In recent years the number of journals specialising in geotechnical and geological engineering disciplines has increased dramatically. This is possibly a consequence of the progressive increase in the range of applications and in new specialised areas of research and development. But other aspects have certainly contributed. A relevant one is the generalisation of research activities across the world. Publication in learned journals is a generally accepted criterion for promotion in university environments. In this regard engineering is not much different from other scientific fields despite its practical character, rooted in the value of experience and accepted practice which characterise geotechnical engineering. Faced with such a variety of heterogeneous sources of information, the need to maintain solid references is more important than ever.
Over the years Géotechnique has remained faithful to two key aspects: it publishes high-quality papers and it accepts contributions in virtually any aspect of geotechnical engineering. Géotechnique is a ‘horizontal’ journal. This is very helpful in view of the wide and diverse range of publications in the field. Quality has been summarised in previous editorials as a combination of rigour, novelty and relevance. In addition, Géotechnique papers have historically contributed to the emergence of advanced understanding and improved methodologies which opened new avenues for research and practice. This is a mark of excellence for the journal.
Journal editors invariably face competition among journals in their field of expertise. Journal ratings, defined, calculated and published by a few organisations (ISI Web of Knowledge, Scopus, Web of Science), constitute an accepted benchmark to rate journals' performance. Rating interprets citations, normalised by the number of published papers. Available indices have increased in number and complexity. Despite their limitations they are accepted in scientific communities as reasonable indicators of quality. The ISI Web of Knowledge impact factors, IF1 and IF5, measure the average frequency of citations received by papers published in the journal during the previous 2 or 5 years, respectively. The immediacy index provides the same information for the current year. The Scopus database also provides journal ranks. The Scimago journal rank (SJR) weights the index by the prestige of the journal: subject field, quality and reputation affect the value given to a citation. It requires 4 years of data. Also from Scopus is the impact per publication (IPP), which is an accurate measure of citations in a 3-year window. Normalising the number of citations for different citation practices is a way of correcting referencing practices among fields; this is the case for the Scopus SNIP index. The number of citations received by a journal in a given year and the percentage of published papers which have never been cited are also indicators of the relevance of a journal. The Hirsh h index, initially developed to measure both the productivity and impact of individual research, can be extended to groups of scholars working under a given institution (say a department) or a journal. In short, a journal has an index h if h of its papers have been cited at least h times; the h index for Géotechnique calculated in 2013 is 106.
The impact factor IF1 is often reported as the sole index for journal classification. The fact is that the emergence of a variety of elaborate indices today provides a more precise evaluation of a journal standing in a field of knowledge. Géotechnique excels in all the indices mentioned. In the Scopus list of 280 journals in geotechnical and geological engineering, Géotechnique is the leading journal. This is a tribute to all the authors publishing their most valuable research contributions in our journal over the years. Selection and evaluation of excellent papers is the primary objective of the Géotechnique Editorial Advisory Panel. The panel has experienced a progressive internationalisation in recent years. This trend will be surely maintained in the years to come.
GÉOTECHNIQUE REVIEW PAPERS
State-of-the-art or review papers are well appreciated by scientific and engineering communities. They are typically addressed to a large audience (compared with regular papers). They may be of interest to academics, consulting engineers and scientists, to students and to regulatory government bodies. If they are well conceived, they describe in a concise and authoritative document the state of development and current understanding of a given topic; they may provide an improved synthesis and generalised framework to interpret seemingly unrelated results; they may help the readers to direct their future research. Good reviews are invaluable for the profession. We all probably remember some outstanding review papers which provided new understanding for a particular subject and opened new directions for further development.
Géotechnique is willing to publish high-quality review papers on a regular basis. Interested authors are invited to submit their contributions under a new paper category (Review Paper) which will be included in the Editorial Manager system. Review papers may address any subject of interest in geotechnical engineering, be it fundamental or applied. The word length can be extended beyond the current limit. Word counts in excess of 10 000 words would require specific authorisation by the Editor. Review papers will be handled by a dedicated editor from the Editorial Advisory Panel.
