New Faculty of 1000 service offers a unique evaluation system for research papers in the life sciences

Faculty of 1000 is divided into 16 subject areas (Faculties), which are subdivided, in turn, into Sections. Each Section is assigned Faculty members representing the leading researchers in those areas. Faculty members evaluate 2-4 of the most interesting papers that they read each month.

Each evaluation consists of a brief comment on why the paper is important accompanied by any of four classifications: novel finding, technical advance, interesting hypothesis or important confirmation. The papers are also given a rating depending on whether they are of specialist interest, of general interest, or a landmark paper representing the top 1% of publications. The consensus rating for each paper (F1000 Factor) is represented by a number calculated on the basis of the ratings awarded and the number of faculty members choosing that paper. This offers an immediate rating of individual papers by the authors’ peers, and a first real alternative to the indirect assessment provided by the journal impact factor

Faculty of 1000 has been created to provide a rapidly updated consensus map of the most important papers and trends across biology and so addresses a real need felt by the biological community.

Stan Falkow, Faculty head for Microbiology, said:

“The mass of literature is overwhelming, and a systematic tool that organizes and evaluates it authoritatively like this is just what we need.”

Similarly, Tony Pawson, Faculty head for Cell Biology is equally enthusiastic about Faculty of 1000:

“I visited the web site, and got immediately excited. This is just what we need.”

Faculty of 1000 will help all biologists in their work. Instead of drowning in the sea of research literature they will have access to the most important scientific advances highlighted by internationally renowned researchers.

The evaluations within Faculty of 1000 are fully searchable using an intuitive web interface that is customisable using a feature called “My F1000”. Users can also choose to receive weekly (or monthly) updates by email containing evaluations from any or all of the Faculties and Faculty Members. In addition, all evaluations are linked to the rich content of BioMed Central, PubMed and PubMed Central.

If you require further information, Please contact gordon@biomedcentral.com or visit www.facultyof1000.com