Styleguide

Styleguide

An academic paper should be concise and clear and include the following content items:

  • Statement of the problem in general and its relation to the most important scientific or practical issues
  • Analysis of the latest advances and publications where solving of the problem has been commenced and which the author refers to. The parts of the general problem that have not been solved previously should be highlighted
  • Research objectives statement (tasking)
  • Description of used materials and study methods
  • Presentation of the main material and with complete justification of the obtained study results
  • Conclusions made in this study and prospects for further research in this direction

The author is fully responsible for accuracy and validity of the data provided in the article manuscript submitted to the editorial board.

Submission of materials to the editorial board for publication implies the author’s consent with the above requirements as well as consent with publication of the article in Ecological Safety of Coastal and Shelf Zones of Sea Journal.

Text formating requirements

The full length of an original article (including the abstract, keywords and references) should not exceed 15 pages, that of a review — 20 pages, that of a report — 6 pages. The number of coloured figures should not exceed 3, two figures constitute one page of the text.

The article text, including that in formulas, figures and tables, should be in Times New Roman font of 11 pt. The line interval is 1.0. Page margins: top 5 cm, left 5 cm, bottom 3.5 cm, right 3.25. Pages should be numbered continuously. Not allowed: two or more spaces; indentation made up with spaces; auto-numbering when making numbered and bullet lists (all the numbers should be put manually).

The fractional part of decimal fractions is separated by a period (0.25).

Formulas are produced using Microsoft Equation editor allowing editing. Numbered formulas are always included in the indentation, the formula number in brackets is placed at the right-hand margin. Number only the formulas referenced in the article.

Figures should be clear and photos should be sharp. The number of coloured figures should not exceed 3, whereas the number of black-and-white figures is not limited. Figures are accepted only in TIFF and PNG formats with resolution at least 300 dpi. Parts of the figure are lettered in italics (a, b, c, d), without brackets and periods. All figures should be numbered, with the author’s name and/or article title specified. Figure files should be named, for example: John_Doe_1.tiff, John_Doe_2.tiff etc., and combined in the “John Doe Figures” folder. Each figure should be referenced in the article. Figure size: max. 13 cm wide, 19 cm high.

Tables should be named and numbered in order, titles should correspond entirely to the column content. Tables are made up using the Word table editor (menu “Insert” → “Insert Table”). Each table item has its own cell. Table size: max. 13 cm wide, 19 cm high.

Article structure

The front page should contain the following:

  • Universal Decimal classification (UDC) index
  • DOI
  • Article title
  • Authors information:
  • Each author’s name, surname and patronymic name (if appropriate)
  • Information of the author the editorial board may communicate with (contact name*): name, surname and patronymic name (if appropriate), e-mail
  • Full name and address (city, country) of the organization where each author works
  • Abstract.
  • Key words (6–10)
  • Acknowledgements
  • About the authors
  • Contribution of the authors

All this information is provided both in English and Russian. For articles submitted in English such items as the abstract, key words, authors information and the like are translated by the Journal editors free of charge.

Authorship criteria:

  1. Significant contribution to the article concept, idea, analysis and data interpretation; research management; article writing.
  2. Considerable amendments made during a manuscript version revision, work on the draft version.
  3. Consent with the final manuscript version, written consent to submit the article to a certain journal for publication.
  4. Consent to take responsibility for all the work stages and manuscript sections.

Not counted as article authors:

  • consultants
  • translators
  • individuals performed general control/management
  • individuals collected data/performed laboratory work, technical staff, engineers
  • individuals provided the materials for research
  • individuals performed single analyses
  • individuals obtained financial support for the research
  • individuals provided in-house control
  • individuals provided facilities for research conduction
  • individuals participated only in manuscript preparation and not engaged with conduct of the research and analysis of its findings

These parties are thanked in the “Acknowledgements” section.

Abstract

An abstract is a summary of the work, a precise presentation of the content of the article, including the main factual information and conclusions, without further interpretation or criticism of the author of the article. It is an independent text that allows to get information about the main results of the work without referring to the article. The abstract repeats the structure of the article.

The abstract should be

  • informative (do not contain general words);
  • original (not a copy of the Russian-language abstract);
  • meaningful (reflect the main content of the article and research results);
  • structured (follow the logic of description of the results in the article);
  • compact (150 to 250 words).

The abstract includes:

  • the study problem, subject, theme, purpose of the work, main thesis;
  • the method or methodology of the work;
  • the results of the work - very precise and informative;
  • conclusions;
  • the field of application of the results / direction for further study of the problem.

The abstract should not be divided into paragraphs. The abstract should not contain abbreviations. References to literature, figures, tables are not used. Recommended length of the abstract is 150-250 words.

Text should be coherent with the use of words "consequently", "moreover", "for example", "as a result", etc., otherwise disjointed statements should logically follow from one another.

Graphic abstract

This is a single, clear visual representation of the main conclusions of an article in the form of a figure specifically designed for this purpose, which provides the reader with an overview of the article's content.

The graphic abstract will appear in the lists of online search results, on the online page of the journal article, but will not appear in the PDF of the article or in printed form. It will draw attention to the article when posted on social media, blogs, press releases, etc.

The graphic abstract is a single image file in .jpeg, .jpg, tiff or .png format. The resolution is 300 dpi. The figure may contain diagrams, graphs, drawings, charts, infographics, presentation elements, etc. Do not include in the graphic abstract information about the authors, the title of the article and the words "graphic abstract".

When compiling graphic abstracts it is recommended to stick to the following rules: avoid excessive explanatory text (the abstract should reflect the main results of the work, not duplicate it); avoid small graphic details. For ease of viewing, the graphic abstract should have a clear beginning and end. It is preferably to "read" it from top to bottom or from left to right.

The graphic abstract should be original, unique, not borrowed, simple but informative.

Examples of graphical abstracts can be seen here, here and here.

Graphic abstracts should be created by the author in any program that allows you to create graphic images. The editors recommend that the authors consider the following tools for data visualisation and iconography creation:

  • Mind the graph - a programme for creating a graphical abstract for a scientific presentation;
  • Piktochart - a web-based tool for creating simple graphics;
  • Easel.ly - an online service suitable for visualising ideas and stories;
  • Infogr.am - an online tool to create tables based on real data;
  • Visual.ly - a free tool that integrates with social media.

Video abstract

This is a short video overview of a scientific article, a 3-5 minute trailer. Video abstract creators can choose from a wide range of options to visualise their stories, from simple drawings on a blackboard to screen recordings, videos, slideshows and talking heads.

Its purpose is to quickly identify the purpose and results of a given study.

Video abstract can be used to describe dynamic phenomena that are too complex, unusual to be described by text and pictures in an article.

Like the graphic abstract, it is not intended to replace the original scientific article, but rather to draw attention to it and broaden the audience.

Key words

Key words are the main concepts and categories, the anchor fragments of the text, which carry the meaningful load of the entire statement. They should reflect the discipline (the field of science in which the article is written), the topic, purpose, object of the study.

Keywords allow the user to find the article in search engines. Use the relevant databases of RSCI, Scopus, etc. to check the correctness of the wording and frequency of keywords. It is not recommended to use abbreviations in keywords, overly complex word combinations. The use of inverted commas and phrases with commas should be avoided. The required number of keywords (phrases) is 6-10, words within a keyword phrase - no more than 3.

Acknowledgements

This section should mention those who helped the author to prepare the article, funding sources, organizations that provided financial support. It is a good courtesy to express your gratitude to anonymous peer reviewers.

Article text

The text should be concise, thoroughly edited and signed by all the authors. Repetition of the same data in the text, tables and drawings is unacceptable.

When describing a research method, the author should limit their narration to its original part only; when presenting an elemental analysis, it is required to give only averaged data.

When using abbreviations in the text, it is required to expand them when used for the first time. It is necessary to confine oneself to generally accepted abbreviations and avoid new ones without good reason.

Geographical names should be given according to the current edition of the “Atlas of the World”. Surnames and geographical names of foreign origin are given in their original spelling.

When choosing units of measurements, it is recommended to adhere to the International System of Units.

It is recommended to avoid proving theorems, lemmas, etc.

References

Lists of references are an essential part of academic papers, and international reference databases’ requirements thereto are getting increasingly restrictive.

Therefore, the editorial board checks the accuracy and conformity of reference lists of submitted articles.

Important: one of the reasons to reject a manuscript for further consideration may be a poor quality of its reference list, namely:

  • description errors, e. g. omission of any author or their name miswritten; inaccurate title of an article/book; incomplete or wrongful imprint (volume, issue, pages, year of publication, omitted DOI),
  • predominance of references to obscure sources not mentioned in international research databases, to unavailable sources or the author’s own works (over 30%).

All citations in the article should be aligned with their sources, stating the page (e. g. [5, p. 17]).

Moreover, all bibliographic data (author(s) name(s), article/book title, volume, journal number, pages, publishers, year of publication, DOI, URL where the article/book can be found, date of the website access) should also be thoroughly checked. The reference list should include only sources used for the article preparation. All the sources mentioned in the text should be referenced.

Each source is given in the reference list only once. One number in the reference list should correspond to one source only.

Prior to writing an article, we recommend to find out what new has been written recently (last 10–15 years) in journals with a good publishing and scientific record indexed in leading bibliographical databases. To do this one may perform a key word search in databases of abstracts (e. g. SCOPUS, WEB of SCIENCE). It is also recommended to browse reference lists in the found works related to your topic. These sources may be given in the reference list to your article. Their presence will display your awareness of the modern science state in your field.

It is desirable to mention at least 15–25 sources for an original academic paper and at least 50 sources for a scientific review.

According to the scientific publication ethics, it is recommended that the author's own works constitute no more than 30% of the total number of sources.

We do not recommend to include in the reference list the following:

  • doctorate theses and abstracts thereof (instead, it is recommended to give articles published during preparation of the thesis and comprising materials from there),
  • retracted articles, articles from non-peer-reviewed journals as well as journals with tarnished reputation (excluded from the list of State Commission for Academic Degrees and Titles, RSCI, SCOPUS databases),
  • web-pages,
  • non-digitalized, old study guides, collected papers, monographs unavailable on the Internet (in case the references are necessary, it is recommended to give these as foot references),
  • conference proceedings that are not indexed by WoS, Scopus and are not publicly available,
  • standards, manuals, patents and the like.

A bibliographical reference in the article text is given in square brackets according to the reference list numeration, e. g. [1], [2, p. 34].

References are numbered as cited, not in alphabetical order.

If available, it is required to specify DOI (e. g. doi:10.1029/2002JC001530) at the end of a bibliographic reference. No period after DOI is needed.

Read more (PDF)

Please, be aware that in compliance with requirements of international databases unique DOI (digital object identifier) numbers are purchased and assigned to all articles published in the Journal.

About the authors

The following information is given:

  • Position
  • Place of employment
  • Academic degree (if any)
  • Academic rank (if any)
  • ORCID ID, ResearcherID, Scopus Author ID (whatever)
  • E-mail

Contribution of the authors

It is required to specify what contribution each of the co-authors has made to the research conduct and article writing, for example:

  • concept development
  • task formulation and statement
  • mathematical model development
  • methods development and experimental research conduct
  • mathematical model correction and performance of calculations
  • formalized data analysis
  • qualitative analysis of findings and their interpretation
  • processing and description of research findings
  • drawing conclusions
  • critical analysis of materials related to...
  • review of literature related to the research subject, etc.