Search Results for: doing the right thing

An editor on why he ignores anonymous whistleblowers – and why authors are free to publish ‘bullshit and fiction’

Just over a decade ago, in the second year of Retraction Watch’s existence, we wrote a column in the now-defunct Lab Times urging journal editors to stop ignoring complaints from anonymous whistleblowers. The Committee on Publication Ethics didn’t think anonymity was a problem as long as the complaints were evidence-based, so why should editors?  And … Continue reading An editor on why he ignores anonymous whistleblowers – and why authors are free to publish ‘bullshit and fiction’

‘It’s time to devise a more efficient solution’: Science editor in chief wants to change the retraction process

On the heels of a high-profile retraction that followed deep investigations by the Science news team, Holden Thorp, the editor in chief of the journal, says it’s time to improve the process of correcting the scientific record. In an editorial published today, Thorp, a former university provost, describes the often time-consuming and frustrating process involving … Continue reading ‘It’s time to devise a more efficient solution’: Science editor in chief wants to change the retraction process

A tale of (3)2 retraction notices: On publishers, paper mill products, and the sleuths that find them

Should publishers acknowledge the work of sleuths when their work has led to retractions? We were prompted to pose the question by a recent retraction from International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics of a 2021 paper. The notice reads:

Engineering researcher who cast blame on co-author will soon have 12 retractions

A civil engineering researcher will soon have 12 retractions to his name after a data sleuth notified journals of issues with image reuse in the papers.  Jorge de Brito, a professor at the University of Lisbon, has lost four papers in Construction and Building Materials, two in the Journal of Building Engineering, of which he … Continue reading Engineering researcher who cast blame on co-author will soon have 12 retractions

An Elsevier book plagiarizes an abstract published by…Elsevier

Elsevier plans to remove the introduction from a book on mineralogy after investigating allegations of plagiarism, including from another Elsevier publication, according to emails obtained by Retraction Watch.  Photo Atlas of Mineral Pseudomorphism by J. Theo Kloprogge and Robert Lavinsky, was published in 2017 and still appears to be for sale for $100 for a … Continue reading An Elsevier book plagiarizes an abstract published by…Elsevier

After we tried to correct claims about ‘deadly’ water filters in Flint, we were accused of scientific misconduct—and that was just the beginning

The Sept. 10, 2019 PBS article accompanying the FRONTLINE documentary “Deadly Water” was topped by a provocative headline: “The EPA Says Flint’s Water is Safe — Scientists Aren’t So Sure.” The PBS story relied on a study of adverse health outcomes for people given point-of-use (POU) water filters during the Flint Federal Emergency. We were … Continue reading After we tried to correct claims about ‘deadly’ water filters in Flint, we were accused of scientific misconduct—and that was just the beginning

What we’ve learned from public records requests. Please help us file more.

Dear Retraction Watch reader: You may have noticed an increasing number of posts over the past few years that contain the phrase “obtained through a public records request.” Some examples: It’s how we learned that a pharmacology researcher was demoted after a misconduct investigation – and then became chair at another school. That story led … Continue reading What we’ve learned from public records requests. Please help us file more.

Engineers’ research starts to look shaky as retractions mount

A group of structural engineering researchers based in Iran has lost at least five papers for problems with the data – and a data sleuth says more look shaky, too.  Four of the articles appeared in Construction and Building Materials between 2018 and 2020 and were written by a changing cast of characters with two … Continue reading Engineers’ research starts to look shaky as retractions mount

Journal editor explains ban on manuscripts from Russian institutions

Earlier this week, a scientist in Russia posted, on Facebook, part of a letter rejecting a manuscript explaining that “the editors of the Journal of Molecular Structure made a decision to ban the manuscripts submitted from Russian institutions.” That move was confirmed by Richard van Noorden of Nature. Here, in an email he sent to … Continue reading Journal editor explains ban on manuscripts from Russian institutions

Courage and correction: how editors handle – and mishandle – errors in their journals

Last year, our group noticed an improper analysis of a purported cluster randomized trial (cRCT) in eClinicalMedicine, a Lancet journal, and requested deidentified raw data from the authors to conduct a proper analysis for the study design.  Things were off to a good start. The authors shared their data immediately – which is commendable and, … Continue reading Courage and correction: how editors handle – and mishandle – errors in their journals