Biomedical Research in Wrocław: A Combined Density-Equalizing Mapping and Scientometric Analysis

New quality and quantity indices in science (NewQIS): results of the first decade-project progress review

Strategies employing information science and scientometric approaches were introduced to science policy and management over the past decades. As a rapidly evolving field, new bibliometric parameters are proposed and discussed continuously and the fields also benefits from the introduction of novel visualization techniques. The present article summarizes the experiences with a platform that combines geographical mapping with scientometrics. It was established between 2005 and 2008 at the Charité in Berlin and termed “New Quality and Quantity Indices in Science” (NewQIS), consisting of the integration of common scientometric parameters such as the h-index and novel visualization techniques including density equalizing mapping. NewQIS was used to assess socio-economic important fields of medicine and sciences. Within NewQIS studies, research activities, citation patterns and their relation to socio-economic figures were analyzed with regard to time periods, countries, continents or even single cities. Within the decade after its establishment, more than 80 NewQIS articles were peer-reviewed and published. Being a non-funded low budget project, it was used by many medical students to conduct their MD thesis. The narrow technical frame led to the chance of a comparison of research output between different fields of science. This article summarizes NewQIS 1.0 activities, discusses its limits and gives a look into the future of NewQIS 2.0 with a target of 200 evaluated entities of the biomedical field of sciences.

Social sciences research in the Central European city of Wrocław: A density-equalizing mapping analysis

Background

The city of Wrocław in Poland represents one of Central Europeans oldest capitals of science with numerous Nobel laureates. Due to a long history of political suppressions with Nazi Germany and Communism from 1933 until 1989, its scientific community was suppressed for more than half a century.

Methods

The present study assessed scientific activities in the field of social and neighbouring sciences using density equalizing mapping. On the basis of the NewQIS (New Quality and Quantity Indices in Science) platform and the Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI) of the Web of Science database, a total of 1787 articles originating from Wrocław were identified between 1966 and 2017.

Results

In total, 549 research collaborations of Wrocław with 96 different countries were present (30.7%). Among the 107 research areas the highest activity was found for the field of Business and Economics with n = 272 articles (average citation rate (AVR) of 12.54), followed by Psychology (n = 252 articles, AVR = 9.06), Psychiatry (n = 205 articles, AVR = 4.74) and Public, Environmental and Occupational Health (n = 145 articles, AVR = 7.96). The highest AVR was found for Operations Research (25.36 with n = 87 articles). Density equalizing mapping procedures revealed a global pattern of social sciences research collaborations with scientists from Germany, the UK and the US as the primary cooperating partner of Wrocław. The different countries had major differences in the area of research collaborations.

Conclusions

This is the first study that depicts the global network of Wrocław scientific activities in the field of social sciences. The exorbitant increase in research activity from 2006 onwards can lead to the assumption that Wrocław social sciences encounter a fruitful future.

Building the Prestige of Archivum Immunologiae et Therapiae Experimentalis: From a Little Known to an Internationally Recognized Journal

Archivum Immunologiae et Therapiae Experimentalis (AITE) was founded in 1953 by Ludwik Hirszfeld, a world famous Polish physician and scientist in the field of microbiology and immunology. Initially, AITE was published in Polish, but within a few years, it changed to English to increase the range and number of international readers. In its over 65 year history, AITE has had several Editors and a number of Publishers. In the period 1977-1991, AITE was listed in the system of scientific information Current Contents/Life Sciences, but for several years, its impact on the international readership of the Journal was negligible. The political and economic crisis in Poland in late 1980s led to serious delays in printing of successive AITE issues, so the Journal was removed from the Current Contents. Year 1991 was a turning point for the Journal, guided since then by prof. Dubowska-Inglot, who changed its image and format, and allowed acceptance of review articles. In 1999, prof. Górski became the Editor-in-Chief, giving a new impulse for further development of the Journal. In a consequence, AITE was accepted to Science Citation Index Expanded (in 2001) and to Institute for Scientific Information Master Journal List (in 2002). Eventually, AITE has evolved to become a truly international, multidisciplinary journal, publishing original articles, and reviews relating to basic and clinical immunology, experimental therapy, immunogenetics, transplantology, microbiology, immunochemistry, as well as bioethics. Currently, AITE is cited in a number of major scientific information databases. Since 2011, the Journal is published by Springer Publishing House, it has achieved international recognition with its latest impact factor (for 2017) of 3.018. AITE, whose Editors are professors of Hirszfeld Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy, strengthens the status and position of the Institute as one of the leading scientific institutions in Poland.