When ScienceWatch last visited the topic of multiauthor papers back in 2007, the signs were unclear as to whether the trend of reports listing untold hundreds of authors was perhaps showing signs of leveling off in the middle of the last decade. Thomson Reuters
With this latest update, we can now answer with a resounding “No!” In fact, recent years have seen a steep increase in the number of papers with authors in excess of 50, and a particularly notable spike in reports whose author counts exceed 1,000 and more. To borrow a term credited to Indiana University information scientist Blaise Cronin, “hyperauthorship” would seem to be flourishing—driven in particular, as we’ll see, by an international undertaking in high-energy physics that recently made world headlines.
Gary Price (gprice@gmail.com) is a librarian, writer, consultant, and frequent conference speaker based in the Washington D.C. metro area.
He earned his MLIS degree from Wayne State University in Detroit.
Price has won several awards including the SLA Innovations in Technology Award and Alumnus of the Year from the Wayne St. University Library and Information Science Program. From 2006-2009 he was Director of Online Information Services at Ask.com.
