arXiv readership/citation bias examined
the scholarly kitchen has a very interesting discussion (" The importance of being first ") that looks at the various biases impacting article readership at arXiv . Based on two recent articles[ 1 , 2 ], biases introduced by the email announcement schedule (sent out at 4PM North American Eastern Time) of arXiv (geographical bias) as well author game- or evolutionary theory strategies of self-promotion ( Submit as close to 4pm so as to appear at the top of the email announcement, thus increasing readership... ) can significantly change the readership and citation rate of an article. Interesting and clearly something that needs to be reduced/taken-in-to-account/monitored at similar sites. I would be surprised if there weren't already EBay sniping-(bidding)-bot -like bots out there that can automatically submit articles to arXiv in the last 10 seconds of 4pm. [1] Dietrich, J.P. (2008). The Importance of Being First: Position Dependent Citation Rates on arXiv:astro-ph. Pub...