Category: Post-Publication Peer Review

An overview of general news and articles about science integrity and some cases that I have worked on.

Science sleuths

• The Rise of the Science Sleuths – When an Alzheimer’s paper came under scrutiny, correcting the scientific record meant battling much bigger problems – Jessica Wapner – Undark
• Sleuths unearthing malpractice should receive gratitude, not hostility. The British Museum learned it was wrong to brush off a whistleblower. Universities and journals should do the same, says David Sanders – David Sanders – Times Higher Education

Neuroscientist and top NIH official under scrutiny

• Picture Imperfect – Scores of papers by Eliezer Masliah, prominent neuroscientist and top NIH official, fall under suspicion – Charles Piller – Science
• Statement by NIH on Research Misconduct Findings – National Institutes of Health
• Fraud, So Much Fraud – Derek Lowe – Science
• Leading Neuroscientist Accused of Research Misconduct – Jessica Blake – Inside Higher Ed
• A top government scientist engaged in research misconduct, NIH finds – Associated Press
• Prominent NIH Neuroscientist Fired Over Alleged Research Misconduct – Megan Brooks – Medscape

Q-Collar under scrutiny

• This Device Is ‘Proven’ to Protect Athletes’ Brains. The Science Is Under Fire. – Stephanie M Lee – The Chronicle of Higher Education
• [from December 2022:] Will This Device Protect Athletes’ Brains, or Only Make Them Think It Does? – Matthew Futterman – New York Times [free-access link]

Nobel prize winner under scrutiny

• Nobel prize-winner tallies two more retractions, bringing total to 13 – Ellie Kincaid – Retraction Watch

Paper Mills

• Widespread signs of paper milling discovered in materials science and engineering papers – Julia Robinson – Chemistry World

New ORI regulations

The US Office of Research Integrity updated its regulations on handling research misconduct allegations. Key updates include clarifying the inquiry process and adjusting how institutions should handle the allegations and record the process.

• Final U.S. misconduct rule drops controversial changes. Biomedical oversight agency replaces proposal to publicize institutional findings with smaller steps toward greater transparency – Jeffrey Mervis – Science
• Colleges Get More Leeway to Handle Research Misconduct – Christa Dutton – The Chronicle of Higher Education
• ORI Issues Final Changes to Research Misconduct Regulations: Key Reforms and Lingering Complexities – Ropes and Gray Law Offices
• Research misconduct claims are growing. Will new rules help universities investigate? Scientific sleuths say the updated rules aren’t enough to make a dent in research integrity violations – Anil Oza – STAT In the Lab
• New HHS rules can’t address the primary reason for research misconduct. Publish or perish must perish – Paul Martin Jensen – STAT Opinion

1 in 7 scientific articles might be fake

James Heathers published a preprint arguing that the old, often-cited number that 2% of papers are fake is outdated and a vast underestimate. In a new preprint, he argues it might be 1 in 7 papers, based on 12 studies that together analyze 75,000 scientific articles.

• How Much Science Is Fake? – James Heathers – OSF
• 1 in 7 scientific papers is fake, suggests study that author calls ‘wildly nonsystematic’ – Dalmeet Singh Chawla – Retraction Watch

Francesca Gino lawsuit

• How a Scientific Dispute Spiralled Into a Defamation Lawsuit – What does a Harvard Business School professor’s decision to sue the professors who raised questions about her research bode for academic autonomy? By Gideon Lewis-Kraus – New Yorker
• She Sued the Sleuths Who Found Fraud in Her Data. A Judge Just Ruled Against Her. – Stephanie M. Lee – The Chronicle of Higher Education

Around the world

• India’s research crime is getting worse. Scientists are gaming peer review system. International watchdogs are flagging India as a top producer of ‘low-quality and fraudulent’ research. Last year, India ranked behind only China and the US – Soumya Pillai – The Print
• Transparency and Integrity Risks in China’s Research Ecosystem: A Primer and Call To Action – Jeffrey Stoff, Leslie McIntosh, An Chi Lee
• New academic AI guidelines aim to curb research misconduct. The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), the country’s top science institute, on Tuesday published new guidelines on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in scientific research, as part of its efforts to improve scientific integrity and reduce research misconduct, such as data fabrication and plagiarism. – Zhang Weilan – Global Times

New Publication and Editorials

• Quantifying Data Distortion in Bar Graphs in Biological Research. We developed a framework to quantify data distortion and analyzed bar graphs published across 3387 articles in 15 journals, finding consistent data distortions across journals and common biological data types. – Lin and Landry – bioRxiv
• Five problems plaguing publishing in the life sciences—and one common cause – Duncan E. Wright – FEBS Letters
• Fake Degrees and Fraudulent Credentials in Higher Education – Sarah Elaine Eaton, Jamie J. Carmichael, Helen Pethrick, eds., Minerva
• GPT-fabricated scientific papers on Google Scholar: Key features, spread, and implications for preempting evidence manipulation – Haider et al. – Harvard Kennedy School Misinformation Review
• Retracted articles in scientific literature: A bibliometric analysis from 2003 to 2022 using the Web of Science – Koo and Lin – Heliyon
• Legal and Operational Aspects of Compliance with Scientific Integrity – Weber-Mandrin et al. Chimia
• Tracing the Retraction Cascade: Identifying Non-retracted but Potentially Retractable Articles – Usman and Balke – Linking Theory and Practice of Digital Libraries

Retraction Watch’s Weekend Reads:

• September 7: Weekend reads: A plethora of misdeeds; big slowdown at several publishers; hydroxychloroquine paper retraction draws scrutiny
• September 14: Weekend reads: Lawsuits filed and dismissed; ‘the rise of the science sleuths;’ research assessment culture
• September 21: Weekend reads: Harm reduction for peer review; finding reviewers; fake journals
• September 28: Weekend reads: Top NIH neuroscientist out amid suspicion; the issue with special issues; an ingredient derailed experiments