name:                                        date:                            reviewer:                             .

Content (most important)
Y/N
/ Does the paper clearly define the (proposed) research?
/ Does it contain a good discussion of the scientific background of the study?
/ Is the (proposed) research design adequate?
/ Are statements of fact appropriately referenced?
/ Does the abstract summarize the major results of the work to date?
  
 
 
 

Writing Quality:
/ Does the manuscript flow, no gaps in the logic?
/ Is it well organized?
/ Does each paragraph cover one subject?
/ Is the grammar correct?
/ Are there no spelling errors that would be caught by using a spell checker?
/ Is the title informative and a reflection of the content?
/ Are all scientific terms adequately defined?
/ Is scientific terminology used correctly?
/ Are abbreviations and acronyms used only when absolutely necessary?
 
 
 
 

Quality of Graphs and Tables:
/ Are all reproductions of high quality?
/ Is each axis labeled?
/ Does each figure have a figure caption?
/ Are different symbols legible?
/ Are all figures interleaved with the text?
/ Do figures adequately  represent the points you want to make?
 
  
 
 

Referencing:
/ Does the paper contain an adequate number of references from the peer reviewed scientific literature?  (10 are required, 20 or more is excellent).  A few web sites are acceptable, as are major reference books and newspapers.  However, the bulk of the references should be from scientific journals and books.
/ Are all citations in the list of references?