Journal ups and downs

Why do publishers insist on producing new journals at every turn, weren’t we promised a paperless laboratory at least a decade ago and instant access to all the information we could ever need with a few mouseclicks? Yet, I received a press release from the RSC today announcing their new high-profile journal “Molecular BioSystems” (why the capital “S”). Do we really need another journal on biosystems with a molecular bent? But, worse still, I also hear today (via the CHMINF-L discussion group rather than a bulletin sent to RSC members, which as a member I would have preferred!) that the RSC has massively cut the budget to its own library! The juxtaposition of those two happenings is truly the most ironic* thing I’ve heard for a while.

*ferric for the pedantic.