- » Aim and Scope
- » Section Policies
- » Publication Frequency
- » Open Access Policy
- » Archiving
- » Peer-Review
- » Publishing Ethics
- » Founder
- » Author fees
- » Disclosure and Conflict of Interest
- » Plagiarism detection
- » Preprint and postprint Policy
- » Revenue Sources
Aim and Scope
The purpose of the Journal is to publish the results of research in various geological disciplines that have theoretical or practical significance, including dissertation research.
The Journal contributes to the solution of the following tasks:
- publication of the results of current fundamental (or other theoretical) and applied scientific research, scientific and practical activities in the field of Earth sciences;
- demonstration of the main achievements of research in the field of geology;
- creation of conditions for open scientific debate, contributing to the improvement of the quality of scientific research in the field of geological sciences and the qualifications of geologists.
Only original articles that have not previously been published are subject to publication in the Journal. The materials published in the Journal must not contain scientific or technical information related to state, official or commercial secrets.
The Journal is included in the List of scientific publications of the Republic of Belarus for publishing the results of dissertation research in the field of geological and mineralogical sciences, is indexed in the Russian Science Citation Index (RSCI), and has an International Standard Serial Number (ISSN) 1680-2373.
The Journal is published twice a year, it is a scientific peer-reviewed royalty-free periodic publication, materials are published in Belarusian, Russian and English.
Section Policies
Open SubmissionsPublication Frequency
2 times a year
Open Access Policy
The Journal provides immediate open access to its content based on the principle “Free open access to research results promotes scholarly communication on a global scale and makes a significant contribution to the development of the relevant field of scientific knowledge”.
Subscription to the Journal is available through the directories of Belpochta, Russian Post and in Kazakhstan; the subscription index is 00198 for individuals and 001982 for entities. A printed version of the Journal can be purchased by contacting the editorial office.
Archiving
- Russian State Library (RSL)
- National Electronic-Information Consortium (NEICON)
Peer-Review
For each article submitted to the editorial board, the editor-in-chief makes a preliminary decision on the advisability (inadvisability) of its further review, appoints an independent reviewer or conducts it personally. Author (authors) are allowed to provide a review of the article when submitting materials. Reviewers must have an academic degree and be specialists on the article’s topic and/or have at least three published works on the topic of the article submitted for review.
The reviewer evaluates the article, prepares a review and formulates his/her conclusions. As conclusions, the reviewer: recommends the article for publication in the Journal, recommends for publication after correcting the comments, or does not recommend for publication. In exceptional justified cases, it is allowed to recommend sending the article for additional review. The reviewer sends the signed review to the executive secretary of the editorial board no later than two weeks after receiving the article for evaluation.
Authors and reviewers, submitting materials to the editorial board of the Journal, agree to the provision and processing of their personal data by the editorial board.
If there are comments from the reviewer, the executive secretary of the editorial board sends the materials to the author for revision. The revised version of the article, based on the comments, is, if necessary, sent for re-review and, if there is a positive conclusion, is allowed for publication.
Publishing Ethics
- Introduction
1.1. Publication of materials in peer-reviewed scientific journals is not only an easy way of scientific communication, but also makes a significant contribution to the development of the relevant field of scientific knowledge. Therefore, it is important to establish standards of future ethical behavior of all parties involved in the publication, namely: Authors, Editors of the scientific journal, Reviewers, Publisher and Scientific Society for the scientific journal "Litasfera".
1.2. The Publisher not only supports scientific communication and invests in this process, but also bears responsibility for compliance with all modern recommendations in the published work.
1.3. The Publisher undertakes to exercise the strictest supervision over scientific materials. Our journal programs present an impartial "report" of the development of scientific thought and research, therefore we are also aware of the responsibility for the proper presentation of these "reports", especially in terms of the ethical aspects of publications outlined in this document.
- Duties of Editors
2.1. Decision on Publication
The Editor of the scientific journal "Litasfera" is solely and independently responsible for making the decision to publish, often in collaboration with the relevant Scientific Society. The credibility of the work under consideration and its scientific importance should always underpin the decision to publish. The Editor may be guided by the policies of the Editorial Board of the scientific journal "Litasfera", while being constrained by the relevant legal requirements regarding libel, copyright, legitimacy, and plagiarism.
The Editor may confer with other Editors and Reviewers (or officers of the Scientific Society) when making publication decisions.
2.2. Integrity
The Editor should evaluate manuscripts for their intellectual content without regard to the race, gender, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, origin, citizenship, or political leanings of the Authors.
2.3. Confidentiality
The Editor and the Editorial Board of the scientific journal "Litasfera" are obliged not to disclose information about the accepted manuscript to anyone except the Authors, Reviewers, potential Reviewers, other scientific advisors and the Publisher without necessity.
2.4. Disclosure Policy and Conflicts of Interest
2.4.1 Unpublished data obtained from manuscripts submitted for consideration must not be used in personal research without the written consent of the Author. Information or ideas obtained through peer review and associated with possible benefits must be kept confidential and not used for personal gain.
2.4.2 Editors must recuse themselves from considering manuscripts (namely, ask a Co-Editor, Associate Editor or collaborate with other members of the Editorial Board in considering the work instead of personally reviewing and making a decision) in case of conflicts of interest due to competitive, collaborative or other interactions and relationships with the Authors, companies and, possibly, other organizations connected with the manuscript.
2.5. Publication Oversight
An Editor who has provided convincing evidence that the statements or conclusions of a publication are erroneous should notify the Publisher (and/or the relevant Society) so that corrections, retractions, expressions of concern, or other appropriate notices can be issued promptly.
2.6. Research Engagement and Collaboration
The Editor, in cooperation with the Publisher (or the Society), will take appropriate action to respond to ethical complaints about manuscripts or published material that have been reviewed. Such action generally includes communication with the Authors of the manuscript and the arguments underlying the complaint or claim, but may also include communication with the relevant institutions and research centers.
- Responsibilities of Reviewers
3.1. Influencing Editorial Board Decisions
Reviewing assists the Editor in making publication decisions and, through appropriate communication with the Authors, may also assist the Author in improving the quality of the paper. Peer review is an essential part of formal scholarly communication and is at the core of the scientific approach. The publisher shares the view that all scholars who wish to contribute to a publication have a responsibility to perform a substantial review of the manuscript.
3.2. Commitment
Any selected reviewer who feels unqualified to review a manuscript or who does not have the time to complete the work promptly should notify the Editor of the scientific journal "Litasfera" and request to be excused from reviewing the manuscript in question.
3.3. Confidentiality
Any manuscript received for review must be treated as a confidential document. The work must not be shown to or discussed with anyone except as authorized by the Editor.
3.4. Manuscript Requirements and Objectivity
Reviewers should be objective. Personal criticism of the Author is inappropriate. Reviewers should express their opinions clearly and with supporting arguments.
3.5. Acknowledgment of Sources
Reviewers should identify relevant published work that has not been cited in the manuscript. Any statement of an observation, conclusion, or argument that has been previously published should be accompanied by an appropriate citation. A reviewer should also call to the Editor’s attention any substantial similarity or overlap between the manuscript under consideration and any other published work of which they have personal knowledge.
3.6. Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest
3.6.1 Unpublished materials from submitted manuscripts must not be used in the author’s own research without the express written consent of the author. Information or ideas obtained through peer review that may be advantageous must be kept confidential and not used for personal advantage.
3.6.2. Reviewers should not consider manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships or connections with any of the authors, companies, or organizations connected to the reported work.
- Author Responsibilities
4.1. Requirements for Manuscripts
4.1.1 Authors of reports of original research should provide an accurate account of the work performed as well as an objective discussion of the significance of the research. The underlying data should be presented accurately. The work should contain sufficient detail and references to allow reproduction. False or knowingly inaccurate statements constitute unethical behavior and are unacceptable.
4.1.2. Reviews and research articles should also be accurate and objective, and the editorial position should be clearly stated.
4.2. Access to and storage of data
Authors may be asked to provide raw data relevant to a manuscript for review by the Editors. Authors should be prepared to provide public access to such information (in accordance with the ALPSP-STM Statement on Data and Databases) where practicable and, in any event, be prepared to retain such data for an adequate period of time after publication.
4.3. Originality and Plagiarism
4.3.1 Authors should ensure that the work presented is entirely original and, if the work or statements of others have been used, should provide appropriate citations or excerpts.
4.3.2 Plagiarism can take many forms, from passing off another author’s work as your own, to copying or paraphrasing substantial portions of another’s work (without acknowledgement), to claiming the results of another author’s research. Plagiarism in all its forms is unethical and unacceptable.
4.4. Multiple, Redundant, and Simultaneous Publications
4.4.1 In general, an author should not publish a manuscript describing essentially the same research in more than one journal as the original publication. Submitting the same manuscript to more than one journal concurrently constitutes unethical publishing behavior and is unacceptable.
4.4.2 In general, an author should not submit a previously published article to another journal for consideration.
4.4.3 Publication of certain types of articles (e.g., clinical guidelines, translations) in more than one journal is sometimes ethical under certain conditions. Authors and editors of the journals concerned should agree to secondary publication, which must present the same data and interpretations as the primarily published work.
A bibliography of the primary work should be provided in the second publication. Further information on acceptable forms of secondary (re)publication can be found at www.icmje.org.
4.5. Acknowledgment of Sources
Proper acknowledgement of the contributions of others should always be given. Authors should cite publications that have been essential to the reported work. Information obtained privately, such as through conversation, correspondence, or discussion with third parties, must not be used or reported without the express written permission of the source. Information obtained through confidential services, such as refereeing manuscripts or grant applications, must not be used without the express written permission of the Authors of the work relating to confidential sources.
4.6. Authorship of Publications
4.6.1 Authorship should be limited to those who have made a significant contribution to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the reported research. All those who have made significant contributions should be listed as co-authors. Where others have participated in specific substantive aspects of the research project, they should be acknowledged as contributors to the study.
4.6.2. The corresponding author should ensure that all appropriate co-authors and no uninvolved co-authors are listed as co-authors, and that all co-authors have seen and approved the final version of the paper and agreed to its submission for publication.
4.7. Disclosure Policy and Conflicts of Interest
4.7.1 All authors should disclose in their manuscript any financial or other substantive conflicts of interest that might be construed to influence the results or conclusions of the paper.
4.7.2 Examples of potential conflicts of interest that should be disclosed include employment, consultancies, stock ownership, honoraria, paid expert testimony, patent applications or registrations, and grants or other funding. Potential conflicts of interest should be disclosed at the earliest possible stage.
4.8. Material Errors in Published Works
If an Author discovers a material error or inaccuracy in a published work, the Author should notify the Editor of the scientific journal "Litasfera" and cooperate with the Editor to retract the work or correct the errors as soon as possible. If the Editor or the Publisher receives information from a third party that a published work contains material errors, the Author must retract the work or correct the errors as soon as possible.
- Responsibilities of the Publisher
5.1 The Publisher must have policies and procedures in place to ensure that Editors, Reviewers, and Authors of the scientific journal "Litasfera" carry out their ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. The Publisher must ensure that potential advertising or reprint revenues do not influence the Editors' decisions.
5.2. The Publisher shall support the Editors of the scientific journal "Litasfera" in considering complaints about the ethical aspects of published materials and assist in interaction with other scientific journals and/or Publishers if this facilitates the performance of the duties of the Editors.
5.3. The Publisher shall promote good research practice and implement industry standards in order to improve ethical guidelines, retraction procedures and correction of errors.
5.4 The Publisher shall provide appropriate specialized legal support (opinion or consultation) if necessary.
Founder
- Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of the Republic of Belarus
- Republican unitary enterprise “Research and Production Center for Geology”
Author fees
Publication in “Litasfera" is free of charge for all the authors.
The journal doesn't have any Article processing charges.
The journal doesn't have any Article submission charges.
Disclosure and Conflict of Interest
Unpublished materials disclosed in a submitted manuscript must not be used in a reviewer’s own research without the express written consent of the author. Privileged information or ideas obtained through peer review must be kept confidential and not used for personal advantage.
Reviewers should not consider manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships or connections with any of the authors, companies, or institutions connected to the papers.
Plagiarism detection
“Litasfera" use native russian-language plagiarism detection software Antiplagiat to screen the submissions. If plagiarism is identified, the COPE guidelines on plagiarism will be followed.
Preprint and postprint Policy
Prior to acceptance and publication in “Litasfera", authors may make their submissions available as preprints on personal or public websites.
As part of submission process, authors are required to confirm that the submission has not been previously published, nor has been submitted. After a manuscript has been published in “Litasfera" we suggest that the link to the article on journal's website is used when the article is shared on personal or public websites.
Glossary (by SHERPA)
Revenue Sources
The publication of the journal is financed by the funds of the parent organization, at the expense of the publisher, publication of advertising materials, publication of reprints, article processment charges.
