dissertation dates

[Gomez Luis Diego]

I am in total agreement with Robert on these points. Another participant
in this discussion mentioned Dissertation Abstracts. Unless the abstract
included description in full, any name published in that fashion will
automatically be a nomen nudum.
In the case of European dissertations, when available for distribution to
the botanical public, names would be validly published because such a diss.
equates with published book or monograph.

On Wed, 22 Nov 1995, Robert Mill wrote:

> Effective "Publication" of a dissertation depends on the rules
> prevailing in the country of origin. All British Ph.D. theses are
> classified as unpublished documents, as only three or four copies are
> ever produced (2 for the institution, one for the student and
> optionally one for the supervisor). Whenever I cite my own thesis, I
> therefore do it thus: "Mill, R.R. 1979. [Title of thesis].
> Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis, University of St. Andrews." - where "1979"
> is the date on the title page which corresponds to the date of
> presentation (Aug 1979). (The actual degree was awarded in Nov 1979).
> I suspect that what happened in the enquirer's case is that the
> thesis was submitted in 1989 and the degree awarded in 1990; I would
> cite it as 1989.
>
> On the continent (of Europe) the rules are different; more copies of
> a thesis are produced and the dissertation is frequently offered for
> sale by specialist publishers e.g. Cramer, Koeltz. The date of
> publication is then the date the copies were offered for sale, which
> any decent taxonomic publisher SHOULD indicate (those who don't please
> note.).
>
> Any new taxa in a British botanical thesis are nomina nuda as the
> thesis is not deemed effectively published under the rules of the
> ICBN.  I imagine a similar rule applies in the zoological Code.
> Hence it is essential for people to get their novelties published, in
> a journal or whatever, a.s.a.p. after the degree has been awarded
> otherwise they will languish forever and there is a danger that
> someone else may even take up the names after borrowing/consulting
> the thesis.
>
> Robert Mill
>
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>       (Dr) ROBERT R MILL
>       Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh
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