Search Results for: idea retraction notice

Plagiarism was “not an intentional act,” says first author of retracted TB paper

A 2013 review article about tuberculosis is being retracted for “unacknowledged re-use of significant portions of text” from another article, which the first author said wasn’t intentional. Sayantan Ray, based at Medical College and Hospital, Kolkata in India, told us that “most of the unchanged text” is present in sections written by junior co-authors. Since there doesn’t … Continue reading Plagiarism was “not an intentional act,” says first author of retracted TB paper

Weekend reads: Angry meta-analysts; imposter cell lines; when things go wrong

This week at Retraction Watch featured nine more fake peer review retractions, this time from Elsevier, and an update to the retraction count for one-time record holder Joachim Boldt. Here’s what was happening elsewhere:

Cochrane withdraws review on zinc for colds for data concerns

The Cochrane Library has withdrawn a 2013 systematic review on zinc’s ability to fight the common cold. Cochrane often marks reviews “withdrawn” once new evidence emerges that renders them out of date — but in this case, the review was flagged while the editors investigate issues “regarding the calculation and analysis of data.” Here’s the notice.

“Whoops.” Paper cites retracted gay canvassing paper — but blame me, says journal editor

By now, most Retraction Watch readers are likely familiar with the retraction in May of a much-ballyhooed study in Science on whether gay canvassers could persuade people to agree with same-sex marriage. It turns out that before that retraction appeared, a different study that cited the Science paper made its way online. Kenneth Zucker, the editor … Continue reading “Whoops.” Paper cites retracted gay canvassing paper — but blame me, says journal editor

Second correx for controversial paper on the financial benefits of climate change

The Journal of Economic Perspectives has published a second correction for a 2009 paper that argued that some amount of global warming could lead to economic gains. The author of “The Economic Effects of Climate Change,” Richard Tol, a professor of economics at the University of Sussex, blamed earlier problems with the paper on “gremlins.” In a … Continue reading Second correx for controversial paper on the financial benefits of climate change

Pressure to publish not to blame for misconduct, says new study

A new study suggests that much of what we think about misconduct — including the idea that it is linked to the unrelenting pressure on scientists to publish high-profile papers — is incorrect. In a new paper out today in PLOS ONE [see update at end of post], Daniele Fanelli, Rodrigo Costas, and Vincent Larivière performed a retrospective analysis of … Continue reading Pressure to publish not to blame for misconduct, says new study

Widely covered editorial extolling importance of diet over exercise “temporarily removed”

The British Journal of Sports Medicine has “temporarily removed” an editorial arguing that physical activity alone will not cure the obesity epidemic, following an expression of concern. In its place stands the following message: This paper has been temporarily removed following an expression of concern. First author Assem Malhotra, based at the Department of Cardiology, … Continue reading Widely covered editorial extolling importance of diet over exercise “temporarily removed”

Use of data “without permission,” bad authors list, and hidden funding sink mol bio paper

A Chinese researcher has lost a paper after the journal discovered he published others’ research without permission and lied about the grant funding he used for the work. Yihang Shen published a paper using his PhD research on the molecular biology of fetal rodent livers earlier this year in DNA and Cell Biology. Unfortunately, he didn’t have permission to … Continue reading Use of data “without permission,” bad authors list, and hidden funding sink mol bio paper

Controversial Italian scientist loses 11 papers from journal he used to edit

Alberto Carpinteri is something of a Renaissance man. Along with championing a highly controversial form of energy generation called “piezonuclear fission,” which involves crushing rocks, the engineer has argued that the Shroud of Turin really is as old as Jesus, but carbon dating was thrown off by an earthquake. Not everyone agrees with his ideas: In … Continue reading Controversial Italian scientist loses 11 papers from journal he used to edit

Unhappy medium: Penn State website retracts article touting student psychic

Onward State, an alternative student news website for Penn State University, has pulled an article about a student psychic for promoting “one of the most fraudulent, predatory practices around.” The psychic has been given her own reality TV show on ABC Family (an oxymoron if ever there was one). The newspaper had reported the news … Continue reading Unhappy medium: Penn State website retracts article touting student psychic