Definitions Relating to Publication

Prior publication refers to reproduction and distribution of a paper in a manner such that it has been made available to the engineering profession and can be obtained in the normal process of a literature search. (NOTE: this does not include prior publication in a Proceedings of a conference, which normally has a very limited distribution.)

An acceptable technical paper is one that is technically sound, free from personalities and bias (especially of a commercial nature), one in which the author supplies information never before published in a form readily available to the public or adds a new concept or development to existing technical knowledge. The definition should be construed to include comprehensive reviews to past and present engineering practice.

Unacceptable technical papers are those having an obvious sales approach to technical problems, those based upon fallacious or dubious engineering analysis, and those whose approach is superficially descriptive of widely accepted engineering practice.

A review paper is one in which an author surveys a specific subject or technical area, and brings together relevant published information, in such a manner that the reader may readily become familiar with the state of the art at the time the review was prepared. Alternately, such a paper may present information from unfamiliar fields of science and from other engineering specialties, though such papers might be referred to an appropriate magazine (such as IEEE Circuits & Devices Magazine). A review must relate itself through bibliographical references to pertinent technical literature.