Can you read an article published in future?

[GoodTaste]

Today is November 21, 2021 and this journal published an editorial titiled Post-partum psychosis: birth of a new disorder? and labled it as "Publishedecember, 2021" (Source).
What do you think or associate it? I at once associated it to merchants who relable shelf life. If cakes had 7-day shelf life and were made today, you will have to throw them into a dustbin if they were still kept in December 1. But if you labled the date of production as in December, okay then custombers would think they are safe to eat. It is dishonest, unacceptable and illegle.

What do you think?

 

[emsr2d2]

Today is November 21, 2021 and this journal published an editorial titiled Post-partum psychosis: birth of a new disorder? and labeled it as "Publishedecember, 2021" (Source).

What do you think? [STRIKE]or associate it?[/STRIKE] I at once associated it [STRIKE]to[/STRIKE] with merchants who [STRIKE]relable[/STRIKE] relabel shelf life. If cakes had a seven-day shelf life and were made today, you [STRIKE]will[/STRIKE] would have to throw them into a dustbin if [STRIKE]they were still kept in[/STRIKE] you still had them on December 1. But if you labeled the date of production as a date in December, [STRIKE]okay then[/STRIKE] [STRIKE]custombers[/STRIKE] customers would think they are safe to eat. It is dishonest, unacceptable and [STRIKE]illegle[/STRIKE] illegal.

What do you think?

If it was done on purpose, it would certainly be misleading. I would assume it was a typo.

Please note my corrections above.

 

[jutfrank]

I'm sure it isn't a typo. I wonder if The Lancet perhaps issues an online edition before the main print edition or something like that.

 

[5jj]

It is dishonest, unacceptable and illegal.

It is none of those three things. Many journals are published officially x times a year bearing the publication date of the month following that in which they are available to members (if they are published by a learned society) or to subscribers. This ensures that they are generally available on the publication date at the latest.

This practice is completely different from the 'best by' labelling of perishable products.

 

[emsr2d2]

I've only just managed to click on the source link. It's not just at the end of the article that the date appears. It appears twice at the top of the page. Screenshot below.



I think both jutfrank and 5jj are right. The article is contained in the December edition of The Lancet. It's quite common for magazines (online and offline) to be available before the month they are dated. The only one of those dates I find odd is the one that specifies December 1st. The ones saying just December 2021 refer simply to the next edition.

I used to be a frequent purchase of Empire (a film magazine). They came out once a month, around the 25th of the month but were always dated the following month. So on the 25th November, I could buy the December edition.

 

[Tdol]

It could be an online page for an editorial that would be officially published in the magazine in December.

 

[emsr2d2]

If you click around a bit on that website, you get to something called "Online First". At the top of the page, it says

"Online First

• Below are the latest The Lancet Psychiatry articles published online ahead of print

(My underlining)

 

[jutfrank]

Aha! As I suspected.