A primary article is one that is an original report, most often an article published in a scientific journal. These articles share information relating to the experiment itself, such as the methods used and the results gathered, and are usually peer-reviewed before publication. Primary articles, or primary sources, are ones that come directly from a scientist, researcher, or group of individuals, and is an in-depth report an experiment.
A review article is a collective, brief summary of a specific research topic. It helps to explain a specific avenue of research in such a way that it is understood by readers who may not have any previous knowledge on the topic of experimentation. It is meant to be an overview, and a way to introduce readers to a topic that might otherwise be confusing without overwhelming the reader with in-depth information that might otherwise be misunderstood.
The scientific peer review process is a system of quality testing that makes sure the article is of good scientific quality before publication in a scholarly journal. This process starts with the submission of an article draft by the scientist or group of scientists who wish to share their findings with the world. This draft is then sent to a scientific journal editor, who – if they decide they will publish the article – will then pass it on to a group of experts in the field of study for an evaluation of quality. The experts who are asked to review the article are peers of the original author and have the necessary qualifications to judge the information based on , and can either approve the article for publication, or reject the information all together. However, even though a document may be approved, that does not automatically mean the document will be published, and it might take multiple revisions before publication.
A review article, defined as a summary of information, is different from a peer reviewed article in that it is a summation of the information, rather than the original document that has been reviewed for quality and uniqueness. A peer reviewed article is one looked over as it is, not a brief overview of the information within. A peer reviewed journal is the last step, and while it does have some peer reviewed journals within, there are possibilities that some of the articles within have not been peer reviewed.
Of the two articles given, the article Identification of a new human coronavirus is a primary article. This article is primary because it gives in-depth information regarding a specific experiment, including the results of the experiment as well. This article also explains the methodology behind the experiment in great detail, as well as a discussion of the results of this specific experiment. The article The epidemiology and pathogenesis of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak is a review article. This article is defined as a review article because it gives brief information of multiple topics in such a way that it is easy to understand at a brief glance. Also, the title of the article gives some idea that this is a review, as it covers the topics of epidemiology and pathogenesis, both of which are large fields of study. This second article does not share results of an experiment either, but rather summaries information by topic, such as “transmission” or “symptoms” of the specified disease.
Bibliography
Rothan, H. A., & Byrareddy, S. N. (2020). The epidemiology and pathogenesis of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) oubreak. Journal of Autoimmunity, 109. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaut.2020.102433
van der Hoek, L., Pyrc, K., Jebbink, M. F., Vermeulen-Oost, W., Berkhout, R. J. M., Wolthers, K. C., . . . Berkhout, B. (2004). Identification of a new human coronavirus. Nature Medicine, 10(4), 368-373. https://doi.org/10.1038/nm1024