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Scitility’s tool Argos identifies work whose authors have a record of misconduct. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Data from giant project show how withdrawn research propagates through the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Some publishers say they are battling industrialized cheating. A Nature analysis examines the 'paper mill' problem -- and how editors are trying to cope. Some publishers say they are battling industrialized cheating. A Nature analysis examines the 'paper mill' problem -- and how editors are trying to cope., Author(s): Holly Else, Richard Van Noorden Author Affiliations: Illustration by Ana Kova Cartoon of researchers looking at a stack of papers with Western Blots. A magnifying glass shows the blots [...]

A scientist reviewing a study spotted figures that looked identical to his own, leading to a frustrating campaign to prevent its publication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pulp and paper industry is an important contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions1,2. Country-specific strategies are essential for the industry to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, given its vast heterogeneities across countries3,4. Here we develop a comprehensive bottom-up assessment of net greenhouse gas emissions of the domestic paper-related sectors for 30 major countries from 1961 to 2019—about 3.2% of global anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions from the same period5—and explore mitigation strategies through 2,160 scenarios covering key factors. Our results show substantial differences across countries in terms of historical emissions evolution trends and structure. All countries can achieve net-zero emissions for their pulp and paper industry by 2050, with a single measure for most developed countries and several measures for most developing countries. Except for energy-efficiency improvement and energy-system decarbonization, tropical developing countries with abundant forest resources should give priority to sustainable forest management, whereas other developing countries should pay more attention to enhancing methane capture rate and reducing recycling. These insights are crucial for developing net-zero strategies tailored to each country and achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 for the pulp and paper industry.A bottom-up assessment of the net greenhouse gas emissions of the pulp and paper industries of 30 countries from 1961 to 2019 leads to country-specific strategies to achieve net zero by 2050. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The number of articles being retracted rose sharply this year. Integrity experts say that this is only the tip of the iceberg. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Unreliable data, falsification and other issues related to misconduct are driving a growing proportion of retractions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An unpublished analysis suggests that there are hundreds of thousands of bogus ‘paper-mill’ articles lurking in the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Theories of scientific and technological change view discovery and invention as endogenous processes1,2, wherein previous accumulated knowledge enables future progress by allowing researchers to, in Newton’s words, ‘stand on the shoulders of giants’3–7. Recent decades have witnessed exponential growth in the volume of new scientific and technological knowledge, thereby creating conditions that should be ripe for major advances8,9. Yet contrary to this view, studies suggest that progress is slowing in several major fields10,11. Here, we analyse these claims at scale across six decades, using data on 45 million papers and 3.9 million patents from six large-scale datasets, together with a new quantitative metric—the CD index12—that characterizes how papers and patents change networks of citations in science and technology. We find that papers and patents are increasingly less likely to break with the past in ways that push science and technology in new directions. This pattern holds universally across fields and is robust across multiple different citation- and text-based metrics1,13–17. Subsequently, we link this decline in disruptiveness to a narrowing in the use of previous knowledge, allowing us to reconcile the patterns we observe with the ‘shoulders of giants’ view. We find that the observed declines are unlikely to be driven by changes in the quality of published science, citation practices or field-specific factors. Overall, our results suggest that slowing rates of disruption may reflect a fundamental shift in the nature of science and technology.A decline in disruptive science and technology over time is reported, representing a substantive shift in science and technology, which is attributed in part to the reliance on a narrower set of existing knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Experiments reveal that human skin is most reliably cut by specific thicknesses of paper, including the kind used to print certain high-profile journals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Elisabeth Bik quit her job to spot errors in research papers -- and has become the public face of image sleuthing. Elisabeth Bik quit her job to spot errors in research papers -- and has become the public face of image sleuthing., Author(s): Helen Shen Author Affiliations: Credit: Gabriela Hasbun for Nature [see PDF for image] Elisabeth Bik poses for a portrait taken through glass reflecting a garden showing her sitting at [...]

Make science more reliable by placing the burden of replicability on the community, not on individual laboratories. Make science more reliable by placing the burden of replicability on the community, not on individual laboratories., Author(s): Olavo B. Amaral, Kleber Neves Author Affiliations: Reproducibility: expect less of the scientific paper Credit: David Parkins Illo of a person squashed by pile of papers. In 2018, we [...]

EXCLUSIVE: Poor-quality studies are polluting the literature — a group will study the businesses that produce them to stem the flow of bogus research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper-folding mechanism has been widely adopted in building of reconfigurable macroscale systems because of its unique capabilities and advantages in programming variable shapes and stiffness into a structure1–5. However, it has barely been exploited in the construction of molecular-level systems owing to the lack of a suitable design principle, even though various dynamic structures based on DNA self-assembly6–9 have been developed10–23. Here we propose a method to harness the paper-folding mechanism to create reconfigurable DNA origami structures. The main idea is to build a reference, planar wireframe structure24 whose edges follow a crease pattern in paper folding so that it can be folded into various target shapes. We realized several paper-like folding and unfolding patterns using DNA strand displacement25 with high yield. Orthogonal folding, repeatable folding and unfolding, folding-based microRNA detection and fluorescence signal control were demonstrated. Stimuli-responsive folding and unfolding triggered by pH or light-source change were also possible. Moreover, by employing hierarchical assembly26 we could expand the design space and complexity of the paper-folding mechanism in a highly programmable manner. Because of its high programmability and scalability, we expect that the proposed paper-folding-based reconfiguration method will advance the development of complex molecular systems.A method is presented to harness the paper-folding mechanism of reconfigurable macroscale systems to create reconfigurable DNA origami structures, in anticipation that it will advance the development of complex molecular systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To thwart publishing rackets that undermine scholars and scholarly publishing, legitimate journals should show their workings. To thwart publishing rackets that undermine scholars and scholarly publishing, legitimate journals should show their workings., Author(s): Kyle Siler, Vincent Larivière, Philippe Vincent-Lamarre, Cassidy R. Sugimoto Author Affiliations: Illustration by David Parkins Cartoon of four researchers attacking a many headed hydra with swords Predatory publishers' latest [...]

Some researchers have their manuscripts screened for errors before they go to journals. Some researchers have their manuscripts screened for errors before they go to journals., Author(s): Alison Abbott Author Affiliations: Illustration by Ana Kova The science institutions hiring integrity inspectors to vet their papers On 15 June 2017, scientists at a respected biological institute in [...]

Browser plug-in alerts users when studies — or their references — have been posted on a site known for raising integrity concerns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scientists compiling a review scan more than 1,000 papers and find troubling images in some 10%.Scientists compiling a review scan more than 1,000 papers and find troubling images in nearly 20%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Productivity coaches, boot camps and online meet-ups teach researchers to avoid distractions and negative thoughts to get their writing projects done. Productivity coaches, boot camps and online meet-ups teach researchers to avoid distractions and negative thoughts to get their writing projects done., Author(s): Roberta Kwok Author Affiliations: You can get that paper, thesis or grant written -- with a little help Credit: Kristin Lee/Getty [see PDF for image] Pencil on open notebook [...]

Highlights from News & Views published this year. Highlights from News & Views published this year., Author Affiliations: Robots, hominins and superconductors: 10 remarkable papers from 2019 Credit: Sylvain Cherkaoui/Reuters [see PDF for image] A porter carries fish from a fishing boat to the beach at [...]

For a century, scientists pondered whether bird flight evolved by animals gliding down from trees or by creatures running and flapping from the ground up. A landmark 1974 paper reset the debate to focus on the evolution of the flight stroke instead. Fiftieth anniversary of an advance in understanding how flight evolved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Awareness of when a paper can’t be trusted is often too low — but adopting some easy-to-use technological solutions can help researchers, publishers and referees to clean things up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Text- and image-generating tools present a new hurdle for efforts to tackle the growing number of fake papers making their way into the academic literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A giant data store quietly being built in India could free vast swathes of science for computer analysis -- but is it legal? A giant data store quietly being built in India could free vast swathes of science for computer analysis --but is it legal?, Author(s): Priyanka Pulla Author Affiliations: Carl Malamud in front of the data store of 73 million articles that he plans to let scientists text mine. [see PDF for image] Credit: [...]

The nonsensical computer-generated articles, spotted years after the problem was first seen, could lead to a wave of retractions. The nonsensical computer-generated articles, spotted years after the problem was first seen, could lead to a wave of retractions., Author(s): Richard Van Noorden Author Affiliations: Hundreds of gibberish papers still lurk in the scientific literature Nonsensical research papers generated by a computer program are still popping up in the [...]

Personality traits help to explain why some people and not others hoarded a humdrum product in the face of a deadly virus. Personality traits help to explain why some people and not others hoarded a humdrum product in the face of a deadly virus., Author Affiliations: Precious commodities: shoppers in Bangkok stock up on toilet paper and kitchen roll. [see PDF for image] Credit: Jack Taylor/AFP/Getty People wearing face masks manoeuvre a shopping trolley [...]

Analysis reveals that strange turns of phrase may indicate foul play in science. Analysis reveals that strange turns of phrase may indicate foul play in science., Author(s): Holly Else Author Affiliations: 'Tortured phrases' give away fabricated research papers In April 2021, a series of strange phrases in journal articles piqued the interest of a group of [...]

An algorithm that takes just seconds to scan a paper for duplicated images racks up more suspicious images than a person. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By designing an autonomous system that fed prompts to the chatbot, researchers produced a paper that was fluent and insightful. Yet they still have concerns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Concerns about image integrity have so far led to 17 retractions, corrections or expressions of concern for papers co-authored by geneticist Gregg Semenza. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Oxford-AstraZeneca partnership is the first major developer to publish detailed data from phase III trials. The Oxford-AstraZeneca partnership is the first major developer to publish detailed data from phase III trials., Author(s): Heidi Ledford Author Affiliations: Oxford COVID-vaccine paper highlights lingering unknowns about results The results suggest that the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine is safe and effective. Credit: Juan Mabromata/AFP/Getty A scientist working [...]

Four journals also say they are scrutinizing papers coauthored by Cao Xuetao after scientists raise questions about images on Twitter and PubPeer. Four journals also say they are scrutinizing papers coauthored by Cao Xuetao after scientists raise questions about images on Twitter and PubPeer., Author(s): Andrew Silver Author Affiliations: Chinese ministry investigates duplications in papers by university president Articles written by university president Cao Xuetao are being investigated over suggestions that dozens of papers [...]

Hundreds of junk-science papers have been retracted from reputable journals after fraudsters used 'special issues' to manipulate the publication process. And the problem is growing. Hundreds of junk-science papers have been retracted from reputable journals after fraudsters used 'special issues' to manipulate the publication process. And the problem is growing., Author(s): Holly Else Author Affiliations: Scammers impersonate guest editors to get sham papers published Scammers have impersonated researchers to gain access to reputable journals and publish special issues filled with [...]

This journal will double down on efforts to diversify the pool of corresponding authors and referees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Allegations of fabricated data have prompted a university investigation and some soul-searching. Allegations of fabricated data have prompted a university investigation and some soul-searching., Author(s): Giuliana Viglione Author Affiliations: 'Avalanche' of spider-paper retractions shakes behavioural-ecology community Studies of social spiders such as Stegodyphus dumicola (pictured) have come under close scrutiny. Credit: Bernard Dupont (CC [...]

The latest science news, in brief. The latest science news, in brief., Author Affiliations: Devastating fires, Iran nuclear tensions and pirate papers A house is destroyed by wildfire in New South Wales, Australia. Credit: Matthew Abbott/NYT/Redux/eyevine A kangaroo rushes past a burning [...]

The latest science news, in brief. The latest science news, in brief., Author Affiliations: Thousand-author papers, lab outbreaks and a prisoner exchange White Island, a marine volcano off New Zealand, erupted while tourists were exploring its crater. Credit: Michael Schade/Xinhua News Agency/eyevine [...]

Letter to the Editor, Author(s): Angela I. N. Obasi, Seye Abimbola, Ndekya Oriyo, Ben Morton, André Vercueil, Refiloe Masekela Author Affiliations: Credit local authors fairly on international research papers As co-signatories on a consensus [...]

Three examples show how public participation in research can be extended at every step of the process to generate useful knowledge.Three examples show how public participation in research can be extended at every step of the process to generate useful knowledge., Author(s): Gary Hickey, Tessa Richards, Jeff SheehyAuthor Affiliations:Co-production from proposal to paper Children with artificial limbs and their carers talk to researchers and industry representatives about improving prosthetics. [see PDF [...]

Author(s): Yiqin Alicia Shen; Yuichi Shoda; Ione Fine Our analysis of primary research papers in 15 prestigious multidisciplinary and neuroscience journals in the MEDLINE database indicates that the proportion of [...]

The Toolbox 'Need a paper? Get a plug-in' () stated that Éric Archambault is an independent bibliometrician. He is actually chief executive of Science-Metrix in Montreal, Canada. DOI: [...]