Avery Orrall
@averyorrall.bsky.social
Staff Reporter @RetractionWatch | Journalist
Nature has retracted a paper after an investigation at a U.K. institution found the first author — then a doctoral student — manipulated data.
Nature retracts paper for data manipulation by Ph.D. student
Nature has retracted a paper after an investigation at a U.K. institution found the first author — then a doctoral student — manipulated data. The paper, which looked at the sensitivity of lu…
retractionwatch.com
Exclusive: A World Bank report on obesity trends with at least 14 fake references in the text has been removed from the website and is being reviewed by the organization following a Retraction Watch inquiry.
World Bank report ‘removed for review’ of nonexistent references after Retraction Watch inquiry
A World Bank report on obesity trends with at least 14 fake references in the text has been removed from the website and is being reviewed by the organization following a Retraction Watch inquiry.&…
retractionwatch.com
@bmj.com has issued an expression of concern for a paper claiming stem cell therapy can reduce the risk of heart failure. The move comes after sleuths and scientists critiqued the “complete mismatch” between the study data and the article itself.
BMJ places expression of concern on heavily criticized stem cell paper
The BMJ has issued an expression of concern for a paper claiming stem cell therapy can reduce the risk of heart failure. The move comes after sleuths and scientists critiqued the “complete mismatch…
retractionwatch.com
A network of peer reviewers in Italy is targeting medical journals, threatening “both the scientific record and patient safety,” a team of researchers including @deevybee.bsky.social report.
Review mill in Italy targeting ob-gyn journals, researchers allege
Examples of “boilerplate” text used in the suspect reviews.M.A. Oviedo-Garcia et al/medRxiv 2025 A network of peer reviewers in Italy is targeting medical journals, threatening “both the scientific…
retractionwatch.com
A journal says it will retract a 2019 paper on an Alzheimer’s treatment after an institutional investigation found research misconduct, according to emails seen by Retraction Watch.
Exclusive: Journal to retract Alzheimer’s study after investigation finds misconduct
A journal says it will retract a 2019 paper on an Alzheimer’s treatment after an institutional investigation found research misconduct, according to emails seen by Retraction Watch. The move …
retractionwatch.com
What would you do if you discovered your name in a list of experts on sex robots despite having never studied sex robots?
A peer-reviewed paper claimed a researcher was an expert in sex robots. He’s not.
3dalia/iStock What would you do if you discovered your name in a list of experts on sex robots despite having never studied sex robots? That was the situation for one rather panicked research…
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‘Tin Man Syndrome’ case plagiarized from April Fools hoax, sleuths say
‘Tin Man Syndrome’ case plagiarized from hoax, sleuths say
A comparison of the images and an overlay, provided by a sleuth. On April Fools’ Day 10 years ago, radiologist Matt Skalski took part in a website’s annual challenge to prank the radiology communit…
retractionwatch.com
Genomics pioneer George Church earns first retraction for anti-aging gene therapy paper @averyorrall.bsky.social reports
Genomics pioneer George Church earns first retraction for anti-aging gene therapy paper
George Church A paper coauthored by geneticist George Church has been retracted following an internal review at a university where several coauthors are based. The article appeared in the Proceedin…
retractionwatch.com
Once upon a time, two science journalists had an idea for a blog about retractions. And on Aug. 3, 2010, Retraction Watch launched. And now, 15 years and 6,700 posts later, that work seems more important than ever. Happy 15th anniversary, Retraction Watch.
Happy 15th anniversary, Retraction Watch
Once upon a time, a long time ago, two science journalists had an idea for a blog about retractions. And on Aug. 3, 2010, Retraction Watch launched, detailing in the first post why retractions matt…
retractionwatch.com
"Clarivate will no longer include citations to and from retracted papers when calculating journal impact factors, the company announced today." @averyorrall.bsky.social via @retractionwatch.com retractionwatch.com/2025/05/15/c...
Clarivate to stop counting citations to retracted articles in journals’ impact factors
Clarivate will no longer include citations to and from retracted papers when calculating journal impact factors, the company announced today. The change comes after some have wondered over th…
retractionwatch.com
My latest!
Science Magazine@science.org · last yr.Work relating to Microsoft’s new quantum computing chip has been called into question after an author on the 2017 study acknowledged it contained “undisclosed data manipulations,” according to emails obtained by Retraction Watch and Science. scim.ag/42Z6Vz2
Do men or women retract more? A study found the answer is … complicated
Do men or women retract more? A study found the answer is … complicated
A new study compares retraction rates between men and women. Pexels Longtime Retraction Watch readers know the scientists on our Leaderboard have changed over the years. But one characteristic has …
retractionwatch.com
A ‘joke’: Paper with ‘completely irrelevant’ citations retracted
A ‘joke’: Paper with ‘completely irrelevant’ citations retracted
A paper that made the rounds last year for its blatantly “irrelevant” citations has now been retracted. Elsevier’s International Journal of Hydrogen Energy published “Origin of the distinct s…
retractionwatch.com
My latest for JAMA!
JAMA@jama.com · last yr.“As people use AI more frequently, are they going to become more confident in their own skills of being able to differentiate what’s true vs what’s false?” This Medical News article discusses a KFF poll about the public's trust in #AI. https://ja.ma/4bMrwus
On February 28, the nonprofit Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture, which owns the journal, released a statement saying it was halting the issue for increased risks due to “new actions by the U.S. federal administration.”
Editorial board resigns after journal cancels special issue on Palestine
The editorial board of an architecture journal has resigned after its parent association cancelled an upcoming theme issue titled “Palestine.” The Journal of Architectural Education pla…
retractionwatch.com
Five studies from “Bust Size and Hitchhiking” author retracted @averyorrall.bsky.social reports
Five studies from “Bust Size and Hitchhiking” author retracted
A journal has retracted five papers about the appearance, sexual behavior and attractiveness of women. Nicolas Guéguen, a professor of marketing at the Université de Bretagne-Sud in France, w…
retractionwatch.com
A journal has retracted three papers after an investigation revealed one of the authors falsely claimed he was affiliated with the United States Department of Agriculture.
Author forges document to claim USDA affiliation
A journal has retracted three papers after an investigation revealed one of the authors falsely claimed he was affiliated with the United States Department of Agriculture. All three retraction noti…
retractionwatch.com
A four-year-old paper claiming conversion therapy reduced same-sex thoughts in gay men has been retracted after criticism from other researchers prompted further review of the work.
Paper on conversion therapy retracted, authors planning to republish
D. Paul Sullins A four-year-old paper claiming conversion therapy reduced same-sex thoughts in gay men has been retracted after criticism from other researchers prompted further review of the work.…
retractionwatch.com
Two papers coauthored by a dean in India retracted, with a third in question @averyorrall.bsky.social reports
Two papers coauthored by a dean retracted, with a third in question
Two papers on a novel approach for flood prediction have been retracted for “substantial overlap” between the works. The authors, including Debopam Acharya, dean of the School of Computing at DIT U…
retractionwatch.com
At publication time, Neurosurgical Review had retracted 129 papers so far this year. The journal, a Springer Nature publication, paused acceptance of letters to the editor and commentaries last fall. @averyorrall.bsky.social reports
As Springer Nature journal clears AI papers, one university’s retractions rise drastically
Neurosurgical Review has begun retracting scores of commentaries and letters to the editor after getting inundated by AI-generated manuscripts. At the top of the affiliations list: Saveetha U…
retractionwatch.com
Anatomy of a retraction: When cleaning up the literature takes six years @averyorrall.bsky.social reports
Anatomy of a retraction: When cleaning up the literature takes six years
Dario Alessi In 2018, a biochemist in Scotland became aware of image irregularities in two of his papers through comments on PubPeer, each in a different journal. The researcher, Dario Alessi, a pr…
retractionwatch.com
Journal updates retraction notice to include plagiarism following Retraction Watch report @averyorrall.bsky.social reports
Journal updates retraction notice to include plagiarism following Retraction Watch report
The editor-in-chief of a journal updated a retraction notice to acknowledge the data in the paper were “completely plagiarized” following allegations in a letter to the editor that were the subject…
retractionwatch.com
"The corresponding author did not reply to inquiries; however, one of the coauthors did respond and admitted that the study published above was not actually performed." @averyorrall.bsky.social reports
Paper retracted after author told journal study was ‘not actually performed’
Nearly 20 years after the publication of a paper on phytoestrogens in postmenopausal women, one of the authors said the study had never been performed, according to a recently published retraction …
retractionwatch.com
I’ll be writing daily stories for @smithsonianmag.bsky.social’s Smart News section this month! Read my latest to learn more about the Santa Ana winds 💨
L.A. Fire-Fueling Winds Slow Down, Offering a Short Reprieve. What Are the Santa Ana Winds, and Why Do They Fan the Flames?
The seasonal gusts have exacerbated the deadly fires, and they’re expected to pick back up next week
smithsonianmag.com
Sage slaps more than 100 papers from one journal with expressions of concern @averyorrall.bsky.social reports
Sage slaps more than 100 papers from one journal with expressions of concern
The Sage journal American Surgeon has issued a mass expression of concern for 116 articles. The expression of concern states the journal “was made aware” of “concerning author activity” on th…
retractionwatch.com
Climate and health: Stories to watch in 2025 + Meet @retractionwatch.com’s two new journalists: Managing editor @katetravis.bsky.social , and reporter @averyorrall.bsky.social: sciencewriting.substack.com/p/science-wr... #science #sciencewriting #climate #health
✍️Science Writing News Roundup #223
How—and Why—to Write a Science News Release + Climate and health: Stories to watch in 2025.
sciencewriting.substack.com
The 14 universities with publication metrics researchers say are too good to be true @averyorrall.bsky.social reports
The 14 universities with publication metrics researchers say are too good to be true
Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences More than a dozen universities have used “questionable authorship practices” to inflate their publication metrics, authors of a new study say. O…
retractionwatch.com
Please join us in welcoming two new Retraction Watch staff members: Managing editor @katetravis.bsky.social, and reporter Avery Orrall.
Meet Retraction Watch’s two new journalists
Please join us in welcoming two new Retraction Watch staff members: Managing editor Kate Travis, and reporter Avery Orrall.
retractionwatch.com