American Journal of Science

Policies

Copyright and Permissions

Copyright and reuse policies for content published in the American Journal of Science. Policies differ for articles published before and after 2023.

Copyright Policy

For articles published from 2023 onward, authors retain copyright under the terms of the Creative Commons license selected at the time of publication. AJS currently supports two licensing options: CC-BY 4.0 and CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0.

2023 onward

Authors retain copyright and publish under the selected Creative Commons license.

Before 2023

The Publisher holds copyright. Permissions are managed through the Copyright Clearance Center.

Reuse

Reuse must follow the applicable license terms and include proper citation and attribution.

Creative Commons Licenses

CC-BY 4.0 — Attribution

This license allows users to share and adapt the material for any purpose, including commercial purposes, provided that appropriate credit is given to the original author and publication, changes are indicated when applicable, and a link to the license is provided.

Permission from the author or publisher is not required to reproduce articles or material within articles when the reuse complies with the CC-BY 4.0 license terms. Although permission is not required under the license, notifying the authors is considered good scholarly practice.

CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 — Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives

This license allows users to share the material in any medium or format, provided that appropriate credit is given, changes are indicated when applicable, and a link to the license is provided.

Material under this license may not be adapted, remixed, transformed, built upon, or used for commercial purposes without prior permission from the author.

Permissions for Articles Published Before 2023

For articles published before 2023, the Publisher holds copyright on all materials, whether in print or electronic form, both as a compilation and as individual articles. Permissions for reuse of these materials are managed through the Copyright Clearance Center (CCC).

Users seeking permissions for pre-2023 AJS articles should consult CCC Marketplace or contact the editorial office if guidance is needed.

Permissions and Usage

AJS content is subject to fair use provisions of U.S. and applicable international copyright laws. The following guidelines apply to individual users.

  • Individuals may view, download, print, or save Journal content for research, teaching, and private study.
  • Systematic or automated downloading that interferes with website operations or exceeds fair use may be restricted.
  • Individuals may not sell or create derivative works of Journal content unless permitted under the applicable Creative Commons license.
  • When reusing content, users must provide proper citation, including author attribution, publication date, article title, journal name, and the article DOI or URL.

For permissions beyond the scope of these guidelines, please contact the Journal or the Copyright Clearance Center.

Disclaimer

The Journal strives for accuracy but provides content “as is” without warranties regarding completeness, merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement. The Publisher is not liable for any indirect, special, incidental, or consequential damages arising from the use of, or inability to use, Journal content.

Permissions Inquiries

For permissions-related questions, please contact the editorial office.