Editorial Policies

General Policies

Authorship

Authors in Big.D journal must fullfill the criteria described below. Specifically,

  • Each author is expected to have made substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work;
  • OR the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data;
  • OR creation of new software used in the work;
  • OR have drafted the work or substantially revised it;
  • AND has approved the submitted version (and any substantially modified version that involves the author’s contribution to the study);
  • AND agrees to be personally accountable for the author’s own contributions and for ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work, even ones in which the author was not personally involved, are appropriately investigated, resolved, and documented in the literature.

Exclusion from authorship of individuals who have made author-level contributions is not permitted for papers published in Big.D, nor is guest or honorary authorship. In addition, Artificial Intelligence tools cannot be authors. Other individuals who have participated in generation of the research paper but who do not meet the criteria for authorship should be listed in the acknowledgments section with a brief indication of the nature of their contribution. Any editing services used in preparation of the manuscript should be disclosed in the acknowledgments

In addition, corresponding authors are responsible for:

  • Ensure that all listed authors have received and approved the manuscript prior to submission.
  • Receive all substantive correspondence with editors, as well as full reviews.
  • Verify that all data, materials (including reagents), and code, even those developed/provided by other authors, comply with the transparency and reproducibility standards of both the field and the journal.
  • Ensure that original data/materials/code upon which the submission is based are preserved and retrievable for reanalysis.
  • Confirm that the presentation in the paper of the data/materials/code accurately reflects the original sources.
  • Foresee and minimize obstacles to the sharing of data/materials/code.
  • Ensure the entire author group is fully aware of and in compliance with best practices.

Any addition or removal of authors from a paper or change in their listed order must be approved in writing by all of the original authors. After a manuscript has been accepted, authorship changes (including changes to the corresponding author or author order) are not permitted.

For accepted manuscripts, all authors are required to explain their individual contributions; agree to the conditions of publication, including the availability of data, code, and material, and declare any conflicts of interests. Principal investigators, supervisors, or project leaders are expected to examine the raw data produced by their research teams. Big.D encourages all authors to state their contributions to the study in the acknowledgments section. This information will be published in the paper.

ORCID iD: Big.D supports the use of ORCID iDs as persistent digital identifiers for authors. Authors are encouraged to provide their ORCID iD during manuscript submission. ORCID iDs may be included in the article metadata and displayed on the article webpage, where applicable, to improve author identification, attribution, and discoverability. Authors can register for an ORCID iD free of charge at the ORCID website.

Conflict of Interest

Authors. All authors submitting to Big.D is required to disclose affiliations, funding sources, and competing interests that might be perceived as sources of bias related to the reported research and/or presented content. Specific details about the required disclosures are listed below, along with information about placement of these disclosures within the article. This policy applies to research, reviews, and opinion-type articles. This policy applies to research, reviews, and opinion-type articles.

Big.D Journals require disclosure of:

Institutional affiliations. The title page of every submission must include, for all authors, the academic, corporate, government, industry, and/or other relevant institutional affiliations where the work was performed. If an author has since changed institutions, this may be specified with a present address footnote. If the corresponding author has changed institutions since the work was performed, a present address footnote is required.

Funding and contributions. All authors must disclose complete and correct information about any and all financial contributions to the work being reported. This information should be listed in the “Funding” section in the end of the manuscript to ensure transparency during the review process and will be included in the final published work. Non-monetary contribution of goods or services (e.g., in-kind or labor) may also be cited in the published acknowledgments section of the paper, where appropriate.

Competing interests. Authors must disclose fully and accurately all competing interests related to the work that occurred within the 5 years preceding submission. Interests falling outside the 5-year time frame must also be declared if they could reasonably be perceived as competing. If in doubt, authors should disclose the relationship. This information should be summarized in the “Competing Interests” section in the end of the final published work. Authors can provide a URL to a list of an author’s affiliations/interests/relationships in addition to the Competing interests statement.

Competing interests exist when professional judgment regarding research conduct or presentation could be influenced, or reasonably perceived to be influenced by secondary interests. When preparing a competitive interest statement, please refer to the following example with the 5-year time frame mentioned above.

Financial competing interests may include, but are not limited to:

  • Awarded, planned, or pending patents, including individual applications or those belonging to the institution to which the authors are affiliated and from which the authors may benefit;
  • Ownership of stocks, shares, or stock options even if not publicly traded;
  • Paid employment or consultancy;
  • Received payment for serving as a member of an Advisory Committee and/or as an officer/member of the Board for any entity engaged in activity related to the subject matter of this contribution.

Non-financial competing interests that may affect the work include, but are not limited to:

  • Acting as an expert witness;
  • Member of a government or other advisory board;
  • Relationship (paid or unpaid) with organizations and funding bodies, including nongovernmental organizations, research institutions, or charities;
  • Membership in lobbying or advocacy organizations;
  • Writing or consulting for a company whose activities might impact the objectivity of this paper;
  • Personal relationships (e.g., friend, spouse/partner, family member, mentor, adversary) that could affect objectivity;
  • Personal beliefs (political, religious, ideological, or other) related to a paper’s topic that might interfere with an unbiased publication process (at the stage of authorship, peer review, editorial decision-making, or publication).

Reviewers. Reviewers play a central role in ensuring the quality of published research. The editors seek reviewers for Big.D Journal who have no conflicts of interest with the authors or the reported work. In addition to this precaution, reviewers are required to disclose any conflicts with the evaluation of the paper, and this information is taken into account by the editors when decisions are made.

Editors. Editors who have competing interests related to a manuscript must declare them—preferably at the pre-screening stage—and must not be involved in the editorial handling of that manuscript. Professional editors at Big.D may not hold financial or managerial interests in any commercial entities directly related to the journal’s scope that could compromise editorial independence.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Big.D welcomes statements related to diversity, equity, ethics, and inclusion under a dedicated heading in the Acknowledgements section. Such statements may describe the authors’ positionality or acknowledge the inclusion of underrepresented groups (e.g., defined by race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability status), or discuss diversity and inclusion considerations relevant to research design, participation, community benefit-sharing, or the involvement of local researchers and communities.

These statements may highlight how aspects of the research design align with ethical principles but should not replace required descriptions of methods or results. Statements exceeding 200 words and primarily addressing research design should be included as Supplementary Materials. Diversity, equity, ethics, and inclusion statements are not mandatory and are not used as criteria for editorial acceptance.

Image and Text Integrity

Plagiarism. Plagiarism includes the theft or misuse of intellectual property and the substantial reproduction of others’ work without appropriate attribution. Extensive reuse of an author’s own previously published text or figures without proper citation constitutes self-plagiarism. Big.D employs cross-reference similarity-checking services to detect plagiarism and follows COPE guidelines in the investigation and resolution of suspected cases.

Authors are encouraged to check their manuscripts for originality and potential overlap prior to submission, using any reputable plagiarism or similarity detection service of their choice. All submitted manuscripts will undergo similarity screening by the journal as part of the editorial and ethical assessment process.

Image. Images presented in research papers should correctly represent the original data. No part of a digital image may be selectively manipulated or altered. When figures are assembled from multiple images or non-contiguous portions of the same image, a line or space should indicate the border between the separate parts.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

AI-assisted technologies, including large language models, chatbots, and image-generation tools, do not meet the criteria for authorship and may not be listed as authors or co-authors, nor may sources cited in Science journal content be authored or coauthored by AI tools. Authors who use AI-assisted tools as part of their research workflow or to support manuscript writing or presentation must disclose such use in the cover letter and in the Methods or Acknowledgements section, as appropriate. Authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, and integrity of their work, including proper citation of sources and mitigation of potential bias introduced by AI tools. Improper use of AI may result in rejection to proceed with the manuscript.

Reviewers must not upload any part of a manuscript into AI tools, as doing so may compromise confidentiality. Reviewers may use AI tools solely to improve their own writing, provided that the systems do not retain or use the input for model training and that such use is transparently disclosed. Reviewers bear full responsibility for content generated with AI tools. AI-generated images or multimedia are not permitted without explicit editorial approval. Exceptions may be considered on a case-by-case basis, such as images and/or videos in manuscripts specifically focused on AI and/or machine learning. Any permitted use must be disclosed at submission. Big.D recognizes the rapid development in this field, and our stance on AI-generated multimedia may evolve with the changing copyright laws and ethical industry standards.

Prior Publication and Conference Papers

Big.D will not consider any original research paper or component of a research paper that has been published or is under consideration for publication elsewhere. We do not regard dissertations/theses as prior publications. We do regard peer-reviewed and citable conference proceedings as prior publication. We support posting of research papers on preprint servers such as arXiv.org, bioRxiv.org, ChemRxiv.org, medRxiv.org, and the like. Publishing in other online formats may be considered prior publication and could potentially undermine the originality of papers submitted to Big.D. For inquiries regarding publication on other servers, please contact the editors. While a manuscript is under consideration at Big.D, no versions revised in response to editorial input and peer review should be posted on a preprint server. Our preprint policy aims to facilitate communication and information exchange among scientists. We strongly believe that coverage in the popular press is more appropriate at the time of publication once peer review is complete and the final version is available.

Similarly, we generally encourage the presentation of original results before publication at scientific conferences, but discourage authors from publicly seeking media coverage prior to peer review and final publication. If a journalist attended the author's conference and wrote a report based solely on the author's presentation, such a report would not affect the consideration of the author's paper by Big.D.

Unpublished Data and Personal Communications

Citations to unpublished data and personal communications cannot be used to support significant claims in the paper. Papers will be held for publication until all “in press” citations are either published or posted in full on a preprint server.

Research Standards Policy

Transparency and Openness Promotion (TOP) Guidelines

Big.D adheres to the Transparency and Openness Promotion (TOP) Guidelines to raise the quality of research published in Science and to increase transparency regarding the evidence on which conclusions are based.

Citation Standards. All data, code, and methods must be appropriately cited using DOIs, journal references, or other persistent identifiers. Exceptions involving proprietary or confidential information must be discussed with the editors no later than the revision stage and clearly stated in the Acknowledgements.

Data Transparency. Data underlying the analyses must be made available to enable replication or extension. Data must be available in the manuscript or stored in a community-specific repository or a general repository. Special circumstances requiring special handling, such as protecting personal privacy or purchasing datasets from third parties, should be discussed with the editor as early as possible (no later than the initial draft revision stage) and clearly stated in the Acknowledgments.

Analytical Methods (Code) Transparency. Generally, the computer code supporting core findings should be openly available to readers to ensure reproducibility. For commercial software or publicly archived source code, appropriate citations (including version numbers when necessary) must be provided. Author-developed but unpublished code should be deposited in a permanent public repository with proper citations prior to publication. In exceptional cases (e.g., security, legal restrictions, or proprietary hardware preventing sharing of custom code), alternative reproducibility solutions must be negotiated with the editors. Our standard practice for such exceptions involves providing pseudocode in the Materials and Methods section that clearly illustrates the algorithm. This pseudocode will undergo peer review and may require further refinement based on feedback. Similar to data, the rationale for code restrictions should be explicitly stated in the acknowledgments.

Materials Transparency. The Materials and Methods section must provide sufficient detail to support reproducibility. The study design should be described in detail, and the description of research materials should facilitate reuse and verification (e.g., data set sources and versions, collection and cleaning procedures, scales and questionnaire items, experimental/assessment tasks and indicators, prototypes/model/drawings and key parameters, software and hardware environments, etc.). Statistical data must also be comprehensively described as follows.

All materials, data, or prototypes used in the analysis should be made available to any researchers for direct replication of the process., accompanied by a Materials Availability Statement. Even in the absence of newly created materials or when all synthetic materials are specified in supplementary materials, authors should, to the extent feasible, comply with reasonable research material/sample requirements (community-standard) to enable other research groups to expand and advance the findings. Any limitations on material availability, along with relevant Material Transfer Agreements (MTAs), must be disclosed to the editor no later than the manuscript revision stage and explicitly stated in the Acknowledgments.

Research Design and Analysis Transparency. Authors must report key elements of research design and analysis in accordance with field-specific standards and disclose any deviations. Please indicate which guidelines were followed when applicable.

Preregistration. If the study underwent pre-registration prior to submission, or the analysis plan was pre-registered on an independent institutional registration platform, the authors should provide the registration link at the time of submission.

Replication. Replication studies offering new insights are welcome and are evaluated under the same standards as other submissions.

Research Data Policy

Big.D commits to supporting open scientific communication, enabling our authors to achieve best practices in sharing and archiving research data. Big.D encourages authors to share research data supporting the main findings. Data-sharing policies involve the minimum data set that supports the central findings of published research. Data should not be shared where ethical, legal, or privacy constraints apply; any restrictions must be clearly stated in a Data Availability Statement. Authors must ensure that shared data comply with participant consent and data protection requirements. The Data Availability Statement provides details on which the data supporting the reported results can be found, including links to publicly available datasets analyzed or generated during the study period.

Acknowledgements

All contributors who do not meet the criteria for authorship should be listed in an ‘Acknowledgements’ section. Examples of those who might be acknowledged include a person who provided purely technical help or writing assistance, or a department chair who provided only general support.

Third party submissions

All manuscripts must be submitted by an author and may not be submitted by a third party.

Citations

Both research and non-research articles (like opinions, comments, and comment articles) must cite appropriate and relevant literature to support the work presented.

Guidelines for Specific Types of Studies

Human Subjects Research

Research involving human participants (e.g., user research, field observation, usability testing, behavioral experiments, etc.) must comply with internationally recognized ethical standards, including the Declaration of Helsinki and applicable national or institutional regulations. Authors must state that the study protocol was reviewed and approved by an appropriate ethics committee or institutional review board (IRB), and must provide the name of the approving body and the approval or reference number, where applicable.

Informed consent must be obtained from all participants prior to participation, and the manuscript shall state the form of consent (written/electronic/oral) and the withdrawal mechanism in the methods section.Studies shall avoid imposing unnecessary risks on participants and, when necessary, provide statements on risk disclosure and compensation.

If the study involves minors or other groups requiring additional protection, the authors should specify the methods for obtaining guardianship consent and participant consent, and implement additional privacy and safety protection measures. Authors shall specify the data processing methods and accessibility restrictions related to participants (e.g., data desensitization, aggregated publication, access only in controlled environments, etc.)and ensure compliance with privacy protection and data security requirements.

Anonymity and Privacy Protection for Participants

Identifiable personal information (such as names, contact details, precise geographical locations, identifiable faces, voiceprints, or accounts) shall not be disclosed in the manuscript unless such information is critical to the research conclusions and explicit written authorization for its disclosure has been obtained. If the presentation of identifiable materials (photos, videos, audio recordings, or transcripts of interviews) is required, it must be clearly stated that authorization for publication has been obtained.

If complete avoidance of identifiable information exposure is not feasible, authors should thoroughly anonymize or code the materials prior to submission, and specify the principles and scope of processing in the methods or acknowledgments section.

The editorial department will screen potential identifiable information during the technical pre-review and publication process. If insufficient authorization or incomplete anonymization is identified, the manuscript may be requested for modification or rejected.

Animal Research

For studies involving regulated animals (i.e., all living vertebrates and/or higher invertebrates), authors must identify the approving committee or organization (e.g., the author's institutional ethics review board) in the materials and methods section of the manuscript. This section should also include detailed ethical approval information, such as the name of the approving committee or organization and the approval identifier (i.e., the reference number). For studies conducted on non-regulated animals, the rationale for not requiring ethical approval must be provided. The journal requires authors to submit a research ethics certificate or ethical statement upon submission. In the absence of an ethical approval identifier, a written approval from the approving committee or organization must be provided as a confidential supplementary document.

Authors are encouraged to adhere to the ARRIVE guidelines when reporting animal research. In the manuscript, additional protocols for the care and use of experimental animals should be specified. In brief, authors should also include detailed information about the animals (e.g., species, sex, age, weight), housing conditions, and feeding information, as well as measures taken to minimize animal suffering, in the Materials and Methods section. Specifically, experiments involving non-human primates must adhere to the guidelines outlined in the Weatherall Report (Use of Non-Human Primates in Research).

Plant Research

Experimental and field studies of plants (whether cultivated or wild), including the collection of plant material, must comply with relevant institutional, national and international guidelines and legislation. The manuscript shall include a statement confirming that appropriate permissions and/or licenses were obtained for the collection of plant or seed specimens.We recommend that authors comply with the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

For every submitted manuscript, supporting genetic information and sources must be provided. For research manuscripts involving rare and non-model plant species (e.g., excluding Arabidopsis thaliana, Oryza sativa, Oryza sativa var. sativa, Oryza sativa var. indica, or many other typical model plants), voucher specimens must be stored in accessible plant specimen collections or museums. Future investigators may request verification of credentials to confirm the identity of materials used in the study (particularly if taxonomic reclassifications occur). These credentials should include detailed information on the sampling population at the collection site (GPS coordinates), collection dates, and, where appropriate, records of the parts used in the study. For rare, threatened, or endangered species, this requirement may be waived, but authors must specify this in their cover letter.

Dual-Use Research of Concern

Some manuscripts may contain information that could be directly misused, posing significant threats to public health, safety or security, crops and other plants, animals or the environment. To publish such information, the benefits to the research community, society or public health must outweigh any risks. If we perceive potential issues, we reserve the right to adopt expert recommendations and may require peer review of the manuscript to assess the risks of dual use. If the risk of misuse exceeds any potential benefits, publication will be declined; the published content may be corrected, retracted or deleted.

Researchers should comply with the requirements of their institutions and funders, as well as any national regulations. They should be aware of the dual-use concerns related to their work and take steps to minimize the misuse of their research. These concerns include, but are not limited to, biosafety, nuclear threats, and chemical threats. Where applicable, authors should disclose whether their research is considered a dual-use study of concern; if so, the manuscript should report the reference number approved by the approving agency and regulatory authorities. When the materials of the research report may be hazardous outside the laboratory environment, the manuscript should describe appropriate containment procedures (e.g., biosafety).

We recognize a broad view that the openness of science helps to alert society to potential threats and to prevent them, and we expect that risks will be considered outweighing the benefits of publishing a paper that is deemed fit for publication in only a very small number of cases.