The Fourth Edition of the CBE Style Manual

Abstract

A fourth edition of the CBE (Council of Biology Editors) Style Manual is nearing completion and should be available later this year. It is being prepared for authors, editors, redactors, printers, and publishers of the literature of the biological and biomedical sciences. The chapters in this new edition have been rearranged with the first three chapters providing information on preparation of research articles for publication in journals; the next chapter presenting the criteria for editorial review; and seven chapters specifying the details of proof correction, indexing, general style conventions, style in special fields, abbreviations and symbols, and word usage. An annotated bibliography of books that might be useful to writers and editors of biology papers constitutes the last chapter of the fourth edition. The chapter on “style in special fields” has been expanded, and for utility, has been subdivided into animal sciences, plant sciences, and microbiology. The “abbreviations and symbols” chapter has been simplified for easier use, and derived primarily from internationally-recognized authorities, such as the General Conference of Weights and Measures, the International Organization for Standardization, and the IUPAC-IUB Commission on Biochemical Nomenclature. The new edition of the CBE Style Manual should prove even more useful than the third edition.