UM Researchers Publish Papers
in Top Science Journals

Getting a paper published in the journals Science or Nature is the Holy Grail for many researchers. It’s a rare, sometimes career-defining moment that most scientists never experience.

Which explains why administrators at The University of Montana are aglow with the fact that five of their researchers have had their work accepted by these prestigious science publications during the past year. Science and Nature are cited more often than any other scientific journals in the world.

“It’s unheard of for a university of this size to have this many faculty publish this many papers in Science and Nature,” said Don Christian, associate dean of UM’s Division of Biological Sciences. These journals only publish papers that have a big impact and generate broad interest.

“Getting published in these journals really gets UM known internationally,” said Doug Emlen, biological sciences assistant professor who had an article published in Science in February. “Within 24 hours of the article’s release, I had e-mails from 10 different countries on four continents. I also had calls from the London Times, a Canadian radio station and USA Today did a Web-page story about it.”

Faculty members who published articles are:

• Thomas Martin, senior research scientist with UM’s Montana Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit, co-author of “Parental Care and Clutch Sizes in North and South American Birds,” published in Science Feb. 25, 2000.
• Biology Associate Professor Ragan Callaway, co-author of “Invasive Plants Versus Their New and Old Neighbors: A Mechanism for Exotic Invasion,” published in Science Oct. 20, 2000.
• Biology Associate Professor Erick Greene, co-author of “Disruptive Sexual Selection for Plumage Coloration in a Passerine Bird,” published in Nature Oct. 26, 2000.
• Emlen, author of “Costs and the Diversification of Exaggerated Animal Structures,” published in Science Feb. 23, 2001.
• Geology Professor George Stanley, co-author of “The Origins of Modern Corals,” published in Science March 9, 2001.

Christian said another positive aspect of the articles is that several were co-authored by UM students, including undergraduates, who collaborated on the research.

“For students to take part in such high-quality research that results in papers in the world’s top journals is an incredible learning opportunity,” Christian said. “It definitely speaks well of the interplay between research and education at UM.”