Author: Ivan Oransky

“Editors are pleased to receive death threats on the third Thursday of the month:” A new journal launches

inferenceThere’s a new journal in town.

Inference’s first issue includes a lengthy review of a laboratory by a tennis instructor, a set of caricatures, and an exchange of emails from 1996 that is “perhaps, less remarkable for what it says than for the fact that it took place at all.”

In short, its editors — who “would prefer to remain anonymous” — seem to share a sense of humor with the editors of the Journal of Universal Rejection or the Proceedings of the Natural Institute of Science: Continue reading “Editors are pleased to receive death threats on the third Thursday of the month:” A new journal launches

PubPeer Selections: More stem cell questions; “is the hassle of a correction really needed?”

pubpeerHere’s another installment of PubPeer Selections: Continue reading PubPeer Selections: More stem cell questions; “is the hassle of a correction really needed?”

Authors retract green coffee bean diet paper touted by Dr. Oz

green coffee beanTwo authors of a 2012 paper sponsored by a company that made grand claims about green coffee bean extract’s abilities to help people lose weight have retracted it. The study was cited by The Dr. Oz Show, and last month it cost the company a $3.5 million settlement with the Feds.

Here’s the notice for “Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, linear dose, crossover study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of a green coffee bean extract in overweight subjects,” a paper originally published in Diabetes, Metabolic Syndrome and Obesity: Targets and Therapy: Continue reading Authors retract green coffee bean diet paper touted by Dr. Oz

Weekend reads: “Too good to be true” results; the paper as an “artificial landmark”

booksThe week at Retraction Watch kicked off with news of the European Science Foundation threatening to sue a scientist for calling a review process “flawed.” Here’s what was happening elsewhere:

Continue reading Weekend reads: “Too good to be true” results; the paper as an “artificial landmark”

At a snail’s pace: Species rediscovered, but paper on its disappearance remains

biology lettersA few weeks ago, in Weekend Reads, we highlighted the story of a snail species, thought to have gone extinct thanks to global warming, that had been rediscovered.

Now, as first reported by The Scientist, the journal in question has addressed the issue.

Here’s the story: In 2007, Biology Letters published a paper by Justin Gerlach describing the extinction of the Aldabra banded snail. But as journal editor Richard Battarbee notes: Continue reading At a snail’s pace: Species rediscovered, but paper on its disappearance remains

Neuroscientist who threatened to sue Science-Fraud.org, retracted two papers is out at Tufts

Domnez_Gizem
Gizem Donmez, via Tufts

Gizem Donmez, a neuroscientist who has retracted two papers from Cell and the Journal of Biological Chemistry, is no longer in her position at Tufts University, Retraction Watch has learned.

A Tufts spokesperson confirmed the news for us yesterday: Continue reading Neuroscientist who threatened to sue Science-Fraud.org, retracted two papers is out at Tufts

PubPeer Selections: PubPeer comments lead to Science correction; crystal structure in triplicate

pubpeerHere’s another installment of PubPeer Selections: Continue reading PubPeer Selections: PubPeer comments lead to Science correction; crystal structure in triplicate

European Science Foundation demands retraction of criticism in Nature, threatens legal action

Amaya Moro-Martin
Amaya Moro-Martin

The European Science Foundation (ESF) has threatened legal action against a scientist for calling an evaluation process supported by the agency “flawed” in a commentary piece in Nature.

Amaya Moro-Martin, an assistant astronomer at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) and an associate research scientist at The Johns Hopkins University, apparently angered the ESF with the bolded phrase below: Continue reading European Science Foundation demands retraction of criticism in Nature, threatens legal action

Weekend reads: Senator loses degree for plagiarism; bad colitis poetry; fraud on the big screen

booksThe week at Retraction Watch featured papers by a fake author with a brilliant if profane name, and the unmasking of fraudster Diederik Stapel as a sock puppet. Here’s what was happening elsewhere: Continue reading Weekend reads: Senator loses degree for plagiarism; bad colitis poetry; fraud on the big screen

After 16 retractions, management professor Lichtenthaler resigns post

Ulrich Lichtenthaler
Ulrich Lichtenthaler

Ulrich Lichtenthaler, a management professor at the University of Mannheim who has had to retract 16 papers for data irregularities, has resigned his faculty position.

According to a terse release from the university (translated from German): Continue reading After 16 retractions, management professor Lichtenthaler resigns post