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Opinion: Science Needs Better Fraud Detection—And More Whistleblowers
An influential paper on amyloid protein and Alzheimer’s disease potentially fabricated data. Why did it take 16 years to flag?
Opinion: Science Needs Better Fraud Detection—And More Whistleblowers
Opinion: Science Needs Better Fraud Detection—And More Whistleblowers

An influential paper on amyloid protein and Alzheimer’s disease potentially fabricated data. Why did it take 16 years to flag?

An influential paper on amyloid protein and Alzheimer’s disease potentially fabricated data. Why did it take 16 years to flag?

research integrity

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Agreement Reached on Research Assessment Reforms
Sophie Fessl, PhD | Aug 19, 2022 | 5 min read
The document, which was facilitated by the European Commission, establishes new benchmarks regarding how research assessments should be performed.
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Elisabeth Bik Faces Legal Action After Criticizing Studies
Shawna Williams | May 28, 2021 | 3 min read
A complaint lodged by researchers in France prompts two petitions supporting Bik’s whistleblowing work.
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MDAR Framework Aims to Standardize Reporting in Life Sciences
Shawna Williams | May 7, 2021 | 8 min read
Malcolm Macleod, who helped develop these best practices, tells The Scientist how the new guidelines for manuscript publishing seek to support a push for transparent and thorough sharing of methods and data.
Regina Vega-Trejo holding a net
Incest Isn’t Taboo in Nature: Study
Christie Wilcox, PhD | May 7, 2021 | 4 min read
Avoiding inbreeding appears to be the exception rather than the norm for animals, according to a new meta-analysis of experimental studies.
EXCLUSIVE
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Frontiers Pulls Special COVID-19 Issue After Content Dispute
Catherine Offord | Apr 28, 2021 | 8 min read
The issue’s guest editors resign after falling out with the publisher over the management of papers, including a rejected manuscript on ivermectin, that were submitted for a special issue on drug repurposing for COVID-19.
SEC Charges uBiome Founders with Defrauding Investors
Catherine Offord | Mar 23, 2021 | 2 min read
The microbiome-testing company made misleading claims about its prospects and about its business strategy, which allegedly relied on fooling doctors into ordering unnecessary tests, according to the US government.
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Researchers Develop Standards for Reporting Polygenic Risk Scores
Marcus A. Banks | Mar 17, 2021 | 3 min read
Current reporting about the contribution of genetic variations to a person’s risk of disease is often incomplete and hard to interpret, according to the authors of a set of best practices for presenting such information.
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Hackers Bring Dutch Research Funding Agency to Standstill
Asher Jones | Mar 8, 2021 | 2 min read
After refusing to pay the ransom demanded by those behind a cyberattack, the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research has been out of action since February 8.
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Q&A: Parachute Science in Coral Reef Research
Asher Jones | Feb 24, 2021 | 8 min read
Scientists who study the marine ecosystems have frequently failed to involve local researchers in projects, a study finds.
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STRANGE Framework Addresses Bias in Animal Behavior Research
Amanda Heidt | Jan 27, 2021 | 5 min read
The journal Ethology is the first to adopt the guidelines, aimed at clarifying experimental design and the potential biases within.
High Risk of Bias in Early COVID-19 Studies: Meta-Analysis
Max Kozlov | Jan 14, 2021 | 5 min read
Few peer-reviewed clinical papers on the pandemic contained original data, and many of those that did had poor experimental design.
Opinion: Blowing the Whistle on Research Grant Fraud
Joseph Gentile | Jan 1, 2021 | 5 min read
Reporting cases of misconduct in the context of federal science funding can be a daunting task. But mechanisms to support whistleblowers do exist.
Science Is My Copilot
Bob Grant | Dec 1, 2020 | 3 min read
As the world around us seems increasingly volatile, protecting and respecting the integrity of research and evidence becomes more important than ever.
Scientists, Publishers Debate Paychecks for Peer Reviewers
Shawna Williams | Nov 1, 2020 | 8 min read
While some academics have called for compensation for assessing other scientists’ work, publishers haven’t warmed to the idea.
UPDATED
Physician Behind Surgisphere Scandal Switches Medical Licenses
Catherine Offord | Oct 23, 2020 | 2 min read
Sapan Desai has inactivated his license in Illinois, where multiple malpractice lawsuits against him are pending, and obtained a new one in Ohio.
The Lancet Alters Editorial Practices After Surgisphere Scandal
Catherine Offord | Sep 22, 2020 | 4 min read
The changes, which affect the declarations authors have to sign and the peer-review process, have received a mixed response from the scientific community.
Italian Institute Revokes Appointment of Cancer Researcher
Catherine Offord | Jul 7, 2020 | 2 min read
Pier Paolo Pandolfi left Harvard University last year following allegations of sexual harassment, and has since been accused of research misconduct.
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Opinion: Don’t Disparage the Pace of COVID-19 Research
John D. Loike and Salomon Amar | Jun 22, 2020 | 4 min read
Fast science—with all its warts—is making unprecedented progress in the fight against COVID-19.
Special Report
Surgisphere Sows Confusion About Another Unproven COVID-19 Drug
Catherine Offord | Jun 16, 2020 | 10+ min read
The company behind a now-discredited study on hydroxychloroquine also posted a report that has been cited by Latin American governments recommending ivermectin as a possible coronavirus treatment. Clinicians there say the effects have been extremely damaging.
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