Science has issued an expression of concern for a paper it published earlier this summer after readers pointed out suspect images in the work. The July 10 article, titled “Proton transport enabled by a field-induced metallic state in a semiconductor hetero-structure,” came from a group in China and the United Kingdom. The corresponding authors were … Continue reading PubPeer comments prompt Science expression of concern
Before we present this week’s Weekend Reads, a question: Do you enjoy our weekly roundup? If so, we could really use your help. Would you consider a tax-deductible donation to support Weekend Reads, and our daily work? Thanks in advance. We turned 10 years old on Monday. Here’s a brief history, and 10 takeaways from 10 … Continue reading Weekend reads: Unprofessional behavior in peer reviews; what to do when you’re wrong; an update on the ‘Space Dentist’
The journal that allowed a bizarre article linking Covid-19 to 5G cell phone waves to “slip through the net” now blames rigged peer review for the fishy paper. The article, which earned raspberries from the likes of Elisabeth Bik (who called it potentially the “worst” paper of the year) and others, was retracted shortly after … Continue reading Journal that published paper linking 5G to COVID-19 blames “substantial manipulation of the peer review”
As we celebrate our tenth birthday and look forward to our second decade, we thought it would be a good time to take stock and reflect on some lessons we — and others — have learned. Retractions are more common than we — or anyone else — thought they were. Two decades ago, journals were … Continue reading Ten takeaways from ten years at Retraction Watch
We have heard back this morning from the publisher of a journal that yanked a paper that linked 5G cellphone technology and the novel coronavirus last week — a paper that scientific sleuth Elisabeth Bik mused was the “worst paper of 2020.” The response to our request for comment from editor in chief Pio Conti … Continue reading ‘Some papers can slip through the net,’ says journal that published 5G-COVID-19 paper
A paper which argued that 5G cellphone technology could lead to infection with the novel coronavirus has been retracted, but not before scientific sleuth Elisabeth Bik wondered whether it was the “worst paper of 2020.” The article, “5G Technology and induction of coronavirus in skin cells,” came from a group from Italy, the United States … Continue reading Paper blaming COVID-19 on 5G technology withdrawn
Didier Raoult, whose claims that hydroxychloroquine can treat COVID-19 have been widely disputed, has had a 2018 paper corrected for what his team says was unintentional duplication of a figure. Here’s the correction for “Identification of rickettsial immunoreactive proteins using a proximity ligation assay Western blotting and the traditional immunoproteomic approach,” which came four months … Continue reading Co-author of controversial hydroxychloroquine study has 2018 paper corrected for “unintentional mistake”
Before we present this week’s Weekend Reads, a question: Do you enjoy our weekly roundup? If so, we could really use your help. Would you consider a tax-deductible donation to support Weekend Reads, and our daily work? Thanks in advance. The week at Retraction Watch featured: A paper on vaccines in Nigeria retracted because its author … Continue reading Weekend reads: Why science needs red teams; when clinical trial participants lie; kids cheating in science fairs?
A study that found a way to deliver certain kinds of drugs more effectively in mice is being retracted today. The study, “Molecular targeting of FATP4 transporter for oral delivery of therapeutic peptide” was overseen by Haifa Shen at the Houston Methodist Research Institute and published in Science Advances on April 1. Several readers, including … Continue reading Drug delivery study with duplicated images is retracted
A group of researchers based at Harvard Medical School have retracted their 2019 paper in Nature after a data sleuth detected evidence of suspect images in the article. The move comes ten months after the journal first heard from the sleuth, Elisabeth Bik. The paper, “Fatty acids and cancer-amplified ZDHHC19 promote STAT3 activation through S-palmitoylation,” … Continue reading Figure “anomalies” prompt Harvard group to retract Nature paper