Impact of abstracts and short reports
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* John Hoey

**[The editor-in-chief responds:]** 

I have no data to support our contention that short reports are less likely to be cited. The Watson and Crick paper is a superb counter-example to our statement. However, looking through the short reports that are now published in the *Lancet* and that we publish, I would guess that they are less likely to have as major or as lasting an effect on the scientific literature as the longer, more complete scientific articles - although some will.