Search Results for: coding error

High-profile aging paper posts old erratum, requested by author more than one year prior

Genome Biology has partially retracted a high-profile paper about an epigenetic biomarker of aging – a year and a half after the author alerted the journal to a software coding error that invalidated one of its findings. The paper, “DNA methylation age of human tissues and cell types,” garnered some media coverage and forms the basis … Continue reading High-profile aging paper posts old erratum, requested by author more than one year prior

Stats mistake crashes bike accident paper

Two researchers at the University of Saskatchewan in Canada have retracted a paper that came to fairly common-sense conclusions about bike safety. In the September 2014 issue of the Journal of Transport and Health, the authors concluded that slippery road surfaces, night-time biking, and higher speed limits were all associated with higher probabilities of a … Continue reading Stats mistake crashes bike accident paper

Paper on “better-than-average effect” retracted for being, well, worse than average

Perhaps what Garrison Keillor says about people is also true of scientific papers: Welcome to Lake Wobegon, where all the women are strong, all the men are good-looking, and all the children are above average. There’s been another retraction in social psychology, but before you lump it together with the field’s problem children — read: … Continue reading Paper on “better-than-average effect” retracted for being, well, worse than average

“[A]ll of Section 3 is wrong until proven otherwise”: Correction of paper on Democrats’ economic policy

Andrew Gelman, a statistician at Columbia University and a friend of the blog, has corrected a 2008 paper in the blunt way you’d expect him to. Here’s the notice in the Annals of Applied Statistics: In the paper, “Should the Democrats move to the left on economic policy?” AOAS 2 (2), 536-549 (2008), by Andrew … Continue reading “[A]ll of Section 3 is wrong until proven otherwise”: Correction of paper on Democrats’ economic policy

Authors retract paper claiming antidepressants prevent suicide

The authors of a study allegedly showing that antidepressants prevent suicide have retracted it over unspecified errors. Here’s the notice: At the request of the authors and in agreement with the Editor-in-Chief and Wiley-Blackwell, the following article “Antidepressant medication prevents suicide in depression”. Acta Psychiatr Scand 2010;122:454–460 has been retracted. The retraction has been requested … Continue reading Authors retract paper claiming antidepressants prevent suicide

Shifting gears: Occupational health journal pulls study linking shift work, age and sleep disorders

Blaming “data coding errors,” the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health has pulled an article linking shift work, age and sleeping problems. The study was published four months ago, but managed in its brief lifespan to garner significant attention in the mainstream media and the blogosphere, although it has not been cited by any other … Continue reading Shifting gears: Occupational health journal pulls study linking shift work, age and sleep disorders

Weekend reads: Why scientist rankings should be ignored; misconduct claims in court; mining company demands retraction

Would you consider a donation to support Weekend Reads, and our daily work? The week at Retraction Watch featured: Our list of retracted or withdrawn COVID-19 papers is up past 400. There are more than 50,000 retractions in The Retraction Watch Database — which is now part of Crossref. The Retraction Watch Hijacked Journal Checker now contains more than 250 titles. And have … Continue reading Weekend reads: Why scientist rankings should be ignored; misconduct claims in court; mining company demands retraction

‘Mistakes were made’: Paper by department chair earns expression of concern as more questioned

A 14-year-old paper has earned an expression of concern after an anonymous whistleblower found evidence of image duplication in the work.  The authors have had images from several more papers flagged on PubPeer. The corresponding author, Kelly McMasters, is chair of the Hiram C. Polk, Jr., MD Department of Surgery at the University of Louisville … Continue reading ‘Mistakes were made’: Paper by department chair earns expression of concern as more questioned

‘We should have followed up’: Lancet journal retracts article on hearing aids and dementia after prodding

When Jure Mur, a postdoc at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland, realized the replication of a published study he was working on as a “sanity check” wasn’t producing matching results, his first reaction was “annoyance,” he said.  He assumed the mistake was his own, and he’d have to thoroughly check his work to find … Continue reading ‘We should have followed up’: Lancet journal retracts article on hearing aids and dementia after prodding

Editor won’t investigate data concerns about paper linking anti-prostitution laws to increased rape

After reading an economics paper that claimed to document an increase in the rate of rape in European countries following the passage of prostitution bans, a data scientist had questions.  The scientist, who wishes to remain anonymous, sent a detailed email to an editor of the Journal of Law and Economics, which had published the … Continue reading Editor won’t investigate data concerns about paper linking anti-prostitution laws to increased rape