Prof. Kate Scholberg has been named an outstanding referee by the editors of the Physical Review journals. Scholberg is one of 147 Outstanding Referees for 2020 selected by the American Physical Society (APS) that have demonstrated exceptional work in the assessment of manuscripts published in the Physical Review journals. A full list of the Outstanding Referees is available online here.
Instituted in 2008, the Outstanding Referee program annually recognizes approximately 150 of the currently active referees for their invaluable work. Comparable to Fellowship in the APS and other organizations, this is a lifetime award. The selection this year was made from 30 years of records on over 71,000 referees who have been called upon to review manuscripts, including more than 40,000 that were submitted in 2019. The basis for the Outstanding Referees selection takes into account the quality, number and timeliness of a referee’s reports, without regard for membership in the APS, country of origin, or field of research. Individuals with current or very recent direct connections to the journals, such as editors and editorial board members, were excluded.
The 2020 honorees come from 29 different countries, with large contingents from the U.S., Germany, U.K., Canada, and France. All recipients of this distinction have been notified, and sent a lapel pin and a certificate to commemorate their achievement. The selection for this achievement is always difficult and APS expresses its appreciation to all referees that help make the Physical Review collection some of the most cited physics journals in the world.
The efforts of these individuals not only keep the standards of the journals at a high level, but in many cases also help authors improve the quality and readability of their articles—even those that are not published by APS. The Outstanding Referees are to be congratulated and thanked for their outstanding service to the physics community.
About APS: The American Physical Society (www.aps.org) is a non-profit membership organization working to advance and diffuse the knowledge of physics through its outstanding research journals, scientific meetings, and education, outreach, advocacy and international activities. APS represents over 55,000 members, including scientists and professionals in physics-related disciplines in academia, national laboratories, government, and industry in the United States and throughout the world. Society offices are located in College Park, MD (Headquarters), Ridge, NY, (Editorial) and Washington, DC (Government Affairs).