For the sixth time in a row, Ondřej Novák, an expert in plant hormone analysis at the UP Faculty of Science, has made the list of the world’s most Highly Cited Researchers, published by Clarivate Analytics in the United States. Only seven experts from Czech institutions are among the top one percent of the most cited scientists this year. The list for 2023 is based on an analysis of publications from 2011 to 2022, according to the Web of Science database.
“To be repeatedly listed as a Highly Cited Researcher is a great honour and recognition for my work, but it is not mine alone. Scientific research is the joint effort of many colleagues working together and sharing their ideas and results. Our entire team is dedicated to basic research and to understanding how plant hormones are involved in regulating plant growth and development. Science is a constant process of discovery and learning that never ends. Each new discovery we make is just one small piece in the puzzle of how the plant world works, one which opens up more questions. This inspires me to learn and discover more,” said Novák.
Ondřej Novák, a Faculty of Science alumnus, studies the biosynthesis and metabolism of plant hormones using modern mass spectrometry. He also studies the relationships between the chemical structure and biological activity of plant hormones. He has long been involved in the use of new modern bioanalytical techniques and simplification of extraction methods for the isolation of biologically active substances from complex biological matrices.
The Czech Academy of Sciences has three representatives on this year's Highly Cited Researchers list: Tomáš Jungwirth, Jan Pergl, and Petr Pyšek. The list also includes Dmitriy Chudakov from Masaryk University Brno, Jiří Jaromír Klimeš from the Brno University of Technology, and Ladislav Krištoufek from Charles University Prague.
The most cited scientists are made up of 6,849 researchers from more than 1,300 institutions in 67 countries. The United States ranked first, with China in second place. This year, 7,125 Highly Cited Researcher 2023 designations were awarded. The number of awards exceeds the number of people who received them as some researchers have succeeded in more than one area of research.
The system for evaluating the most cited scientists has changed this year. The analysts first reviewed highly cited papers from the last decade and created a preliminary list of candidates. Then, improved qualitative filters were used to identify publication anomalies, including extreme rates of hyper-authorship, excessive self-citation, or unusual patterns of group citation activity. These factors became grounds for unlisting.