Passing the test

Publishing ethics in the era of paper mills

“…In 2013, a journalist working for the journal Science launched a ‘sting’ operation to highlight perceived flaws in the peer-review processes operated by Open Access journals ( Bohannon, 2013 ). Biology Open (BiO) was one of the Open Access journals tested – the submitted ‘nonsense’ paper was rejected without sending for review ( Hackett et al, 2013 ).…”

Lessons learned: eight years at the helm of Biology Open

“…Through handling submissions to BiO, I have interacted with many hundreds of authors and reviewers. I have always tried to give helpful advice, even when rejecting a paper without sending it for review [such as when BiO was among the Open Access journals ‘tested’ by a spoof article devised by a journalist ( Hackett et al, 2013 )]. These interactions have almost always been good natured and respectful and, although it has been hard work, I have benefitted greatly from the experience.…”