Scopus' SNIP Indicator

1. The SNIP indicator of Elsevier’s Scopus cannot be considered as a statistics because it is based on dividing the mean of a distribution by the value of the median of another distribution. Using this ratio, one is no longer able to indicate the standard error or to test for the significance of differences between journals or journal groups. In our opinion, one should first normalize and then one can use the mean of the resulting distribution as one statistics among others. The ISI-IF (impact factor), however, can be considered as a mean and, therefore, one would be able to use it as a statistics.