Editorial
Transformation, communication, and engagement Rebecca F. Schwarzlose Editor, Trends in Cognitive Sciences
I am delighted to be taking the helm of Trends in Cognitive Sciences (TiCS). Compared with the long traditions of physics, chemistry, or cell biology, cognitive science may seem like a baby-faced newcomer to the scientific discourse. However, I would argue that the cognitive sciences have reached young adulthood – a time of rapid growth, transformation, and discovery that will set the future course of the field. I cannot think of a more exciting time to assume the role of editor at TiCS, the influential and trusted source for many new and groundbreaking ideas in cognitive science. Right now, around the globe, cognitive scientists are incorporating new technologies into their research and working to understand the mind and brain as a complex interplay of representations and computations, maps and circuits, networks and frequencies. It is also a time of controversy and introspection, as scientists discuss how findings should be verified, reported, and disseminated. TiCS publishes a variety of short articles that explore the societal relevance of cognitive science research, such as the Science and Society article in this issue on how face-based biases influence people’s real-world decisions. In addition to such articles, TiCS will begin to include more articles discussing future directions for the field and ideas for evaluating and improving how cognitive science research is done. These articles will complement the cutting-edge Review and Opinion articles that have been, and will continue to be, the hallmark of TiCS and its sister Trends journals. Many people deserve credit for making TiCS a trusted and widely read journal. I am indebted to my predecessor, Stavroula Kousta, who served as the editor of TiCS since 2008 and who is responsible for the journal’s tremendous success in recent years. I am also grateful for the TiCS Advisory Editorial Board, a team of renowned scientists who generously offer their time and guidance to make the journal great. In the days since I took the helm at TiCS, I have also been struck by the sheer number of people whose
names do not appear on our masthead but who have been instrumental to the journal’s continuing success. Certainly, TiCS could not exist without the talented authors who contribute their time and hard work in the service of sharing new ideas and advancing our understanding of the mind. I would also like to express my deepest gratitude to the unsung heroes of the scientific process: our reviewers. I have been amazed by their commitment and have witnessed first-hand how their comments transform and improve the quality of scientific discourse. In my new role as the TiCS editor, I have also developed a new appreciation for the unique challenges of communicating through the written word. Writing – and editing, for that matter – are at once solitary and profoundly social tasks. Their purpose is to communicate ideas and arguments clearly from one mind to another. One of the greatest strengths of TiCS is that its articles have honored the social component of written language by remembering the reader. The journal has consistently published cuttingedge articles that are clear, concise, and accessible to experts, scholars from other fields, and students alike. I appreciated this fact as a reader and will ensure that TiCS articles continue to be clear and accessible going forward. Finally, I would like to invite you to discover and engage with TiCS in a variety of ways. You can visit and browse our updated and improved website (http://www.cell.com/ trends/cognitive-sciences/home) or check in with us on Twitter (https://twitter.com/trendscognsci) to keep up on the latest at TiCS. In addition, there is a new Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/trendscellpress) that features articles from TiCS and our sister Trends journals. I also encourage you to share your thoughts on TiCS with me by email at [email protected] or in person at conferences. I will be attending the Society for Neuroscience and Psychonomic Society conferences this November. Please find me at the Cell Press booth or stop me in a poster session to ask questions or offer suggestions for how we can make the journal even better in the future.
1364-6613/ ß 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2014.09.006
Trends in Cognitive Sciences, November 2014, Vol. 18, No. 11
555
Transformation, communication, and engagement Rebecca F. Schwarzlose Editor, Trends in Cognitive Sciences
I am delighted to be taking the helm of Trends in Cognitive Sciences (TiCS). Compared with the long traditions of physics, chemistry, or cell biology, cognitive science may seem like a baby-faced newcomer to the scientific discourse. However, I would argue that the cognitive sciences have reached young adulthood – a time of rapid growth, transformation, and discovery that will set the future course of the field. I cannot think of a more exciting time to assume the role of editor at TiCS, the influential and trusted source for many new and groundbreaking ideas in cognitive science. Right now, around the globe, cognitive scientists are incorporating new technologies into their research and working to understand the mind and brain as a complex interplay of representations and computations, maps and circuits, networks and frequencies. It is also a time of controversy and introspection, as scientists discuss how findings should be verified, reported, and disseminated. TiCS publishes a variety of short articles that explore the societal relevance of cognitive science research, such as the Science and Society article in this issue on how face-based biases influence people’s real-world decisions. In addition to such articles, TiCS will begin to include more articles discussing future directions for the field and ideas for evaluating and improving how cognitive science research is done. These articles will complement the cutting-edge Review and Opinion articles that have been, and will continue to be, the hallmark of TiCS and its sister Trends journals. Many people deserve credit for making TiCS a trusted and widely read journal. I am indebted to my predecessor, Stavroula Kousta, who served as the editor of TiCS since 2008 and who is responsible for the journal’s tremendous success in recent years. I am also grateful for the TiCS Advisory Editorial Board, a team of renowned scientists who generously offer their time and guidance to make the journal great. In the days since I took the helm at TiCS, I have also been struck by the sheer number of people whose
names do not appear on our masthead but who have been instrumental to the journal’s continuing success. Certainly, TiCS could not exist without the talented authors who contribute their time and hard work in the service of sharing new ideas and advancing our understanding of the mind. I would also like to express my deepest gratitude to the unsung heroes of the scientific process: our reviewers. I have been amazed by their commitment and have witnessed first-hand how their comments transform and improve the quality of scientific discourse. In my new role as the TiCS editor, I have also developed a new appreciation for the unique challenges of communicating through the written word. Writing – and editing, for that matter – are at once solitary and profoundly social tasks. Their purpose is to communicate ideas and arguments clearly from one mind to another. One of the greatest strengths of TiCS is that its articles have honored the social component of written language by remembering the reader. The journal has consistently published cuttingedge articles that are clear, concise, and accessible to experts, scholars from other fields, and students alike. I appreciated this fact as a reader and will ensure that TiCS articles continue to be clear and accessible going forward. Finally, I would like to invite you to discover and engage with TiCS in a variety of ways. You can visit and browse our updated and improved website (http://www.cell.com/ trends/cognitive-sciences/home) or check in with us on Twitter (https://twitter.com/trendscognsci) to keep up on the latest at TiCS. In addition, there is a new Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/trendscellpress) that features articles from TiCS and our sister Trends journals. I also encourage you to share your thoughts on TiCS with me by email at [email protected] or in person at conferences. I will be attending the Society for Neuroscience and Psychonomic Society conferences this November. Please find me at the Cell Press booth or stop me in a poster session to ask questions or offer suggestions for how we can make the journal even better in the future.
1364-6613/ ß 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2014.09.006
Trends in Cognitive Sciences, November 2014, Vol. 18, No. 11
555
