How to write and publish a scientific paper - Barbara Gastel, Robert A. Day 2022

Creative commons licenses
Rights and permissions
Publishing the paper

An increasingly popular alternative to transferring copyright has been to provide a Creative Commons license. Under this type of license, authors retain copyright but permit the sharing of a given item, such as a scientific paper, so long as the source is identified. As well as allowing sharing, the license indicates the conditions under which the item can be shared—for example, whether adaptations are allowed and whether commercial uses are permitted. Creative Commons licenses can readily be generated via the Creative Commons website (creativecommons.org). Some journals now obtain Creative Commons licenses rather than copyright transfer. For the most current and complete information about a journal’s copyright policies, consult the journal’s website.

One can also search the Creative Commons website for images available under Creative Commons licenses. If you are seeking freely usable images, creativecommons.org can be a place to look.