You’ve been dupe’d: Data so nice, you see them twice

Last Friday we resurrected a previous feature of Retraction Watch, compiling five retractions that appeared to be simple acts of duplication. This week, we spotlight another five unrelated retractions which, as we said last week, cover duplications in which the same – or some of the same – authors published the same – or some of the same – … Continue reading You’ve been dupe’d: Data so nice, you see them twice

Weekend reads: “Research parasites;” CRISPR controversy; access to PACE data denied

The week at Retraction Watch featured a brewing case over GMO research, a 10-reason retraction. and a retraction and apology from the CBC. Before we get to this week’s reads from elsewhere, we’re happy to announce that we’re launching a daily email newsletter that will include posts from the last 24 hours, as well as links to … Continue reading Weekend reads: “Research parasites;” CRISPR controversy; access to PACE data denied

Paper claiming GMO dangers retracted amid allegations of data manipulation

A nutrition journal is retracting a paper about potential dangers of eating food containing genetically modified organisms (GMOs) for duplicating a figure, as news stories from Italy are reporting accusations that the last author falsified some of his research. In the paper, Federico Infascelli, an animal nutrition researcher at the University of Naples, and his colleagues showed modified genes … Continue reading Paper claiming GMO dangers retracted amid allegations of data manipulation

Weekend reads: A celebrity surgeon’s double life; misconduct in sports medicine; researcher loses honor

This week at Retraction Watch featured a literally bullshit excuse for fake data, a new record for time from publication to retraction, and news of an upcoming retraction from Science. Here’s what was happening elsewhere:

Breakfast study mischaracterized funding by cereal group

PLOS ONE has quickly corrected an October analysis of what children in Malaysia eat for breakfast, after the study neglected to note it benefited from mistakenly noted an unrestricted research grant from cereal companies supported author salaries. The grant supported the salaries of research assistants, according to the correction note. Per the authors’ request, the journal has noted … Continue reading Breakfast study mischaracterized funding by cereal group

Authors lied about ethics approval for study on obesity, depression

Obesity has retracted a study that suggested overweight people may be less depressed than their slimmer counterparts in cultures where fat isn’t stigmatized, after realizing the authors lied about having ethical approval to conduct the research. The authors claimed their research protocol had been approved by Norwegian and Bangladeshi ethical committees, but, according to the retraction note, part of … Continue reading Authors lied about ethics approval for study on obesity, depression

Paper claiming extra CO2 doesn’t always lower plant nutrients pulled for errors

Authors have retracted a large meta-analysis claiming that rising levels of carbon dioxide don’t always reduce nutrients in plants. After commenters on PubPeer raised concerns, the authors say they found several unintentional errors in their data that could “significantly change conclusions” of the paper in Plant Ecology, according to the retraction note. The paper found that the impact … Continue reading Paper claiming extra CO2 doesn’t always lower plant nutrients pulled for errors

Weekend reads: Criminal charges for plagiarism; NFL scientific interference; the authorship explosion

The week at Retraction Watch featured a move by the Journal of Biological Chemistry that we’re applauding, a retraction by a high-profile nutrition researcher, and an announcement about a new partnership to create a retraction database. Here’s what was happening elsewhere:

Weekend reads: Papers de-emphasized for funding; reproducibility revolution; reining in fraud in China

The week at Retraction Watch featured a particularly misleading retraction notice, and a university stripping a graduate of her PhD for misconduct. Here’s what was happening elsewhere:

Yale doc loses 2 HuffPo blog posts after secretly promoting his novel

The Huffington Post has retracted two blog posts by prominent Yale nutritionist David Katz after learning he had posted incredibly favorable reviews of a new novel — and not revealed that he had written the novel himself, under a pseudonym. There’s no doubt Katz is a prolific writer — in addition to a couple hundred scientific articles … Continue reading Yale doc loses 2 HuffPo blog posts after secretly promoting his novel