The New Phytologist Tansley Medal is awarded annually in recognition of an outstanding contribution to research in plant science by an individual in the early stages of their career. The winner will receive a prize of £2000 (GBP) and the successful article will be published in New Phytologist, accompanied by a comment from the Editor-in-Chief. Applications for 2010 should be received by 18 June.

Selection procedure
Selection will include a two-stage process that is based on a manuscript intended for publication. This will either be a regular research manuscript or, if the applicant has already published much of their work, as a mini-review.

The subject areas considered must therefore conform to the aims and scope of the journal New Phytologist; falling within four sections – Physiology & Development, Environment, Interaction, and Evolution – articles cover topics that range from intracellular processes through to global environmental change.

First round
Research manuscripts: Submit an extended abstract (1000 words, with 1–2 figures) of a regular research paper that describes (1) the research conducted, including the rationale, (2) methods, (3) key results and (4) the main conclusion, including key points of discussion.

Mini-reviews: If your work has already been published then you may submit an extended abstract of a mini-review; this will focus on the area to which your publication(s) have contributed and the bullet points of the abstract can be structured to suit the contents of the mini-review. Whilst the mini-review will be focussed on your own research area, care should be taken to present a balanced view.

The abstract should be submitted along with your curriculum vitae and a reference from a scientist who has agreed to support your application, usually your group leader (please include their contact details).

Second round
Successful applicants will be notified by 16 July 2010 and asked to submit their work as a full research article (6500 words max.) or full mini-review (3000 words max., four figures and up to 30 references) no later than 31 August 2010. These articles will be handled by a relevant New Phytologist subject Editor and sent for external peer review. All competition articles that are recommended for acceptance will be published in New Phytologist and the Tansley medal winner selected by the judges from these final papers. The winner will be announced by the end of December 2010. 

Click here to submit your Tansley Medal extended abstract.

Rules

1. This is a global competition open to all plant scientists in the early stages of their career and includes both student and post-doctoral researchers with up to five years experience since gaining/defending their PhD.

2. Where the papers are multi-authored the entrant must have contributed 60% or more of the experimental work and have been primarily responsible for the preparation of the paper. This should be confirmed by the scientist who has agreed to support your application.

3. A reference must be provided by a scientist who has agreed to support your application. This statement can be up to 500 words and should include reasons for why you are supportive of the applicant and why their research is important. You should also confirm that the applicant has contributed to 60% or more of the experimental work and that they have been primarily responsible for the preparation of the paper submitted to the competition.

4. The judges Professors Ian Woodward (Sheffield, UK) and Alistair Hetherington (Bristol, UK) will judge the first round of the competition. They will also select the winner from those entries who have their articles accepted for publication; advice from Editors and reviewers will be sought to ensure equal treatment across a broad range of subjects.

5. Papers submitted for the second round will be handled by a relevant New Phytologist subject Editor and sent for external peer review as for any regular submission to the journal New Phytologist. The reviewers will however be informed that the paper is competing for the Tansley medal.

6. In addition to formats presented above, all manuscript entries must conform to the standard Author guidelines for New Phytologist; attention to these details are essential: http://www.newphytologist.com/view/0/authors.html

7. All word limits presented above refer to the main body of the extended abstract or article (i.e. they exclude the summary, references and figure legends).