Search Results for: nature

Harvard stem cell scientist Vacanti taking leave in wake of STAP retractions

Charles Vacanti, a Harvard anesthesiologist and stem cell pioneer whose name appeared on both retracted STAP stem cell papers, is giving up his post as chair of anesthesiology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and taking a year-long sabbatical. According to the Knoepfler Lab Stem Cell Blog, which as become a must-read for anyone interested in … Continue reading Harvard stem cell scientist Vacanti taking leave in wake of STAP retractions

On vigorous scientific debates, witch hunts, and the tragedy of suicide

The suicide earlier this week of Yoshiki Sasai, one of the scientists who worked on the now-discredited STAP stem cell work, was a startling and sobering reminder to the research community and the public that misconduct can take a heavy human toll – even on people like Sasai, whom by all accounts only had the … Continue reading On vigorous scientific debates, witch hunts, and the tragedy of suicide

STAP stem cell co-author commits suicide: Reports

In a stunning and tragic development, a co-author of the now-retracted Nature papers claiming to have found an easy way to create stem cells has committed suicide, according to news reports in Japan. According to the Japan Times, RIKEN deputy director Yoshiki Sasai has died:

Weekend reads: Dope-addicted doctors running drug trials; jailed for copyright violation?

Another busy week at Retraction Watch. Here’s what was happening elsewhere: “Why are dope-addicted, disgraced doctors running our drug trials?” asks Peter Aldhous. Could a biology student in Colombia be jailed for violating copyright?

Panel says BMJ was right to not retract two disputed statin papers

A panel reviewing The BMJ‘s handling of two controversial statin papers said the journal didn’t err when it corrected, rather than retracted, the articles. The articles — a research paper and a commentary — suggested that use of statins in people at low risk for cardiovascular disease could be doing far more harm than good. Both … Continue reading Panel says BMJ was right to not retract two disputed statin papers

Authors retract paper “confirming” that narcolepsy is an autoimmune disease

A group of researchers at Stanford and elsewhere is retracting a 2013 paper that another scientist told Nature was “one of the biggest things to happen in the narcolepsy field for some time.” The Science Translational Medicine paper caused a buzz because it claimed to show that narcolepsy was an autoimmune disease. Here’s the notice:

ORI sanctions collaborator of Nobel winner Buck for data fabrication

The Office of Research Integrity has sanctioned a former researcher in the lab of Linda Buck, winner of the 2004 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, for falsifying data in two papers written with the support of grants from the National Institutes of Health. The researcher, Zou Zhihua, worked with Buck as a post-doc at … Continue reading ORI sanctions collaborator of Nobel winner Buck for data fabrication

The camel doesn’t have two humps: Programming “aptitude test” canned for overzealous conclusion

From Larry Summers to James Watson, certain scientists have a long and questionable tradition of using “data” to make claims about intelligence and aptitude. So it’s no surprise that, when well-known computer scientist Richard Bornat claimed his PhD student had created a test to separate people who would succeed at programming versus those who didn’t, people happily … Continue reading The camel doesn’t have two humps: Programming “aptitude test” canned for overzealous conclusion