Theory, Methods & Applications An International Multidisciplinary Journal

Submission of articles
Authors must upload their article as a LaTeX, Microsoft® (MS) Word®, WordPerfect®, PostScript or Adobe® Acrobat® PDF document via http://www.elsevier.com, where you will also find a detailed description on its use. The system generates an Adobe Acrobat PDF version of the article which is used for the reviewing process. It is crucial that all graphical and tabular elements be placed within the text, so that the file is suitable for reviewing. Authors, Reviewers and Editors send and receive all correspondence by e-mail and no paper correspondence is necessary.
Note: compuscripts submitted are converted into PDF for the review process but may need to be edited after acceptance to follow journal standards. For this an "editable" file format is necessary. See the section on "Electronic format requirements for accepted articles" and the further general instructions on how to prepare your article below.

General

It is essential to give a fax number and e-mail address when submitting a manuscript. Articles must be written in good English.

Submission of an article implies that the work described has not been published previously (except in the form of an abstract or as part of a published lecture or academic thesis), that it is not under consideration for publication elsewhere, that its publication is approved by all authors and tacitly or explicitly by the responsible authorities where the work was carried out, and that, if accepted, it will not be published elsewhere in the same form, in English or in any other language, without the written consent of the Publisher.

Upon acceptance of an article, authors will be asked to transfer copyright (for more information on copyright see http://www.elsevier.com/authors. This transfer will ensure the widest possible dissemination of information. A letter will be sent to the corresponding author confirming receipt of the manuscript. A form facilitating transfer of copyright will be provided.

If excerpts from other copyrighted works are included, the author(s) must obtain written permission from the copyright owners and credit the source(s) in the article. Elsevier has preprinted forms for use by authors in these cases: contact ES Global Rights Department, P.O. Box 800, Oxford, OX5 1DX, UK; phone: (+44) 1865 843830, fax: (+44) 1865 853333, e-mail: permissions@elsevier.com.

General points

We accept most wordprocessing formats, but Word, WordPerfect or LaTeX is preferred. An electronic version of the text should be submitted together with the final hardcopy of the manuscript. The electronic version must match the hardcopy exactly. Always keep a backup copy of the electronic file for reference and safety. Label storage media with your name, journal title, and software used. Save your files using the default extension of the program used. No changes to the accepted version are permissible without the explicit approval of the Editor. Electronic files can be stored on 3? inch diskette, ZIP-disk or CD (either MS-DOS or Macintosh).

Wordprocessor documents

It is important that the file be saved in the native format of the wordprocessor used. The text should be in single-column format. Keep the layout of the text as simple as possible. Most formatting codes will be removed and replaced on processing the article. In particular, do not use the wordprocessor's options to justify text or to hyphenate words. However, do use bold face, italics, subscripts, superscripts etc. Do not embed 'graphically designed' equations or tables, but prepare these using the wordprocessor's facility. When preparing tables, if you are using a table grid, use only one grid for each individual table and not a grid for each row. If no grid is used, use tabs, not spaces, to align columns. The electronic text should be prepared in a way very similar to that of conventional manuscripts (see also the Quickguide: http://elsevier.com/authors). Do not import the figures into the text file but, instead, indicate their approximate locations directly in the electronic text and on the manuscript. See also the section on Preparation of electronic illustrations.
To avoid unnecessary errors you are strongly advised to use the 'spellchecker' function of your wordprocessor.

LaTeX documents

If the LaTeX file is suitable, proofs will be produced without rekeying the text. The article should preferably be written using Elsevier's document class 'elsart', or alternatively the standard document class 'article'.
The Elsevier LaTeX package (including detailed instructions for LaTeX preparation) can be obtained from the Quickguide: http://www.elsevier.com/latex or from the Comprehensive TeX Archive Network (CTAN): see below. It consists of the files: elsart.cls (use this file if you are using LaTeX2e, the current version of LaTeX), elsart.sty and elsart12.sty (use these two files if you are using LaTeX2.09, the previous version of LaTeX), guidelines for users of elsart, a template file for quick start, and the instruction booklet "Preparing articles with LaTeX".

To obtain the package from CTAN, use direct access via FTP at ftp://ftp.dante.de/ (Germany), ftp://ftp.tex.ac.uk/ (UK), or www.ctan.org (Massachusetts, USA) and go to the directory /tex-archive/macros/latex/contrib/supported/elsevier, or search for Elsevier with one of the CTAN search engines
http://ctan.tug.org/CTANfind.html,
http://www.tex.ac.uk/CTANfind.html or
http://www.dante.de/cgi-bin/ctan-index.
CTAN is a mirrored network of ftp://ftp.tex.ac.uk/, ftp://ftp.dante.de/ and ctan.tug.org, which are widely mirrored (see ftp://ctan.tug.org/tex-archive/README.mirrors mirrors) and hold up-to-date copies of all the public-domain versions of TeX, LaTeX, Metafont and ancillary programs.

Figures may be inserted in the usual way using an \includegraphics command, at the position in the article where they are cited.

Your LaTeX file will be most useful as input for the printed article if you obey the following rules of thumb:
• Be consistent. If you use a macro for a phrase, use it throughout.
• Use standard LaTeX mark-up. Do not hardcode your own layout for e.g. section headings, but use the usual LaTeX macro for this purpose.
• Keep it simple. Do not define macros that accomplish complicated layout. They will also make the input process complicated.

Although Elsevier can process most wordprocessor file formats, should your electronic file prove to be unusable, the article will be typeset from the hardcopy printout.

Preparation of text

Authors in Japan kindly note that, upon request, Elsevier Japan will provide a list of people who can check and improve the English of an article before submission. Contact our Tokyo office: Elsevier K.K., Editorial Service, 1-9-15 Higashi Azabu, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-0044, Japan; tel.: +81-3-5561-5032; fax: +81-3-5561-5045; e-mail: info@elsevier.co.jp

Print the entire manuscript on one side of the paper only, using double spacing and wide (3 cm) margins. (Avoid full justification, i.e., do not use a constant right-hand margin.) Ensure that each new paragraph is clearly indicated. Present tables and figure legends on separate pages at the end of the manuscript. If possible, consult a recent issue of the journal to become familiar with layout and conventions. Number all pages consecutively.

Provide the following data on the title page (in the order given). Title. Concise and informative. Titles are often used in information-retrieval systems. Avoid abbreviations and formulae where possible.

Author names and affiliations. Where the family name may be ambiguous (e.g., a double name), please indicate this clearly. Present the authors' affiliation addresses (where the actual work was done) below the names. Indicate all affiliations with a lower-case superscript letter immediately after the author's name and in front of the appropriate address. Provide the full postal address of each affiliation, including the country name, and, if available, the e-mail address of each author.

Corresponding author. Clearly indicate who is willing to handle correspondence at all stages of refereeing and publication, also post-publication. Ensure that telephone and fax numbers (with country and area code) are provided in addition to the e-mail address and the complete postal address.

Present/permanent address. If an author has moved since the work described in the article was done, or was visiting at the time, a 'Present address' (or 'Permanent address') may be indicated as a footnote to that author's name. The address at which the author actually did the work must be retained as the main, affiliation address. Superscript Arabic numerals are used for such footnotes.

Abstract. A concise and factual abstract is required. The abstract should state briefly the purpose of the research, the principal results and major conclusions. An abstract is often presented separate from the article, so it must be able to stand alone.

References should therefore be avoided, but if essential, they must be cited in full, without reference to the reference list.

Keywords. Immediately after the abstract, provide a maximum of SEE OPTION LIST 2.1.16 keywords, using American spelling and avoiding general and plural terms and multiple concepts (avoid, for example, 'and', 'of'). Be sparing with abbreviations: only abbreviations firmly established in the field may be eligible. These keywords will be used for indexing purposes.

Specific remarks

Mathematical formulae. Present simple formulae in the line of normal text where possible. In principle, variables are to be presented in italics. Use the solidus (/) instead of a horizontal line, e.g., X/Y rather than
X
Y
Powers of e are often more conveniently denoted by exp.
Number consecutively any equations that have to be displayed separate from the text (if referred to explicitly in the text).

References

Responsibility for the accuracy of bibliographic citations lies entirely with the authors.

Citations in the text: Please ensure that every reference cited in the text is also present in the reference list (and vice versa). Any references cited in the abstract must be given in full. Unpublished results and personal communications should not be in the reference list, but may be mentioned in the text. Citation of a reference as 'in press' implies that the item has been accepted for publication.

Citing and listing of web references. As a minimum, the full URL should be given. Any further information, if known (author names, dates, reference to a source publication, etc.), should also be given. Web references can be listed separately (e.g., after the reference list) under a different heading if desired, or can be included in the reference list.

Text: Indicate references by number(s) in square brackets in line with the text. The actual authors can be referred to, but the reference number(s) must always be given.


Example: "..... as demonstrated [3,6]. Barnaby and Jones [8] obtained a different result ...."

List: Number the references (numbers in square brackets) in the list in the order in which they appear in the text.
Examples: Reference to a journal publication:

[1] J. van der Geer, J.A.J. Hanraads, R.A. Lupton, The art of writing a scientific article, J. Sci. Commun. 163 (2000) 51-59.
Reference to a book:
[2] W. Strunk Jr., E.B. White, The Elements of Style, third ed., Macmillan, New York, 1979.
Reference to a chapter in an edited book:
[3] G.R. Mettam, L.B. Adams, How to prepare an electronic version of your article, in: B.S. Jones, R.Z. Smith (Eds.), Introduction to the Electronic Age, E-Publishing Inc., New York, 1999, pp. 281-304.

When citing Nonlinear Analysis and Nonlinear Analysis: Real World Applications, "Nonlinear Analysis TMA" and "Nonlinear Analysis RWA" should be used respectively.

Preparation of illustrations

Preparation of electronic illustrations

Submitting your artwork in an electronic format helps us to produce your work to the best possible standards, ensuring accuracy, clarity and a high level of detail.

General points

• Always supply high-quality printouts of your artwork, in case conversion of the electronic artwork is problematic.
• Make sure you use uniform lettering and sizing of your original artwork.
• Save text in illustrations as "graphics" or enclose the font.
• Only use the following fonts in your illustrations: Arial, Courier, Helvetica, Times, Symbol.
• Number the illustrations according to their sequence in the text.
• Use a logical naming convention for your artwork files, and supply a separate listing of the files and the software used.
• Provide all illustrations as separate files and as hardcopy printouts on separate sheets.
• Provide captions to illustrations separately.
• Produce images near to the desired size of the printed version.

Files can be stored on 3? inch diskette, ZIP-disk or CD (either MS-DOS or Macintosh).

A detailed guide on electronic artwork is available on our website:
http://www.elsevier.com/artworkinstructions

You are urged to visit this site; some excerpts from the detailed information are given here.

Formats
Regardless of the application used, when your electronic artwork is finalised, please "save as" or convert the images to one of the following formats (Note the resolution requirements for line drawings, halftones, and line/halftone combinations given below.):
EPS: Vector drawings. Embed the font or save the text as "graphics".
TIFF: Colour or greyscale photographs (halftones): always use a minimum of 300 dpi.
TIFF: Bitmapped line drawings: use a minimum of 1000 dpi.
TIFF: Combinations bitmapped line/half-tone (colour or greyscale): a minimum of 500 dpi is required.
DOC, XLS or PPT: If your electronic artwork is created in any of these Microsoft Office applications please supply "as is".Please do not:
• Supply embedded graphics in your wordprocessor (spreadsheet, presentation) document;
• Supply files that are optimised for screen use (like GIF, BMP, PICT, WPG); the resolution is too low;
• Supply files that are too low in resolution;
• Submit graphics that are disproportionately large for the content.

Non-electronic illustrations

Provide all illustrations as high-quality printouts, suitable for reproduction (which may include reduction) without retouching. Number illustrations consecutively in the order in which they are referred to in the text. They should accompany the manuscript, but should not be included within the text. Clearly mark all illustrations on the back (or - in case of line drawings - on the lower front side) with the figure number and the author's name and, in cases of ambiguity, the correct orientation.

Mark the appropriate position of a figure in the article Captions

Ensure that each illustration has a caption. Supply captions on a separate sheet, not attached to the figure. A caption should comprise a brief title (not on the figure itself) and a description of the illustration. Keep text in the illustrations themselves to a minimum but explain all symbols and abbreviations used.

Line drawings

Supply high-quality printouts on white paper produced with black ink. The lettering and symbols, as well as other details, should have proportionate dimensions, so as not to become illegible or unclear after possible reduction; in general, the figures should be designed for a reduction factor of two to three. The degree of reduction will be determined by the Publisher. Illustrations will not be enlarged. Consider the page format of the journal when designing the illustrations.

Proofs

When your manuscript is received by the Publisher it is considered to be in its final form. Proofs are not to be regarded as 'drafts'.

One set of page proofs in PDF format will be sent by e-mail to the corresponding author, to be checked for typesetting/editing. No changes in, or additions to, the accepted (and subsequently edited) manuscript will be allowed at this stage. Proofreading is solely your responsibility.

A form with queries from the copyeditor may accompany your proofs. Please answer all queries and make any corrections or additions required.

The Publisher reserves the right to proceed with publication if corrections are not communicated.
Return corrections within 2 days of receipt of the proofs. Should there be no corrections, please confirm this.

Elsevier will do everything possible to get your article corrected and published as quickly and accurately as possible. In order to do this we need your help. When you receive the (PDF) proof of your article for correction, it is important to ensure that all of your corrections are sent back to us in one communication. Subsequent corrections will not be possible, so please ensure your first sending is complete. Note that this does not mean you have any less time to make your corrections, just that only one set of corrections will be accepted.

Offprints

The corresponding author, at no cost, will be provided with a PDF file of the article via e-mail. The PDF file is a watermarked version of the published article and includes a cover sheet with the journal cover image and a disclaimer outlining the terms and conditions of use. Additional paper offprints can be ordered by the authors. An order form with prices will be sent to the corresponding author.

Enquiries

Authors can keep a track on the progress of their accepted article, and set up e-mail alerts informing them of changes to their manuscript's status, by using the "Track a Paper" feature via http://www.elsevier.com/trackarticle. For privacy, information on each article is password-protected. The author should key in the "Our Reference" code (which is in the letter of acknowledgement sent by the publisher on receipt of the accepted article) and the name of the corresponding author. In case of problems or questions, authors may contact the Author Support Department, E-mail: authorsupport@elsevier.com.

Disclaimer

Whilst every effort is made by the publishers and editorial board to see that no inaccurate or misleading data, opinion or statement appears in this journal, they wish to make it clear that the data and opinions appearing in the articles and advertisements herein are the sole responsibility of the contributor or advertiser concerned. Accordingly, the publishers, the editorial board and editors and their respective employees, officers and agents accept no responsibility or liability whatsoever for the consequences of any such inaccurate or misleading data, opinion or statement.