CMI CMI Publishing & Media Production 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: When submitting figures to a medical journal, what is typically required alongside the illustration file to meet copyright and permissions standards?
- A personal photograph of the illustrator
- A signed copyright transfer or license agreement (Correct answer)
- A printed hard copy of the illustration
- The original client invoice
Correct answer: A signed copyright transfer or license agreement
Journals require a copyright transfer or license agreement to confirm they have legal rights to publish and reproduce the illustration.
Question 2: Which file format is preferred for submitting layered, editable medical illustrations to a publisher for potential future revisions?
- JPEG
- PNG
- Native PSD or AI files with preserved layers (Correct answer)
- TIFF with merged layers
Correct answer: Native PSD or AI files with preserved layers
Native PSD (Photoshop) or AI (Illustrator) files with intact layers allow publishers and editors to make future corrections without recreating artwork.
Question 3: A medical illustrator is asked to create a figure for an open-access journal. Which Creative Commons license allows the broadest reuse of the illustration?
- CC BY-NC-ND
- CC BY (Correct answer)
- CC BY-SA
- CC BY-NC
Correct answer: CC BY
CC BY (Attribution only) allows any use—including commercial and derivative works—as long as the creator is credited, making it the most permissive standard CC license.
Question 4: What is the term for the process of converting a finished digital illustration into a format optimized for web viewing, typically with reduced file size?
- Rasterization
- Color calibration
- Web optimization / image compression (Correct answer)
- Plate separation
Correct answer: Web optimization / image compression
Web optimization involves compressing and formatting images (e.g., as JPEG or WebP) to reduce load times while maintaining acceptable visual quality.
Question 5: In medical publishing, what does 'figure numbering in sequence' require of the illustrator?
- Illustrating figures in the exact order they will be drawn
- Ensuring figure call-outs in the text correspond to the sequential figure numbers supplied (Correct answer)
- Numbering figures before the client reviews them
- Placing figure numbers inside the image boundary
Correct answer: Ensuring figure call-outs in the text correspond to the sequential figure numbers supplied
Sequential figure numbering means each figure's number matches its first citation in the manuscript text, a standard requirement for organized publication.
Question 6: When preparing medical illustrations for a slide deck intended for CME (Continuing Medical Education) presentations, which aspect ratio is the current standard?
- 4:3
- 16:9 (Correct answer)
- 1:1
- 3:2
Correct answer: 16:9
Modern presentation software and displays use the widescreen 16:9 aspect ratio as the standard for slide-based educational presentations.
CMI CMI Publishing & Media Production 2
When submitting figures to a medical journal, what is typically required alongside the illustration file to meet copyright and permissions standards?