Pre-dissemination Review Process for Scientific Information
The pre-dissemination review process enables NIST to substantiate the quality of disseminated scientific information through documentation or other means appropriate to the nature and importance of the information, balanced against resources required and the time available.
Pre-dissemination review of scientific information disseminated by NIST is incorporated into the normal review processes for each type of information to take advantage of inherent quality checks that are part of the process of formulating the information. This review is at a level appropriate to the information, taking into account the information's importance, balanced against the resources required and the time available. NIST treats information quality as integral to every step in its process of developing the information, including creation, collection, maintenance, and dissemination. All scientific information disseminated by NIST receives a level of scrutiny commensurate with the critical nature of the information and its intended use.
Pre-dissemination review of scientific information can be accomplished in a number of ways, including but not limited to combinations of the following:
Active personal review of information by supervisors and managers, either by reviewing each individual dissemination, or selected samples, or by any other reasonable method.
Use of quality check lists, charts, statistics, or other means of tracking quality.
Careful design and monitoring of review processes to ensure they are effective.
Peer monitoring during information preparation.
Use of management controls.
Review of comments from the public.
Any other method which serves to enhance the objectivity, utility, and integrity of the information.
In addition to the methods listed above, all technical communications, including manuscripts for technical journal publications; letters to the editor; manuscripts for the NIST Technical Publication Series; computer software documentation; and other forms of technical communication regardless of the media or method used, receive technical, policy, and editorial review by one of the NIST editorial review boards: Washington Editorial Review Board (WERB), Boulder Editorial Review Board (BERB), or JILA Editorial Review Board (JERB). Each review board is made up of a Chairperson and representatives of each major technical activity or division at that NIST site to ensure a broad array of technical expertise. Voting members of Editorial Review Boards must be employees with permanent appointments or retired NIST staff members. If requested by an Editorial Review Board, technical communications may also receive legal review by the Office of NIST Counsel.