Latest Posts

by Leonid Schneider September 17, 2018 9
Bullying and harassment Research integrity

Abder Kaidi fraud and bullying scandal unravels

The fraud case of Bristol cell biologist Abderrahmane Kaidi looked rather straightforward: Bristol University caught a group leader on data faking and bullying, and immediately had him removed. Turns out, it was not really like that.
Now I publish some very revealing leaked material, spiced with stories of a guerrilla Twitter account and a deleted student newspaper article.

by Leonid Schneider September 11, 2018 72
Academic Publishing Guest post Open Letter

Response to Plan S from Academic Researchers: Unethical, Too Risky!

This is Appeal by several European scientists protesting against Plan S, recently revealed by the EU and a coalition of European research funders. Lynn Kamerlin and her coauthors worry that Plan S will deprive them of quality journal venues and of international collaborative opportunities, while disadvantaging scientists whose research budgets preclude paying and playing in this OA league. They offer instead their own suggestions how to implement Open Science.

by Leonid Schneider September 10, 2018 18
Bullying and harassment News Research integrity

Abderrahmane Kaidi leaves Bristol after misconduct findings

University of Bristol mysteriously lost its senior lecturer, Abderrahmane Kaidi. His institutional website was wiped out in August 2018. I obtained an internal email which lifts the mystery: Kaidi was namely found guilty of “having fabricated research data”, and resigned with “immediate effect”. Affected by research misconduct are also publications from Kaidi’s postdoc period with Stephen Jackson in Cambridge. 

by Leonid Schneider September 6, 2018 55
Medicine Research integrity

Fake data, untouchable men and guilty women at ICR London

With nobody above him, ICR director Paul Workman was seemingly investigating himself, and found two female colleagues guilty of placing fake data into his papers, primarily the ICR emeritus Ann Jackman. One paper was retracted, another received an outrageous correction. The previous ICR CEO, Alan Ashworth, together with his right-hand man Chris Lord, have their own impressive, but hitherto ignored, record on PubPeer.

by Leonid Schneider August 27, 2018 29
Industry Research integrity Smut Clyde

Fake data and real pomegranate juice in Nobelist Louis Ignarro’s papers

Louis J. Ignarro knew how to monetize his 1998 Nobel Prize for discovery of nitric oxide as molecular cell signalling agent. He made many millions selling dietary supplement for Herbalife and pomegranate juice for POM Wonderful Company. Some of that found its way (without proper conflict of interest declaration) into Ignarro’s peer reviewed papers. Those, done in collaboration with certain Photoshop artists like Claudio Napoli, contain clearly fabricated data.