The authors of a 2019 paper in PLOS One on rocks in China have retracted the article for “misrepresentation of the results and data.”
The article, “Impacts of rock properties on Danxia landform formation based on lithological experiments at Kongtongshan National Geopark, northwest China,” was written by a group from Sun Yat-sen University and Hainan University. The researchers declared that:
As an erosional landform, the formation processes of Danxia landform are controlled by internal and external forces as well as lithologic properties. Using field data, we studied the role of lithologic properties on the formation of Danxia landform in Kongtongshan National Geopark, northwest China, through a series of experiments, including uniaxial compressive strength, identification analysis under polarizing microscope, X-ray diffraction analysis, inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry analysis, and scanning electron microscopy.
About those field data and experiments ….
The retraction notice reads like the directions to a pretty clumsy scientific hack job:
Following publication of this article [1], the corresponding author requested its retraction owing to the following issues:The map shown in Fig 2 was modified from [2] without permission, and the source of the image was not cited;
— The map shown in Fig 3 was modified from [3] without permission, and the source of the image was not cited;
— The photographs in Fig 4c and 4d were provided by the leader of the Administrative Committee of Kongtongshan and reproduced with permission from the copyright holder, but permission was not obtained in written form and the source of the images was not stated;
— Information reported in the “Geologic setting” section in [1] was previously described in section 2.3 of [3], and the source of this information was not cited;
— The reported X-ray diffraction (XRD) results in Fig 6 were not obtained from experiments carried out by the authors at Sun Yat-sen University as reported. The data, previously published in Figure 5.4 of [3], were provided to the corresponding author and used without permission and without citation;
— The reported scanning electron microscopy (SEM) photographs in Fig 7 were not obtained from experiments carried out by the authors at Sun Yat-sen University as reported. The images, previously published in Figure 5.8 of [3], were provided to the corresponding author and used without permission and without citation;
— The reported inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) analysis in Table 3 was not carried out by the authors at Sun Yat-sen University as reported. The reported data are from [3] and were used without permission and without citation.
The corresponding author has indicated that XRD and SEM experiments were carried out by the authors at Sun Yat-sen University, but that the images and data previously published in [3] were used in place of the data that were collected by the authors.
The corresponding author apologizes for misusing data from others’ research and failing to follow academic standards in publication ethics.
In view of the misrepresentation of the results and data reported in [1], the PLOS ONE Editors and the authors retract this article.
Figs 2, 3, 4c, 4d, 6, and 7 report material which are not offered under a CC-BY license and are therefore excluded from this article’s [1] license. At the time of retraction, the article [1] was republished to note this exclusion in the legends of Figs 2, 3, 4, 6, and 7, and in the article’s copyright statement.
HZ, ZP agreed with the retraction. HP is deceased.
The authors have not responded to requests for comment from Retraction Watch.
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