Preprints · 4 pages
Preprints & open publishing
Explainers on the preprint landscape, detailing how platforms like arXiv, bioRxiv and SSRN facilitate rapid, open-access sharing of scientific manuscripts.
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arXiv
arXiv is the pioneer of the modern preprint movement. Hosted by Cornell University Library, it allows researchers to share their findings rapidly with the global scientific community, bypassing the lengthy delays of traditional journal publishing. While submissions do not undergo peer review, arXiv employs a moderation system and a community endorsement model to filter out non-scholarly content and spam, ensuring repository quality.
DefinitionbioRxiv
bioRxiv was established to bring the benefits of rapid preprint sharing—long enjoyed by physicists on arXiv—to the biological sciences. It covers disciplines ranging from genetics and genomics to neuroscience and ecology. Submissions do not undergo peer review, but they pass a two-stage screening process: a basic check by internal staff and an assessment by affiliate scientists to ensure the work is scholarly, ethical, and safe.
DefinitionSSRN
SSRN is a multidisciplinary preprint platform designed to facilitate rapid dissemination of research in fields like law, economics, finance, and management. Founded in 1994, it provides both free preprint hosting and subscription-based research networks. While originally focused on the social sciences, SSRN has expanded to cover applied sciences and health disciplines, serving as a key index for tracking scholarly downloads and citations.
DefinitionWhat is a Preprint?
Preprints represent the first public record of research findings. By bypassing the traditional journal review pipeline, which can take months or even years, preprints allow for immediate dissemination of data. While they lack the quality stamp of peer review, they allow authors to establish priority of discovery, obtain early feedback from peers, and foster collaborations. Once peer review is complete, the preprint is typically linked to the final published version via its Digital Object Identifier (DOI).
