Two Predatory Publishers: One Old, One New

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A cheap knockoff of the real thing.

Here I’d like to sound a warning about two low-quality scholarly open-access publishers. I wrote previously about Pyrex Journals and have an update on them. I’ll also write about a new publisher with a dumb name: Scientia Ricerca.

I originally wrote a blog post about Pyrex Journals in November, 2014. At that time, I reported that it had just launched with ten journals. Now it has 33.

Pyrex is based in Nigeria, a place where strange and salient business names are common.

One of the reasons I wanted to highlight this publisher again is because it has been spamming a lot recently. The spam emails highlight their fast (fake) peer review process, stating,

Our Peer-Review Evaluation Process normally takes one to two weeks to complete depending on the number of rounds the Peer-Review Evaluation Process needs to take before an article is published. For the 1st-round Peer-Review Evaluation Process, it will take one week to complete.

This is one of the more “successful” Nigerian open-access publishers. Most that are launched there flounder and disappear.

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Weird in every way.

Scientia Ricerca is a new open-access publisher. It launched with 14 biomedical sciences journals.

I cannot figure out where it’s based. Its “Reach us” page gives a Southern California address, but I think the address is fake. The domain name data is blinded — except for the registrant information — which it lists as Gagan Chaitanya.

This publisher stands out for its salient use of boastful and poorly-edited language. Here’s an example:

According to our belief, there is no best price for knowledge expect the will to learn. Scientia Ricerca, is counted amongst the leading Online Publishing Groups that strive to spread scientific ideas and research information to all.

The only thing this publisher leads in is low quality. It also uses the wrong term to describe itself. Its tagline is “An Open access Directory.”

Moreover, on its “Editor Guidelines” page, the publisher gives this advice to its peer reviewers:

If the article is rejected due to less quality, please explain the reason for its refuse.

Refuse indeed. This advice is given in vain, for I doubt the publisher will ever reject a submitted manuscript.

I strongly recommend that researchers reject all invitations of any kind they receive from these two open-access publishers.

Appendix: Lists of journals from each publisher.

Pyrex Journals

1. Pyrex Journal of Biodiversity And Conservation (PJBC)
2. Pyrex Journal of Biomedical Research (PJBR)
3. Pyrex Journal of Biotechnology and Molecular Biology (PJBMB)
4. Pyrex Journal of Business and Finance Management Research (PJBFMR)
5. Pyrex Journal of Clinical Pathology and Clinical Reviews (PJCPCR)
6. Pyrex Journal of Computer And Information Systems (PJCIS)
7. Pyrex Journal of Dentistry and Oral Hygiene (PJDOH)
8. Pyrex Journal of Ecology and The Natural Environment (PJENE)
9. Pyrex Journal of Economics And International Finance (PJEIF)
10. Pyrex Journal of Educational Research and Reviews (PJERR)
11. Pyrex Journal of Engineering and Technology (PJET)
12. Pyrex Journal of English and Literature (PJEL)
13. Pyrex Journal of Food Science and Technology (PJFST)
14. Pyrex Journal of Geography and Regional Planning (PJGRP)
15. Pyrex Journal of Geology and Mining Research (PJGMR)
16. Pyrex Journal of History and Culture (PJHC)
17. Pyrex Journal of Law and Conflict Resolution (PJLCR)
18. Pyrex Journal of Library and Information Science (PJLIS)
19. Pyrex Journal of Medical Laboratory And Diagnosis (PJMLD)
20. Pyrex Journal of Medicinal Plant Research (PJMPR)
21. Pyrex Journal of Medicine and Medical Sciences (PJMMS)
22. Pyrex Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology Research (PJMBR)
23. Pyrex Journal of Nursing and Midwifery (PJNM)
24. Pyrex Journal of Nutrition and Metabolism (PJNAM)
25. Pyrex Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmacology (PJPP)
26. Pyrex Journal of Physical Sciences (PJPS)
27. Pyrex Journal of Plant and Agricultural Research (PJPAR)
28. Pyrex Journal of Political Science and International Relations (PJPSIR)
29. Pyrex Journal of Psychology and Counselling (PJPC)
30. Pyrex Journal of Pure And Applied Chemistry (PJPAC)
31. Pyrex Journal of Research in Environmental Studies (PJRES)
32. Pyrex Journal of Taxation and Accounting Management (PJTAM)
33. Pyrex Journal of Vetrinary [sic] Medicine and Animal Science (PJVMAS)

Scientia Ricerca

1. Anaesthesia Critical Care and Pain Management
2. Chronicles of Pharamacexutical [sic] Science
3. Clinical Biotechnology and Microbiology
4. Current Opinions in Neurological Science
5. Gynaecology and Perinatology
6. Holistic Approaches in Oncotherapy
7. Innovative Techniques in Agriculture
8. Multidisciplinary Advances in Veterinary Science
9. Nutrition and Food Toxicology
10. Opthalmology [sic] and Vision Science
11. Oral Health and Dentistry
12. Ortopedia and Trauma
13. Pulmonary Research and Respiratory Care
14. Therapeutic Advances in Cardiology

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