Press release: The Académie des sciences opens its Comptes Rendus in free access

Historic publication of the Académie des sciences, the journal Les Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des sciences is now available online under the "free diamond access" formula. This publication model makes all articles permanently available worldwide, without any financial burden, neither for readers nor for authors. In addition, the Académie allows the deposit of preprints in open archives. Faithful to its mission of encouraging scientific life and transmitting knowledge, the Académie des sciences is thus evolving the publishing of its scientific journals, in order to bring it in line with the principles of open science, in collaboration with the Muséum national d’histoire naturelle, the CNRS and the University Grenoble Alpes.

In 2020, the Académie des sciences has completely overhauled its scientific journals: the seven series of the Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des sciences are now available free of charge on the https://comptes-rendus.academie-sciences.fr/ website.

This fundamental evolution was made possible by the Académie through the establishment of two founding partnerships:
• The Mersenne Center for Open Scientific Publishing (CNRS - Grenoble Alpes University), a pioneering publishing platform in open science, was chosen to publish the journals Mathématique, Physique, Mécanique, Chimie, Géoscience et Biologies. This partnership is part of a memorandum of understanding signed with the CNRS on October 28, 2020, which aims to set up a mechanism for consultation and cooperation, particularly in the area of scientific publishing.
• The publication of the journal Palévol has been entrusted to the Muséum national d’histoire naturelle, whose expertise is an undisputed reference in the international community of taxonomic and naturalist paleontologists. This partnership between the Académie and the Muséum reflects the historical convergence of the two institutions' missions of general interest.

""We are delighted with the fruitful collaborations established between the Académie and its prestigious partners. Thanks to them, this complex project, which was particularly close to our hearts, could be made concrete. In the perspective of the strategic objectives that the Académie has set for the coming years, it aims to lay the foundations for a renewal of French scientific publishing", emphasizes Etienne Ghys, Secrétaire perpétuel of the Académie des sciences.

"Thanks to the strong support, particularly financial, of the CNRS and the exceptional mobilization of its team, the Centre Mersenne has succeeded in enthusiastically taking up the challenge proposed by the Académie des sciences. This prefigures a strengthened partnership that will make the Académie des sciences, the CNRS and the University Grenoble Alpes major players in open science", said Evelyne Miot, Scientific Director of the Centre Mersenne.

"I can only salute with enthusiasm and pride the collaboration between the Académie des sciences and the Muséum national d’histoire naturelle", said Bruno David, President of the Muséum national d’histoire naturelle. "Paleontology has always been a discipline at the heart of the research conducted at the Muséum, a discipline that has greatly contributed to its international reputation. The arrival of Palévol in this new partnership framework follows in the footsteps of such prestigious personalities as Lamarck, Cuvier, d'Orbigny, Gaudry and many others. I wish the same success to the beautiful magazine that is Palévol".

The archives of the articles published between January 1, 2000 and December 31, 2019 in the 7 Comptes Rendus journals remain available for free access on the Elsevier website. Previous archives, up to 1835, are available on Gallica and soon on Persée.

Seven Journals with distinct editorial lines

The Comptes Rendus are a set of 7 peer-reviewed electronic journals.
In 2020, the editorial line of some of them has been reoriented.

Comptes Rendus - Mathématique. A new impetus has just been brought by the enrichment of the editorial board and the broadening of the editorial objectives. CR-Mathématique now welcomes different types of publications, and particularly encourages: original and significant research work; articles presenting in a non-technical or synthetic way important or topical mathematical developments; texts presenting important mathematical works in a global way; thematic issues taking stock of various approaches to the same problem (for example to report on colloquia or working days); texts of historical, philosophical or didactic reflection closely related to mathematics. Editors: Jean-Michel Coron, Jean-Pierre Demailly, Étienne Ghys, Laure Saint-Raymond.

Comptes Rendus - Physique covers all areas of physics and astrophysics and mainly proposes dossiers. Thanks to this formula, which has become a reference in the field, readers will find in each issue the presentation of a particularly fast-developing subject. The authors are chosen among the most active researchers and the coordination of each thematic issue is ensured by a guest editor, guaranteeing that the most recent and significant results are taken into account. CR-Physique also allows space for new results (on the recommendation of an academician), updates, and presentation of the work of the Academy's award winners. Editors: Denis Gratias, Jacques Villain.

Comptes Rendus - Mécanique publishes original research papers, journal articles, thematic issues and articles reflecting the history of the discipline. The journal covers all the fields of mechanics: dynamic systems / solid mechanics / fluid mechanics / acoustics, waves, vibrations / automation, signal processing. The articles are proposed in the form of original notes relating briefly an important discovery. The publication of the results is fast. The thematic issues present the most up to date dossiers in the treated fields. Editor: Jean-Baptiste Leblond.

Comptes Rendus - Chimie aims to maintain high-level scientific exchanges between the different sub-disciplines of chemistry. The journal publishes original research works (notes, short memoirs) and review articles (reviews, historical chronicles) in all fields of chemistry. Preliminary papers should describe new and important results, while full papers should provide a detailed view of new results. In all cases, the work must be of high general interest or exceptional specialized interest. The journal also places great emphasis on thematic issues, bringing together the best specialists in the field around a guest editor. Editor-in-chief: Pierre Braunstein.

Comptes Rendus – Géoscience, which traditionally covers all fields of Earth sciences (geophysics, geomaterials, geochemistry, surface geosciences, oceanography, stratigraphy, tectonics, geodynamics...), is now broadening its editorial policy by encouraging the publication of articles dealing with the "sciences of the Planet" in the broadest sense. The journal is more open to scientific themes at the heart of current societal and environmental issues: natural hazards, energy and metal-material supply, water resources, pollution, climate change, both in the continental and oceanic/atmospheric domains. The submission of interdisciplinary papers is encouraged, to better understand the global effects of human activities on the functioning of the "Earth system". Editors: Ghislain de Marsily and François Chabaux.

Comptes Rendus – Biologies sees in 2020 its objectives profoundly modified. True to the spirit of its title, the journal focuses its articles on the scientific activities of members or winners of the Academy's awards, which are very rich . Submissions of research articles are received by invitation only, but the journal solicits mostly the biggest names in biology for articles divided into several sections: " News and views", "Articles and reviews", "Biographical notes", "Opinions and perspectives". This last section allows discussions and hypotheses on various subjects. Thematic issues on topical issues will be regularly scheduled, such as the one on COVID 19, which is currently being prepared. The articles are fully bilingual (English/French) and publication is fast. Editors: Jean-François Bach, Pascale Cossart, Bernard Dujon, Jean-Dominique Lebreton.

Comptes Rendus - Palévol is a continuous flow journal, dedicated to research in paleontology, prehistory and evolutionary science. It publishes original research results in systematics, human paleontology, prehistory, evolutionary biology, and macroevolution. The journal also publishes thematic issues under the responsibility of guest editors. The co-publishing partnership agreement with the Académie allows CR-Palévol to benefit from the rigorous publication standards in force for the Muséum's journals, from the respect of the different codes of nomenclature and from direct compatibility with the major international databases. Editors: Philippe Taquet and Michel Laurin.

Contact Press – Delegation for Information and Communication of the Academy of Sciences

Marion Doucet Tel: + 33 (0)1 44 41 43 80 - +33 (0)6 81 86 87 67
Sandra Lanfranchi - Tel: +33 (0)1 44 41 43 35