Search Results for: plagiarism

Weekend reads: We’re back! (We hope); the data thugs; heroes of retraction

As many of our readers will know, we’ve been having serious technical issues with the site. We’re cautiously optimistic that they’ve been solved, so although we’re still working on fixes, we’re going to try posting again. Thanks for your ongoing patience. This week, we posted at our sister site, Embargo Watch. Here are those posts: … Continue reading Weekend reads: We’re back! (We hope); the data thugs; heroes of retraction

Most board members of journal resign to protest new editor, layoffs

Nearly all of the editorial board members of a 150-year-old journal about the molecular underpinnings of medicine and disease have resigned their posts, protesting changes by publisher SpringerNature that they say “jeopardized the future and scholarly legacy of the Journal.” In a December 1 letter, led by the three former editors in chief of the … Continue reading Most board members of journal resign to protest new editor, layoffs

Three papers retracted… for being cited too frequently

An engineering journal has retracted three 2016 papers. The reason: They had been cited too often. Although the reason for the retractions may sound odd, the editor, Minvydas Ragulskis, told Retraction Watch he was concerned an author had engaged in citation manipulation. Specifically, Ragulskis explained that the majority of the citations came from papers at … Continue reading Three papers retracted… for being cited too frequently

University defends researcher accused of plagiarizing former Pope

A university in Switzerland has come to the defense of a communications researcher found guilty of plagiarism — and sanctioned after facing additional allegations, including plagiarizing a former Pope. On Jan. 18, the Swiss newspaper, Ticinonline, published a statement from the University of Lugano in response to recent allegations that Peter J. Schulz had plagiarized … Continue reading University defends researcher accused of plagiarizing former Pope

Who reports more misconduct: Scientists in industry or academia?

Who will admit to keeping poor records, gifting authorship, or even more obvious forms of misconduct such as plagiarism? Simon Godecharle at University of Leuven and his colleagues asked 2000 scientists from academia and industry in Belgium, and reported their findings in a recent paper for Science and Engineering Ethics. We spoke to Godecharle about … Continue reading Who reports more misconduct: Scientists in industry or academia?

Caught Our Notice: An article about repetition is duplicated? Priceless

Title: Does repetition help? Impact of destination promotion videos on perceived destination image and intention-to-visit change What Caught Our Attention: At times we get to just appreciate the moment: A paper focused on repetition — specifically, linking repeated exposure to travel videos and actual visits to the location — got retracted for duplication.  The notice … Continue reading Caught Our Notice: An article about repetition is duplicated? Priceless

Weekend reads: What’s wrong with peer review; a retraction poem; how journal formats mangle science

The week at Retraction Watch featured the retraction of a paper on the effects of fracking, authors who retracted a paper when they realized they’d been studying the wrong species, and a story about why a paper linked to an alleged doping scandal in Norway was retracted. Here’s what was happening elsewhere:

Meet the scientist whose ideas were stolen at least three times

Jeff Offutt, a professor of software engineering at George Mason University, has some stories to tell. He says that when one of his students wrote his first paper, the student reused four paragraphs from another source, not knowing he couldn’t do that. And then he tells of attending a PhD thesis defense where the student … Continue reading Meet the scientist whose ideas were stolen at least three times

Authors retract paper on psychopathic traits in bosses

A paper on the prevalence of cruel social behavior in the corporate world has been retracted, following an investigation at the authors’ university. According to the senior author, she inadvertently paraphrased a dissertation on the same topic that did not belong to her student and co-author. On Sept. 21, 2016, Katarina Fritzon, a professor at … Continue reading Authors retract paper on psychopathic traits in bosses

A Cardinal sin? Communications researcher accused of plagiarizing former Pope

A communications researcher in Switzerland found guilty of plagiarism and sanctioned is facing more allegations—including that he plagiarized work by a former Pope. Peter J. Schulz, who works at the University of Lugano, has already lost two book chapters. He also has retracted two papers and issued three errata; the errata note failing to properly cite … Continue reading A Cardinal sin? Communications researcher accused of plagiarizing former Pope