#74 Get over it. It’s not going to change.

It is such a little thing. Why does it bother me? The title of the research journal published by the American Medical Association is "JAMA.” That’s it. Four letters. An acronym. Officially, the title changed over 40 years ago. But it still is listed incorrectly in many medical sites on the Web.

For instance: “Researchers find that a gene involved in the size of cholesterol particles may be associated with human longevity. The study appears in the October 15 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.” http://www.heartcenteronline.com [Oct. 31, 2003]

In libraries that arrange their journals by subject rather than title, it is not a terrible problem--but alphabetically, JA is a long way from JO when you consider how many titles begin with “Journal of. . .”

Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association is referred to as JAVMA, and that is the boldest word on the web site. However, that isn’t its actual title, and you would be incorrect if you cited an article in “JAVMA.” But JAMA is JAMA--a meaningless word that is gibberish to anyone outside the medical field. Which probably explains why in consumer literature or sites like Heart Center Online it is called “Journal of the American Medical Association.”