My Reputation as an "Eminent"

Ever since I published a couple of ME/CFS articles in a peer reviewed medical journal, I have been getting solicitations from obscure journals with impressive-sounding names, some of which might be legitimate. The most recent one is from the Archives of Medical & Surgical Pathology," which I reproduce below:

Dear Dr Researcher, 

Greetings from the journal!

We are aware of your reputation for quality of research and trustworthiness in this field. With a great pleasure we would like to invite you to join editorial board of our journal “Archives of Medical & Surgical Pathology” we are very glad to have an eminent like you to guide the journal in a well-organized way.

Hoping that you will accept our invite. If you are interested, kindly send your updated C.V, Biography, Research Interests and working details for our records.

We hope you are always there to support us.

Looking forward to have your long lasting scientific relationship

Best Regards

 

 

Comments

[Scott Pruitt Edndowed Chair in Environmental Justice]

For few hundred bucks, I can become a Leading Super Lawyer. They put out a glossy publication with photos of smiling lawyers in suits I can't afford.

Nothing is really new here. It just sounds more sophisticated. If you take a look at any Popular Mechanics classifieds from the 50s-70s, one can become a real CRIME DETECTIVE, earn big money doing insurance adjusting, draw cars and become an automotive stylist, and my favorite, become a LAW TRAINED MAN.

The problem is "dumbification." If enough folks accept this stuff as true and real, it becomes legitimate. As Bill Maher said, the "reality show is now reality."

[Matt]

With these dubious appeals to publish in, or be on the editorial board of, dubious journals, I wonder which of the explanations I can think of I find more depressing. One explanation is that "international English" of this sort is now so common and accepted that it's not thought to be shameful, and so people just don't care. You can find stuff that's barely better English than this in proceedings from at least nominally reputable conferences published by large, commercially successful publishes, for example. The other justification is the one used to explain the obvious mistakes in Nigerian email scams, though it might be working both ways, with both those sending out the emails only wanting people foolish enough to accept such a message, and perhaps those accepting thinking that only people foolish enough to send such a message would accept their publication/editorial board membership. Neither explanation fills me with hope for the future.