Search Results for: Nick Brown

NIH researcher responds as sleuths scrutinize high-profile study of ultra-processed foods and weight gain

[This post has been updated since publication; see update note at end for details.] In July 2019, Kevin Hall, of the U.S. National Institutes of Health, and colleagues published a study in Cell Metabolism that found, according to its title, that “Ultra-Processed Diets Cause Excess Calorie Intake and Weight Gain.”  A year and a half … Continue reading NIH researcher responds as sleuths scrutinize high-profile study of ultra-processed foods and weight gain

Springer Nature journal retracts BMI, honesty paper

More than five months after outraged readers demanded that a Springer Nature journal retract a paper linking body mass index to honesty, the publication has been pulled.  The journal now says that a post-publication review of the article found that the data don’t support the authors’ conclusions — which is another way of saying that … Continue reading Springer Nature journal retracts BMI, honesty paper

Heard about the study claiming men who carry guitar cases are more attractive? It’s been retracted.

A controversial psychologist has lost a bizarre paper which claimed that men who carry guitar cases do better with the ladies. The article, which had appeared in the journal The Psychology of Music in 2014, was one of many papers by Nicholas Guéguen that have raised eyebrows among his peers and some data sleuths — … Continue reading Heard about the study claiming men who carry guitar cases are more attractive? It’s been retracted.

‘How I got fooled’: The story behind the retraction of a study of gamers

In April of this year, Corneel Vandelanotte realized something had gone wrong with a paper he had recently published. First, there was a post about his paper by Nick Brown, a scientific sleuth, questioning the results, ethics, and authors behind the work. That was followed by a comment on PubPeer by Elisabeth Bik, another scientific … Continue reading ‘How I got fooled’: The story behind the retraction of a study of gamers

Criminology researcher to lose sixth paper

A criminologist whose work has been under scrutiny for a year is set to have a sixth paper retracted, Retraction Watch has learned. Last July, Justin Pickett, of the University of Albany at the State University of New York, posted a 27-page explanation of why he was asking for one of his papers to be … Continue reading Criminology researcher to lose sixth paper

‘The policy of Creativity Research Journal is to consider only original material.’ Prominent Cornell professor has another paper retracted for duplication.

Robert Sternberg, a Cornell psychology professor whose work has earned three retractions for duplication, has had another paper retracted for the same reason. Here’s the notice:

In 2014, a study claimed high heels made women more attractive. Now it’s been retracted.

Perhaps you saw the headlines back in 2014, ones like “Science Proves It: Men Really Do Find High Heels Sexier,” from TIME. Or maybe this quote, from the author of a study in Archives of Sexual Behavior, on CNBC:

After 18 months — and recommended retractions — no movement in psychology case

“Dissatisfied.” That’s how Nick Brown and James Heathers describe their reaction to the progress — or lack thereof — in the case of Nicholas Guéguen, a psychology researcher whose work the two data sleuths have questioned. Brown and Heathers first wrote about the case in 2017. In a new blog post, they write that the … Continue reading After 18 months — and recommended retractions — no movement in psychology case

Weekend reads: The Trump administration gets something right about science; a journal refuses a metaphor; should journals use Nazi science?

The week at Retraction Watch featured an expression of concern following a journalist’s questions; a kind of plagiarism that software will miss; and researchers who blamed a ghostwriter for plagiarism. Here’s what was happening elsewhere.

Will scientific error checkers become as ubiquitous as spell-checkers?

How common are calculation errors in the scientific literature? And can they be caught by an algorithm?  James Heathers and Nick Brown came up with two methods — GRIM and SPRITE — to find such mistakes. And a 2017 study of which we just became aware offers another approach. Jonathan Wren and Constantin Georgescu of the … Continue reading Will scientific error checkers become as ubiquitous as spell-checkers?