Abstract:Frequency of quotation is an important index to measure the social prominence and academic influence of a paper in document metrology Through measuring the times being quoted after the paper is published, appraisal by frequency of quotation evaluates research achievement in the form of academic papers It is a way to evaluate periodicals, disciplines (majors), countries (districts) and units (individuals) related to certain academic papers Appraisal by frequency of quotation is a research achievement appraisal system with academic papers as its carrier advocated by American Scientific Information Research Institute and widely acknowledged in the world Nowadays it seems to be the only method to appraise the quality of papers published in journals and the academic standard of a discipline (major), a country (district) and a unit (individual) Actually, appraisal by frequency of quotation is not omnipotent; it has its own range of application It can be applied to basic research but not to development research It has its limitation when applied to application research In one word, appraisal by frequency of quotation has its adaptability, limitation and irrationality