Writing Center: CSE / CBE Style

What is CSE Style?

The standard citation style guide book for the natural and physical sciences is the Scientific Style and Format: The CSE Manual for Author, Editors and Publishers, 7th edition, 2006. We commonly refer to it as "the CSE Manual".

CSE (Council of Science Editors) is used to be called CBE (Council of Biology Editors). However, since most biologists, zoologists, earth scientists, geneticists, and other scientists use one of three systems of documentation specified by CSE, finally they decided to change the name CBE to CSE to be more inclusive.

What is CBE Style?

Scientific Style and Format (6th ed.), a publication of the Council of Biology Editors (CBE), outlines proper documentation style for writers in many areas of the sciences, and particularly the biological sciences. However, since most biologists, zoologists, earth scientists, geneticists, and other scientists use one of three systems of documentation specified by CSE, finally they decided to change the name CBE to CSE to be more inclusive.

Although there is no specific guidance offered by CSE, The Council of Science Editors recommends treating AI-generated content as personal communication. Personal communication advice is as follows:

• Authors should disclose their use of AI tools in their submissions. 
• Do not list the AI tool as an author as it cannot be held accountable for the content. 
• Cite personal communication in-text only, NOT in the References section.
• Include a description of the content that was created or edited and the name of the language model or tool, version and extension numbers, and manufacturer.

In-Text Citation:

AI generated content can be cited in-text with the following format of other unpublished materials:

(Format [Author], personal communication, Date [DMY]).

(ChatGPT [OpenAI], personal communication, 23 March 2023)

Examples:

"The summary of the research findings was generated using ChatGPT (ChatGPT [OpenAI], personal communication, 10 May 2023)".

"I explored the capabilities of ChatGPT by requesting it to 'generate a fictional creature' (ChatGPT [OpenAI], personal communication, 10 May 2023)."

Additional Resources:

1. CSE Guidance on Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence Tools
2. Recommendations from International Committee of Medical Journal Editors 
3. IONA University's LibGuide on Citing AI