New journal crosses disciplines Royal Society bridges the
physical and biological sciences in Interface By
Catherine Brahic
A peer-reviewed journal that will publish papers relating to
both physics and the life sciences was launched this month
by the United Kingdom's Royal Society.
Journal of the Royal Society, Interface is the science
academy's first cross-disciplinary journal. Its first paper
was published on May 6, focusing on the use of structural
engineering tools to explain the behavior of the cornea.
Speaking at the launch of Interface, Robert May, president
of the Royal Society, said: "This fusion of engineering and
medical science is an excellent example of the type of cross-
disciplinary research which Interface will cover. The aim is
for the journal to peer review and publish excellent
scientific research at the interface between the biological
and physical sciences."
"Methodologies from disciplines such as chemistry, computer
science, or physics can provide insight into biological and
medical sciences. Equally, advances in the life sciences are
leading to innovations in the physical sciences," May said.
Tim Watson, a spokesperson for the Royal Society, told
The Scientist that Interface grew out of an increasing
production of research that relates both to biology and
to physics.
"We already publish both a physical sciences journal and a
biological sciences journal," he said, referring to the
Proceedings of the Royal Society: Mathematical, Physical and
Engineering Sciences and Biological Sciences, also known as
Proceedings A and B.
"There were lots of papers that were appearing in one
or the other and that we felt could equally be
published in either."
This, combined with commissioned market research that found
a considerable number of cross-disciplinary studies were
being undertaken, convinced them that a new journal would be
well met. "It grew out of the needs of the scientists and
our expertise in publishing in both fields," said Watson.
Mark Sansom, of Oxford University, leads a research team
that applies computational techniques to the study of
membrane proteins. He has been involved in the creation of a
similar journal called Physical Biology recently launched by
the British Institute of Physics.
Read the reat at The Scientist
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