Featured in Google News
    Dear DR.David H Kaye,
    I am Jennifer Ballard, Editorial Assistant for Google News contacting you with the reference from our Editorial Board. We are looking for experts like you in the Scientific field. Many top Researchers are going unnoticed due to predatory journals are taking up the lead. You would get nothing but a published article in that journal and they don't add any value to your hard work.
    We at Google News (Partnered Company) are going to take your research to the world by publishing your opinion article in our news website. This way, your research will get noticed by many people and you can even apply for grants from the government or university by publishing your work in Google News. We believe that publishing with Google News will be of great value to you, and will help you reach your research with a world-wide recognition. It is going to impact your profession in a major way.
    Google News receives millions of visitors daily from all over the world, and it is one of the top news websites in America. If you think that your research work is not getting enough exposure, we can help you feature you and your research work in Google News. All we need is a news article especially written for Google News by explaining in detail about your research, so that common people can understand it and send it to us so that we can publish your article with us. If you want us to write the news article for you, just send us your articles, so that our editors can write about you and your work and will publish the same in our news website.
    This will help you in getting high impact factor and more citations for your articles and also increases your credibility.
    If you are interested in our proposal, just send us your articles or published article link, so that we can send you more details. Nothing is more important to us than the satisfaction of those we work with. I’m sure we will live up to your expectations.
    The package includes publishing in Google News along with 300+ major news outlets. Here I am attaching you report of 300+ major news outlets in which your work gets published.
    All the best
    Jennifer Ballard, | Editorial Assistant,
    AND Media Ltd
    (Google Partner Network)
    3164 Christie Way Salem, Massachusetts 01970, USA

Thursday, July 12, 2018

Iris Publishers, "your one-stop-place for latest scientific!"

The About Us webpage of Iris Publishers (7/12/18) has such ringing phrases as "your one-stop-place for latest scientific!" "aiding the growth of learners ... for the prosperity of science." They want "to exploit the scientific information"and "to unfold the quality research globally." To exploit and unfold, IRIS uses a "potential Editorial team" and a "highly qualified and expert Editorial committee [that] is indulged in scrutinizing articles with stringent peer review process ensuring that it follows our policies." Who could ask for anything more?

Iris has pictures of 35 journals on its website -- 36 if you count the World Journal of Yoga and Natural Therapy twice inasmuch as it "is an ambidextrous journal."

The domain name irispublishers.org is registered to New Dream Network, LLC dba DreamHost Web Hosting. The telephone number on the contact page, 914-407-6109, also is used by Lupine Publishers, which is "focused on ... Remedial missions in relation with Technical Knowledge." Virtual office supplier, Regus, could be the source of the address of the office building in San Francisco. Clearly, there is reason to wonder where Iris is actually located. The spam inviting me "to join your hands with us in this instigate" suggests that the handshake would be quite a stretch.

UPDATE: Two comments of July 13, 2018, provide more information. One from "Smut Clyde" reveals that the common telephone number for Lupine and Iris (not to mention the flowery association) is no accident. He (or she) found that

Iris Publishers LLC is a Colorado Domestic Limited-Liability Company filed on May 18, 2018 .... The company's principal address is 7865 S Grand Baker St., Aurora, CO 80016. That Aurora street address is also the home of Lupine Publisher, Crimson Publisher, "Biomedical Research Ltd", and Sudheer Kaku (the scammer who registered the corresponding domains).

The address on the spam from the Global Journal of Forensic Science & Medicine is that of an office building with space rented by Regus. This company provides a "Virtual Office, The right image for your business, with a prestigious address and a range of supporting services."

UPDATE (5/17/19): Understandably, Mr. Kaku objects to being referred to as a "scammer." He commented (below) that "I own Biomedical Research Network + & Crimson Publishers and yes, the Colorado Address is an editorial office for the domains we did specify that on websites. We use Virtual offices for mail handling." He insisted that "we formed this corporation to publish quality research" and added "Please let me know if you come across any genuine complain or an instance where we scammed or didn't deliver on what we promised." At least two papers in the Annals of Biostatistics and Biometric Applications could not have received the peer review and editing that the journals promise to their authors and the public. So too, a reason to question whether the Peer Reviewed Journal of Forensic and Genetic Sciences is peer reviewed in practice as well as in name is at the posting on Lupine Publishers.

UPDATE (9/14/19): If further proof of the flakiness of Iris Publishers and related spammers is needed, it comes from an email referred to me by a professor in the United Kingdom who wrote that "[a]s these things go it really takes the biscuit! The standout bit is in bold below. [T]his seems to me to be a new low." The email from Iris reads as follows:

From: iris@publisher-france.com
Subject: top rated journals of Scopus and WoS
Date: 11 September 2019 14:30:00 BST
Good day,
Great opportunity to publish your article.
in the top rated journals of Scopus, until the end of 2019,
book a publication at the beginning of 2020.
Now, we have a program called “Co-authorship”. You can become a co-author of an already finished article, which is accepted for publication.
in a journal indexed in Scopus.
We translate the article to English and design the article ourselves.
We guarantee that your article will be published in the journal of Scopus and indexed.

We also have a large number of journals of all directions. We will help you publish your article quickly and monitor indexing to Scopus.
Send articles, ask questions.
We will be happy to answer you.

Perhaps Mr. Kaku can explain how he plans to make people into "co-authors" of "already finished" articles by having Iris translate it into English. Is the assumption that the "co-author" already is an author of the original article, or is "a program called 'Co-authorship'" a solicitation for plagiarism?

UPDATE (4/26/20): The peer review at Iris's Scientific Journal of Research and Reviews is also bogus. See Iris Publishers and the World's First Quantification of the Deal with Birds.

Email

Annals of Public Health & Epidemiology (APHE)

  • From: Annals of Public Health & Epidemiology
    Sent: Monday, July 19, 2021 10:53 AM
    Subject: Eminent Support
    Dear Dr. Professor,
    Good Morning!
    I am sure you're quite busy, but I would appreciate if you could take a moment to my below request.
    We are glad to inform you that, we are in the process of framingEditorial/review committee for our journal. So, we respectfully invite you to join your hands with us in this instigate.
    Moreover, we request you to submit yourCVto the same email id.
    Also, we are cordially inviting eminent researchers like you to support us with your2-page opinion/mini review or any type of article for this Inaugural issue? We really need your support for this issue.
    I trust you will provide your valuable time and interest towards our journal.
    Please track the below link to visit our journal website ... .
    Await your valuable response.
    Dollie Roslyn|Managing Editor
    Annals of Public Health & Epidemiology (APHE)
    Iris Publishers LLC,315 Montgomery Street, San Francisco, CA 94104, USA.
    Unsubscribe
    If you dont want to receive our email, please email us

Archives in Neurology & Neuroscience (ANN)

  • From: Neurology& Neuroscience [neurology@irisopenaccess.org]
    Sent: Monday, July 18, 2022 3:31 AM
    Subject: Valuable Submission: ANN
    Dear Dr. Dh Kaye ,
    Greetings from ANN!!
    Hope you are doing well and very good in health.
    I am Grace Allan manager of "Archives in Neurology & Neuroscience (ANN)" I was in shortfall of one article for successful release of Forthcoming Issue. Is it possible for you to support us with your 2-page opinion/mini review/research article for this issue?
    I believe in you that; your one article brings out the best achievement to our Journal.
    We desire to receive your manuscript by the end of July.
    Await your positive response.
    Grace Allan| Impact Factor - 0.905| NLM ID: 101759143
    Iris Publishers LLC,315 Montgomery Street, San Francisco, CA 94104, USA.
  • From: Neurology& Neuroscience [neurology@irisopenaccess.com]
    Sent: Friday, July 15, 2022 11:00 AM
    Subject: Authors Issue: ANN
    Dear Dr. David H Kaye,
    Heartful greetings from Grace Allan!
    Theme: Our desire to publish your potential article in upcoming issue of ANN
    Outline: Archives in Neurology & Neuroscience (ANN) is an internationally peer-reviewed journal that aspires to publish articles relevant to Neurology and Brain Disorders from researchers worldwide. Submission: on/before July 30,2022
    Looking forward to receive your informative paper!
    Grace Allan| Impact Factor: 0.905| NLM ID: 101759143|ISSN: 2641-1911
    Iris Publishers LLC,315 Montgomery Street, San Francisco, CA 94104, USA

Archives of Reproductive Medicine (ARM)

  • From: Archives of Reproductive Medicine [reproductive@irisopenaccess.com]
    Sent: Friday, August 11, 2023 1:29 PM
    Subject: Invitation to Submit Article: ARM
    Esteemed Dr. Dh Kaye,
    I hope you are doing well.
    I am Sandra Angela, managing editor of the Archives of Reproductive Medicine (ARM).
    I sincerely apologize if I disturb you in any way. We are in shortfall of one article for the successful release of an Upcoming Issue of our journal, ARM. If this is short notice, kindly send a 2-page Opinion/Mini review. We hope a 2-page article is not time taken for eminent people like you.
    So, we are expecting this from your end without disappointing us.
    Drop us an email at your convenience; we have further discussion.
    Sandra Angela| Managing Editor
    Archives of Reproductive Medicine (ARM) | ISSN:2837-4614
    Iris Publishers LLC,315Montgomery Street, San Francisco, CA94104, USA.
    Phone Number:+1-628-201-9788
  • From: Archives of Reproductive Medicine [reproductive@irisopenaccess.org]
    Sent: Friday, August 11, 2023 1:31 PM
    Subject: Looking for Support: ARM
    Esteemed Dr. David H Kaye,
    Hope everything will be good at your end.
    We cordially invite you to submit a Research/Review /Communicate report manuscript for possible publication in our Upcoming issue towards Archives of Reproductive Medicine (ARM). If you are unable to submit a full-length manuscript, an Editorial or Letter to Editor with a minimum 1000 words is also acceptable.
    I feel its a enormous pleasure to invite you, because we were confident that your article would increase our journal's citations and reputation.
    I trust this welcome is pleasing to you.
    Acknowledge this mail for further queries.
    Sandra Angela | Managing Editor
    Archives of Reproductive Medicine (ARM) |ISSN: 2837-4614
    Iris Publishers LLC,315Montgomery Street, San Francisco, CA94104, USA.
    Phone Number: +1-628-201-9788

Archives of Rheumatology & Arthritis Research (ARAR)

  • From: Archives of Rheumatology & Arthritis Research [arthritis@irispublishers-nl.net]
    Sent: Friday, April 30, 2021 8:37 AM
    Subject: Give A Chance
    Dear Dr. DH Kaye,
    Good Morning
    I am Rose Jane manager of Journal " Archives of Rheumatology & Arthritis Research (ARAR)" I was in shortfall of one article for release of Our upcoming issue. Is it possible for you to support us with your 2-page opinion/mini review/research article for this issue?
    I believe in you that, your one article brings out the best achievement to our Journal. Please tack the below link to visit on our journal website https://irispublishers.com/arar/
    Hope to receive your dedication and contribution soon.
    Please Acknowldge this mail for queries.
    Rose Jane| Managing Editor
    Archives of Rheumatology & Arthritis Research| ISSN: 2694-1724
    Iris Publishers LLC,315 Montgomery Street, San Francisco, CA 94104, USA.
    Web: irispublishers.com | Email Id: arthritis@irispublishers.com | Tel no: +1-628-201-9788
    Unsubscribe
    If you dont want to receive our email, please email us.

Global Journal of Forensic Science & Medicine

  • From: Global Journal of Forensic Science & Medicine [forensic@irispublishers.net]
    Date: Jan. 22, 2019, 8:19 AM
    Subject: Publication of your potential work in GJFSM
    Good Morning!
    Global Journal of Forensic Science & Medicine is in shortfall of only one article of successful accomplishment of Volume 1 Issue 2 we are in search of professionals who can support us. In this process, we have gone through your eminent profile which has impressed our senior Editor a lot.
    So, it is our request you to submit any article (at least 2page opinion/Mini Review). ... Await your submission on/before January 31, 2019.
    Regards,
    Amber Smith
    315 Montgomery Street, San Francisco, CA 94104, USA, Tel: +1-628-201-9788
  • From: Global Journal of Forensic Science & Medicine [forensic@irispublishers.com]
    Date: Fri 9/21/2018 8:58 AM
    Subject: Looking for CV
    Dear Dr. David H Kaye,
    Good Morning!
    I am sure you're quite busy, but I would appreciate if you could take a moment to my below request.
    We are glad to inform you that, we are in the process of framing Editorial/review committee for our journal. So, we respectfully invite you to join your hands with us in this instigate.
    I trust you’ll provide your valuable time and interest towards our journal and we are looking forward to inaugurate our GJFSM with the eminent people like you.
    If you are interested to join as an editorial board member in our journal, please send your CV ...
    Sincerely,
    Amber Smith
    Managing editor
    Global Journal of Forensic Science & Medicine
    315 Montgomery Street, San Francisco, CA 94104, USA

Nursing & Care

  • From: Nursing & Care [nursing@iris-research.net]
    Sent: Thursday, September 14, 2023 1:17 PM
    Subject: Contribution
    Esteemed Dr. David H Kaye,
    Hope you are doing well!
    Can we have your article for the successful release of Volume 4, Issue 4 in our journal Nursing & Care (IJNC).
    In fact, we need one article to accomplish the issue prior to September 30, 2023; we hope that the single manuscript should be yours. If this is on short notice, kindly send a 2-page opinion/mini review/case report. We hope a 2-page article isn't time taken for eminent people like you.
    I believe in you and that your eminent manuscript brings good achievement to our journal.
    We do hope you will feel able to respond positively to this invitation, and we look forward to hearing from you shortly. Anticipate for your promising response.
    Amelia Hoffman| Managing Editor
    Iris Publishers LLC
    315Montgomery Street
    San Francisco, CA94104, USA.

Open Access Journal of Archaeology and Anthropology

  • From: Open Access Journal of Archaeology and Anthropology [archaeology@irispublishers.org]
    Date: Fri 9/21/2018 5:35 AM
    Subject: Contribution for Open Access Week
    Dear Dr. David H Kaye,
    Greetings from Iris Publishers!
    Happy Open Access Week!
    We are happy to celebrate Open Access Week and we are welcoming your submissions for our OAJAA.
    In this Occasion we have chosen eminent scientists, who have significant involvement in the advancement of research in their field and have the potential to give best quality articles for the open access issue of our journal.
    We anticipate that you will support and make our celebration more joyful by sharing any type of manuscript towards our journal.
    Please acknowledge this email receipt within 24 hours.
    Regards,
    Carlo Alvaro
  • From: Open Access Journal of Archaeology and Anthropology [archaeology@irispublishers.org]
    Date: July 12, 2018, 3:59 AM
    Subject: Evaluation
    Good Morning!
    I am sure you're quite busy, but I would appreciate if you could take a moment to my below request.
    We are glad to inform you that, we are in the process of framing Editorial/review committee for our journal. So, we respectfully invite you to join your hands with us in this instigate.
    I trust you’ll provide your valuable time and interest towards our journal and we are looking forward to inaugurate our OAJAA with the eminent people like you.
    If you are interested to join as an editorial board member in our journal, please send your CV ... Kindly acknowledge this email for further queries.
    Sincerely,
    Carlo Alvaro
    Open Access Journal of Archaeology and Anthropology

Wednesday, June 27, 2018

An Online "International Conference on Newfangled Methods" Wants Manuscripts for Two Journals

Today's email is a new one on me. The International Conference on Newfangled Methods of Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics (ICNMPCM) won't meet anywhere, but its "delegates" may have their papers published in two flaky journals..It is not unusual for single journals to have symposia on given topics, or for real conferences to have a journal or two consider the papers for publication as a group, but I have never before encountered a so-called conference that exists solely to funnel papers to questionable journals.

The newfangled conference website (http://www.icnmpcm.org.in/index.html) provides the following description (as of 6/27/18):
ICNMPCM welcomes author to present research work through online, it provide common platform for researches, professors and industry professionals. This conference is an ideal platform for keeping up advances to a consistently morphing fields. It is most innovative conference which has been leading and experts from around the global will be presenting the emerging thoughts through papers.
...
All registered papers will be submitted to International Journal of Engineering & Technology(UAE) for possible publication after the internal scientific check. ... All registered papers will be submitted to International Journal of Mechanical and Production Engineering Research and Development (IJMPERD)for possible publication after the internal scientific check. ...
The About Us page adds that "Our main arrow is to hit the world with new techniques. The Contact page provides no address. Aside from an HTML form, it gives email URLs for Prof.srajendra@gmail.com and mallaharsha84@gmail.com as well a Indian mobile telephone number. The domain name icnmpcm.org.in is registered by Endurance Domains Technology LLP for "Confer Professional Group of Conferences, Andhra Pradesh, India."

the "Guest Editors" are all Indian and Malaysian, except for "Dr. Sattar B. Sadkhan, Editor in Chief of IJACT in South Korea, Chair of IEEE ComSoc Iraq Chapter, Chairman of URSI Iraq Committee, Honorable Research Director of IRAQ for (BRCORP), Editor in Chief of many International scientific Journals."

The International Journal of Engineering & Technology (UAE) is a product of the United Arab Emirates' Science Publishing Corporation, whose journals include "International Journal of Scientific World." It welcomes "[e]xtensions of previously published high-quality articles ... if they have been recommended by the conference organizing committee." It lists Google Scholar among its "partners."

The other journal that this virtual conference will feed is published by nothing less than Transstellar Journal Publications and Research Consultancy Private Limited. The domain name tjprc.org is registered to TJPRC Journals, Tamil Nadu, India. Transstellar claims to have agents or offices in "Texas - USA, California - USA, London - UK, Ontario - Canada, Mesaieed - Qatar, Singapore and Chennai - India. It also has 14 journal editorial offices (research partners) around the world ... ." Zillow describes the Houston location (13218 Golden Field Dr) as "a single family home that contains 2,398 sq ft and was built in 1997. It contains 4 bedrooms and 2.5 bathrooms." The California office is a one-bedroom, one-bath apartment at 701 Gibson Drive, Apt. No. 1912, Roseville, 95678. The corporate office is in Transstellar Tower, Ground Floor, Plot No: 37A, City Park Layout , Old No: 34 / New No: 12, Egattur (near SIPCOT IT Park, OMR - Opp: FLSmidth), Chennai - 603103, Tamil Nadu, India.
Email
  • From: akhil G [hcb3@icnmpcm.org.in]
    Date: June 27, 2018, 2:28 AM
    Subject: [untitled]
    Respected Professors,
    International Conference on Newfangled Methods of Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics (ICNMPCM). It is an online conference intends to be a global forum for researchers and engineers to present and discuss recent innovations and new techniques in Engineering Technology and Sciences.
    Important Dates: Today is the Last Date for Paper submission ... Date of Conference: 6th & 7th Aug 2018
    [no sender name]

Tuesday, June 26, 2018

The Media Gurus at Research Publications International Ltd

Research Publishing International Ltd is not a flaky academic journal. It is "a collective of dedicated media gurus." For the right fee, they will market your research. Its services include making videos, multimedia, and a "free Research Features magazine [that] contains the latest scientific news written by skilled journalists and presented in an intuitive format." It stirs up the social media to "help you reach the masses."

The domain names researchfeatures.com and researchpublishinginternational.com were registered by Data Protected Data Protected, with a mock address of 123 Data Protected, Kirkland, WA 98033, Phone: +1.0000000000, Fax: +1.0000000000, Email: noreply@data-protected.net.
Email
  • From: Bradley Noades [bradley@researchfeatures.com]
    Date: June 26, 2018
    Subject: Deadly statistics quantifying an unacceptable risk in capital punishment - Research Features
    Please excuse the direct nature of this contact. I would like to speak with you regarding your work with the Deadly statistics quantifying an unacceptable risk in capital punishment study. Research Features are working in collaboration with research teams around the world assisting with their Public Outreach activity, through means of a professionally produced research feature article. Our team of editors, illustrators and Social Media Gurus produce this feature in collaboration with you. There is very little for you to do – on average under 1 hour total time investment from your side. Our team invest an average of 28 to 34 hours in production of each feature. The ethos behind our work is very simple - we take complex topics and translate this body of work into an easily understood feature, which is then accessed globally via Social Media, our hard copy and digital publication, and our website.
    Research Features is a free-to-access publication – no reader will be asked to pay or subscribe to read, download or share the content we create. We publish all work under the Creative Commons licence guidelines.
    I understand Public Outreach is a very important issue within the research community – it is often difficult to obtain large numbers of views and interaction and of course time consuming. We guarantee that a minimum of 85,000 people will see your article across all digital channels. Please do look at our social media channels, icons are shown on our website, for evidence of the impact of this initiative.
    We are currently working on a very special publication to be launched August 2018. This publication will feature a wide variety of disciplines. We would like you to be one of those featured. To achieve this goal we take background information, and previously published papers, and use this information to write an article which is easily understood by the broader audience. You will not have to write anything; our internal team will produce the article. We do ask you to approve everything we produce, so you will remain in control of all content.
    I have briefly looked over the details of your work and believe Research Features to be an interesting platform to complement your outreach. You will of course own the article and copyright, leaving your team with a professionally produced feature to be used on your web-page, at events or conferences etc. We also send you hard copies of the final publication and finally, a detailed report which explains who has interacted with your article. Please have a look at our website ... Please also look over our Social Media channels – to see how the global community react to the work we produce: ...
    Rather than writing any further detail, could we please find 5 minutes to discuss? During our call I will then answer any questions you have and explain in detail the requirements and cost for taking part. All the services we provide are paid for by the research teams we feature, and the cost for this edition is capped at £400 per page. This covers everything, there are no additional fees or charges. The publication is entirely free to download share and digest, and is not supported by advertising or external funding, as we are an independent scientific media agency. I hope you agree, our work is of a high quality and the results across social media have been outstanding.
    We hope to work with you, Thank you in advance
    Kind Regards,
    Bradley Noades
    Project Manager, T: +44 1453 822574 (UK) Central Office, bradley@researchfeatures.com
    IMPORTANT INFORMATION
    This email may contain information that is privileged, confidential or otherwise protected from disclosure. It may not be used by, or its contents copied or disclosed to, persons other than the address(ees). If you have received this email in error please notify the sender immediately and delete the email.
    Whilst Research Publishing International Ltd has taken every reasonable precaution to minimize the risk of viruses, we cannot accept liability for any damage that is sustained as a result of software viruses which may be contained in this email. ...

Monday, June 18, 2018

ITS wants you to "discuss the current and potential issues arising from the academic field"

From Hong Kong, International Technology and Science Publications (ITS) is "specializing in open access journals." In addition, the About Us page (viewed 6/18/18) promises
⊖ "a flexible open platform for researchers and institutions to ... discuss the current and potential issues arising from the academic field";
⊖ untold "quantities of distinguished editorial members and reviewers"; and
⊖ to "promote the development of the global significant researches."
Eighteen journals are listed, all with "ISSN pending." The nascent list includes "Waters" and "Environment."
Email
  • From: press@itspoa.org
    Date: Mon Jun 18 at 6:45 PM
    Subject: Hey Dhkaye, Call for Papers from ITS 2018-6-19
    Dear Dhkaye,
    Free Publication Event in ITS Journals
    I am an editorial coordinator from the journal Urban Design. We noticed that you’ve published many papers, and based on the praisable quality of your paper, it is a great pleasure to invite you to contribute an article to ITS Journals for free before 30 July, 2018. [← Too bad the anonymous coordinator did not notice that I have published nothing on urban (or any other kind of) design.]
    ... Authentic Peer Review [← As opposed to 假的 (jia3de) peer review?]
    All articles submitted are subject to a rigorous peer review process by the expert reviewers. ITS adheres to the single blind peer-review procedure to ensure the contents on the journals meet ethical and scientific quality standards ...
    Articles submitted to Composite Science
    [← What happened to Urban Design?] come through a series of procedures, such as peer reviewing and editing. ITS is committed to finishing the whole process within 30 days. ...
    Special Issues focusing on certain aspects of a scientific research are published on ITS. ...
    Once published, articles on ITS are allowed be shared and adapted for their own purposes. ...
    We will answer back as soon as possible if we receive your manuscripts. Please send your reply by the earliest delivery. Looking forward to your contributions!
    Editorial Board
    International Technology and Science Publications (ITS)

Thursday, June 14, 2018

SciDoc is "spreading the knowledge from the desks to the doors of the masses"

From the SciDoc website: "SciDoc Publishers achievements till date includes: ... Special Issues, which is roaring high."

Among the many journal titles listed there is the "JBR Journal of Translational Space dentistry, Medicine and Exploration (JBR-TSME)." The editor-in-chief is "Balwant Rai, Director of Space dentistry, Kepler Space Institute, USA." The Kepler Space Institute's home page explains that the institute "is dedicated to the expansion of human civilization from Earth into space. We believe this is necessary, both to acquire resources – based on the Law of Space Abundance to provide the fundamental needs of preserving peace and prosperity for humankind on this planet – and to extend life through our solar system and beyond." Mr. Rai's name does not appear on this website, but he is editor-in-chief of OMICS' JBR Journal of Interdisciplinary Medicine and Dental Science. That speaks volumes.

The International Journal of Forensic Science & Pathology (IJFP), which spammed me, is not listed on the journals page of the website. A word search of the website returns a link that generates a smattering of articles from other journals. If there are editors of and articles in this journal, they are not easily found.

The enterprising chap behind SciDoc may be Hari Sarangam, 2542 Rockhampton Rd, San Ramon, California 94582, 302-703-1005, Phonehari.s@scidoc.org. Mr. Sarangam is the owner of the domains scidocopenaccess.com, i2itechsolutions.com, scidoc.biz, and scidocpublishers.biz.
Email
  • From: International Journal of Forensic Science & Pathology - SciDoc Publishers [forensic_sci_pathol@scidocopenaccess.com]
    Date: Thu 6/14/2018 12:59 AM
    Subject: Submission for Forensic Science Research
    Respected Dr. David Kaye,
    We hope this email finds you in good health. Myself Maddy Adams, Managing Editor at SciDoc Publishers- Open Access; managing the International Journal of Forensic Science & Pathology (IJFP). We would like to take this opportunity in congratulating you for getting the Research grant of National Science Foundation (NSF). [← Maddy seems to be confused. I have no such grant, although I am a co-PI on a recent grant application.]
    We are an Open Access publisher working to disseminate knowledge and to create an archival literature platform in Forensic Science & Pathology. We aim to publish high quality Open Access journals around the globe, with contributions from eminent authors like you. We would be very delighted to have your submissions in our journal, as your research work on “Forensic Science” fits well with the IJFP.
    We kindly request you to confirm us with respect to your interest of participation. Should you have any further queries, concerns or comments, please feel free to contact us, we will assist you. Looking forward to hearing from you soon.
    Best Regards
    Maddy Adams
    SciDoc Publishers, USA.

SPG Is Another "Science Publishing Group"

"Science Publishing Group" is a nice name. It is used by SciencePG, which boasts about its 200+ questionable journals, and now (6/13/18) by the more diminutive SPG Journals, with a mere four journals. The domain name spg.ltd was registered by Alibaba Cloud Computing Ltd. d/b/a HiChina, raising a question about the putative Zurich address on the website and in emails.

The content of the email displays an abysmal lack of awareness of "this field." Inasmuch as the journal has no editorial board, that is not surprising. I cannot find any article titles -- let alone any articles -- in these journals.
Email
SPG Open
  • From: P Stephane MSE [pstephane@spg-journals.org]
    Date: Wed 6/13/2018 3:19 PM
    Subject: Inquiry about "The good - the bad - the ugly: the NAS report on strengthening forensic science in America."
    Dear Dr. Kaye DH,
    I am editing the next several issues of SPG Open and am hoping I can discuss with you the idea of including an article from you. The paper you published entitled "The good - the bad - the ugly: the NAS report on strengthening forensic science in America." was interesting to me and I think another article related to this work would be valuable to our readership. If you could tell me more about your current work that would be very helpful. I think you will find that SPG Open is quite different from most journals in that we stay in communication with our authors during every step of the publication process and provide detailed feedback for each submission whether or not it is accepted for publication.
    If you have moved on from this field you could certainly prepare an article on a different topic. We don't have any theme issue in the near future so there is no restriciton [sic] on the scope of topics that may be submitted. The deadline for this is flexible and I am happy to answer any questions you may have.
    Please reply when you can and let me know whether or not this is feasible for you in the foreseeable future.
    Sincerely,
    Patrick Stephane M.S.E.
    Editorial Board, SPG Open
    Notice: SPG is committed to preventing fraudulent emails. If you receive an email or visit a website that does not contian our logo as pictured above, it is not affiliated with SPG. We have received reports of the existance of other publishers with similar names. If you suspect you have received a fraudulent email that claims to be from SPG please notify us by replying to this email our contacting us through our website.
    This message and any attachments to it are for use only by the addressee. If you are not the addressee please do not rely on the contents of this message and delete it from your computer immediately. To notify the sender write to Auf der Mauer 8, Zurich 8001, Switzerland. To stop future emails from this sender please reply and let us know. Do not open any attachments which you do not recognize as they may harm your computer. Copyright 2018 SPG. All rights reserved. This email is available both in HTML and plain text formats.|

    Followed four days later by "Dear Dr. Kaye DH, Could you please let me know whether or not this if [sic] of interest to you? May I send along more information about the journal?"
SPG BioMed
  • From: K. Gyamdjyan, MD, Ph.D. [k.gyamdjyan@spg.eu.com]
    Date: Wed 4/25/2018 7:08 AM
    Subject: Your paper "The good - the bad - the ugly: the NAS report on strengthening forensic science in America."
    Dear Dr. Kaye DH,
    I am working on putting together the next few issues of SPG BioMed and wanted to get in contact with you because I think your work may be a good fit for the journal. The article you published titled "The good - the bad - the ugly: the NAS report on strengthening forensic science in America." was quite interesting and I think a new article that updates this research would be valuable. Or if you have moved on from this area you could certainly prepare an article on another topic.
    Are you still working in this field? I tried to find your Pennsylvania State University profile page but was unable to do so. [← It is hard to image how anyone could miss the Penn State page.] Could we discuss the idea of you preparing an article to submit?
    Sincerely,
    K. Gyamdjyan, MD, Ph.D.
    SPG BioMed, spg.ltd, k.gyamdjyan@spg.eu.com, +41 41 5082905
  • From: Dr. E. Padron, Ph.D. [e.padron@spgb.email]
    Date: Sun 11/18/2018 5:39 PM
    Subject: Planning of 2019 special issue
    Dear Dr. Kaye DH,
    I hope this email finds you well. The biomedical journal which I serve as a board member is commencing a special issue entitled "Special issue: Medical Breakthroughs of 2018", and I am among those tasked with planning the topics which will be featured in the issue.
    Your name came up during my research as someone who has been active in research which may fit the scope of the issue. If you would think about assisting with the issue, either as an author or an advisor, it would be greatly appreciated by myself and my colleagues working on the issue.
    Would it be alright if I send you a PDF which contains a more detailed summary of the special issue?
    Best Regards,
    E. Padron, Ph.D.
    SPG BioMed
    a: Auf der Mauer 8 Zurich Switzerland 8001 p: +41 43 508 29 05
    Legal Disclaimer: The contents of this message are intended for only the recipient(s) specified in message. It is forbidden to share any part of this message with a third party, without written consent from the sender. To stop future emails from this sender please reply to this email.