The authors of a study estimating how much radioactive material from two sunken Russian submarines is taken up by fish in the Barents Sea have retracted it, citing the need for “significant and extensive” corrections. Here’s the notice, from Environmental Pollution:
Computer Methods in Applied Mechanics and Engineering is retracting a 2011 paper by an Italian researcher who submitted a similar article to another journal. What makes this interesting is that the retracted article appears to be the one that was published first. The article, “Free vibrations of laminated composite doubly-curved shells and panels of revolution … Continue reading Bad vibrations: Composites paper pulled after subsequent, duplicate article appears
A new study out in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) today finds that two-thirds of retractions are because of some form of misconduct — a figure that’s higher than previously thought, thanks to unhelpful retraction notices that cause us to beat our heads against the wall here at Retraction Watch. The … Continue reading Majority of retractions are due to misconduct: Study confirms opaque notices distort the scientific record
Michael Hertl, a leading dermatology researcher at Philipps-University Marburg, has been cleared of any wrongdoing in a case that spawned a retraction last year and two just-published retractions. Felicitas Riedel, a legal officer for the university, tells Retraction Watch that the …Committee for Scientific Misconduct of the Philipps-University Marburg closed the matter and submitted its … Continue reading University clears leading dermatology lab head of misconduct as authors issue two corrections
The authors of a paper suggesting that cassava, a starchy vegetable that’s a major food source in much of the developing world, could one day be turned into a food staple “capable of supplying inexpensive, plant-based proteins for food, feed and industrial applications” have retracted it, following an institutional investigation that failed to find critical … Continue reading PLoS ONE GMO cassava paper retracted after data “could not be found”
Back in March, we wrote about the doubts that had emerged in Spain about the work of a prominent local veterinary scientist, Jesús Ángel Lemus, suspected of being a data fabricator and inventor of co-authors (one in particular). We hadn’t heard anything since about Lemus — who specialized in the effects of environmental toxins on … Continue reading Carrion, my wayward son: Vulture paper from Spanish researcher suspected of misconduct retracted
Protein & Peptide Letters, a Bentham title, has retracted a paper for plagiarism, but it’s the unhelpful — bordering on insulting — notice that caught our eye. The abstract for the notice, the rest of which sits behind a $63.10 (plus tax) pay wall on Ingenta Connect, reads: As per Bentham Science’s policy, the following … Continue reading Protein journal retracts mystery paper that plagiarized phantom article
Two years after questions surfaced about work by former Harvard psychology professor Marc Hauser, an official government report is finally out. It’s not pretty. The findings by the Office of Research Integrity were first reported by the Boston Globe, which was also first to report the issues in Hauser’s work. They’re extensive, covering misconduct in … Continue reading Former Harvard psychology prof Marc Hauser committed misconduct in four NIH grants: ORI
A paper published online the other day in the Journal of Medical Ethics puts some numbers on an issue near and dear to Retraction Watch: How transparent are retraction notices when it comes to misconduct? David Resnik and Gregg Dinse, of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, looked at the 208 cases closed by … Continue reading Surprise, surprise: Study says retraction notices often aren’t honest about misconduct
The Journal of the American Dental Association has retracted a paper it published earlier this year after learning that the author took liberties with certain “critical information” about the trial. The article, “The Effect of Long-Term Disinfection on Clinical Contact Surfaces,” was written by Charles John Palenik, who retired as director of infection control research … Continue reading Flawed disclosure leads dental journal to retract disinfection paper