Since our recent coverage about a university investigation that led to multiple retractions for nursing researcher Moon-fai Chan, we’ve been alerted to a few more retractions and errata. His total is now at six retractions and four errata. Some of our finds were published this year, and some are a few years old. Most are due to duplication; … Continue reading More retractions, errata discovered for nursing researcher
The Journal of Clinical Nursing is retracting a paper “due to major overlap with a previously published article” from the same journal, following an investigation by the National University of Singapore. By our count, this is the third retraction for first author, Moon-fai Chan, all for “overlap” with other papers. As we reported in May, the Journal of Advanced Nursing retracted a paper … Continue reading Investigation ups nursing researcher’s retraction count to 3
The Journal of Advanced Nursing has retracted a 2006 paper by a group of authors in Hong Kong who lifted much of the text from a previous article of theirs in a competing publication. The article, “Osteoporosis prevention education programme for women,” came from Moon Fai Chan and C.Y. Ko in the School of Nursing … Continue reading “Major overlap” forces retraction of osteoporosis paper
One of the authors of a 2014 case series on lung disease following radiation in Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging is retracting the paper for what the the journal is calling “honest error.” That may be true, but it’s a big error — so big, it’s amazing no one detected it sooner. The paper was … Continue reading Major methods error prompts retraction of lung radiation paper
With the increasingly hectic pace of modern life, everybody is always on the look out for time-saving tricks and tips. Scientists at the National University of Singapore and the Hong Kong Polytechnic University certainly found one, but we really can’t recommend it: doing one randomized controlled trial (RCT) with several outcomes, and publishing them as three separate … Continue reading Heart study bleeds into three papers, one retracted and one withdrawn
It’s not uncommon for scientists accused of wrongdoing — especially if they’re fired for it — to attempt to muddy the waters by claiming that they are being framed because they had threatened to blow the whistle on others. Some of those stories have more than a grain of truth to them. Here’s one that … Continue reading Anesthesiologist “con man” apologizes for faking cover-up charges against Australian university
A group of researchers in Singapore has lost two 2013 articles in BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care for problems with their data. One of the articles was titled “Patients with Dysphagia: Encounters in Taking Medication;” the other, “Issues Associated with Delirium Severity Among Older Patients.” In both cases, the first and second authors were Rajaram … Continue reading Data “irregularities” prompt retraction of palliative care papers
The Journal of Biological Chemistry has an illuminating retraction notice — we’re happy to be able to say — about a 2001 article from a group of researchers at the National University of Singapore. The paper, “Intracellular acidification triggered by mitochondrial-derived hydrogen peroxide is an effector mechanism for drug-induced apoptosis in tumor cells,” was written … Continue reading Data highjinx forces retraction of tumor paper in JBC
A pair of engineering researchers has analyzed the work of a handful of prolific scientific fraudsters, and has concluded that science needs a “shame list” to deter future misconduct. The paper, “Analysis and Implications of Retraction Period and Coauthorship of Fraudulent Publications,” by Jong Yong Abdiel Foo and Xin Ji Alan Tan, of Ngee Ann … Continue reading Does science need a retraction “shame list?”
Two researchers who have appeared frequently on Retraction Watch have racked up another retraction each. This is the fourteenth retraction for Alirio Melendez, who was found guilty of misconduct by the National University of Singapore but denies the allegations. Here’s the notice in The International Journal of Biochemistry & Cell Biology for “Environmental toxicogenomics: A … Continue reading Melendez notches retraction 14, Lemus now stands at 12