With such a software platform and clear manuscript, I hope more similarities across biological systems will be recognized and appreciated, perhaps even promoting collaborations and new theory.
Reviewer #2: While in general I find this a very clear manuscript, with well-conceived and executed science, and very well described, clear, and reasonable statistical methods, I feel the paper does lack a strong take home message.
(Baer, who had to clear the manuscript with the agency, left in the censor's blackouts; the deletions are relatively few and appear innocuous).
It took six years of litigation and negotiation between Slahi's lawyers and the government to clear the manuscript for public release, an achievement that, according Slahi's lawyers, represents a small victory in its own right.
For more than six years, Mohamedou's attorneys carried out litigation and negotiations to have the manuscript cleared for public release.
"When, after more than six years of litigation and negotiations, his lawyers succeeded in getting a redacted version his manuscript cleared for public release, they asked if I would like to see it.
The manuscript was cleared by the National Center for Education Statistics Data Security Office after disclosure review.
Mohamedou's manuscript was finally cleared for public release, and a member of his legal team was able to hand it to me on a disk labelled "Slahi Manuscript – Unclassified Version," in the summer of 2012.
Since the author submitted the manuscript to be cleared in December, the agency's publications review board has repeatedly demanded numerous changes, despite a requirement that the review process be completed in 30 days.
When the manuscript was finally cleared for publication, much of the objectionable material had been removed; nevertheless, Beaverbrook used the Daily Express to campaign against the book and denounce its hostile tone.
We clarified the corresponding sections in detail to make the manuscript clearer and easier to follow for non- Drosophila experts.
