(PDF) Overspecialization and the Fragmentation of Scientific Knowledge -The Molehill Effect How Niche Research, Consensus-Based Objectivity, and Missing Integration Shape Contemporary Research Epistem... PDF | Contemporary scientific research is characterized by increasing specialization, resulting in fragmented knowledge structures across disciplines.... | Find, read and cite all the research you nee...

I explore this tension between precision and perspective in my latest paper, examining how science can thrive when we balance specialization with broader inquiry.
🧪 #Interdisciplinarity #ResearchIntegrity #SciWri #SciComm #philsci #SciComment #ResearchQuality #ScienceIntegrity #ResearchEthics

a man in a green coat is holding a container Alt: a man in a lab coat is putting a container down while saying: "Why!?! Because it's science. That's why!"

3/3
When criticism is met with “this is just how science works,” curiosity turns into compliance. Defending systems is easier than questioning them—but it’s not the same as defending science. Where do you see this line being blurred?
#ScienceCritique
#SciComment
#philsci
#SciWri
#ResearchIntegrity
🧪

2/3
What we rarely ask: when scientists defend “science,” what are we actually defending?

Critical inquiry—or the funding structures, incentives, and career systems wrapped around it?

These are not the same thing, but they’re often treated as one.

#ResearchPolicy
#SciComment
#philsci
#SciWri
🧪

1/3
Public trust in science is eroding. Not because people suddenly reject evidence, but because “science” is often presented as unquestionable authority.

“Trust this—because it’s science.” That used to work. It doesn’t anymore.

#ResearchIntegrity
#SciComment
#philsci
#SciWri
#TrustInScience
🧪

abstract of the prosocial behavior study in nature: npj

#SciComment, what do we think of the benefits of using Batman in metros to nudge riders?

Strong odds ratio, low p-value, but a priming claim in 2025 requires a bit more thought IMO.

www.nature.com/articles/s44...

Synesthesia Helps Me Find Four Leaf Clovers I explain how my synesthesia condition helps me to find four-leaf clovers

If synesthesia can help perceptual discrimination, I wonder if there are any synesthetic sleuths doing #ImageFraud checks.

#SciComment

matthewjamestaylor.com/synesthesia-...

High prevalence of articles with image-related problems in animal studies of subarachnoid hemorrhage and low rates of correction by publishers Unchallenged erroneous articles can undermine scientific progress and mislead future research. This study shows that image-related issues affect 40% of reviewed articles on early brain injury in anima...

Q: What do 40% of papers on animal stroke experiments have in common?

A: Fake data.

So found a study published Thursday in @plosbiology.org
journals.plos.org/plosbiology/...

🧪 #ResearchIntegrity #SciComment

#SciComment Nice example of protecting ECRs from critiques that they had no power to avoid...

Como afirma Sandra Ferreira en Ética, subjetividad y política📖: “el sujeto ético no es el que simplemente obedece, sino el que reflexiona, el que se pregunta, el que decide en función del otro y con el otro en mente”. 🤔👥 #scicomment

#SciComment

En contextos donde se confunde lo público con lo privado, y la institucionalidad queda sometida al interés de las facciones, el Estado ya no representa a la ciudadanía. 💲💵 🏢 #scicomment

#SciComment

Who here has contributed directly to the Signals platform for publicizing problematic papers?

Weirdly, it uses a small Google Form embed to solicit critiques. Surely there are better options?

Site: app.research-signals.com/user/profile
Submit: research-signals.com/expert-contr...

🕵️ Sleuthing exercise for #SciComment:

What's going on in this table? 👇

Bonus points: guess the publisher and journal

#SciComment 101

Lecture 01: Elevating Scientific Standards

Assignment: read PubPeer and comment on an existing thread or post a new comment about an article of your choice

Understanding pastoralism in southern Madagascar - REPAiR project Understanding the cultures and contexts of pastoralism in Madagascar is vital to supporting resilience in rangelands.

The big lesson? Pastoralists’ voices matter. Their knowledge is key to building climate resilience and sustainable land use.

Read the full blog 👇
repairproject.org/Blog/underst...
#SciPol #envhum #ecology #ecosystems #SciComment

Bulbous epiphytic plant with long green leaves clinging to a tree trunk in a shaded forest.

Researcher kneeling beside a tree with a flowering epiphytic orchid growing vertically along the trunk.

Epiphytes are underrepresented on the Red List. Our findings suggest they should be front and centre in plant conservation.

📄 Read the full Nature Plants paper here: www.nature.com/articles/s41...

#PlantScience #conservation #HiSciSky #SciComment #epiphytes #biodiversity

The Good News Network: Positive Stories 24/7 Your daily source for only good news: Inspiring stories and images from around the world will make you feel uplifted, optimistic and positive about life.

As much as I'm addicted to #researchintegrity and retraction discourse, I'd love to see a community that's the opposite of RetractionWatch and #SciComment.

Are there any hubs for consuming reliable science? Some kind of "good news network" Academic edition?

inspiration: www.goodnewsnetwork.org

Is it just me or are these numbers not adding up?
Why's the 95% CI so strange?

Spotted in: informatics.bmj.com/content/30/1...

#SciComment

In extremely rare move, Harvard revokes tenure and cuts ties with star business professor An internal investigation had found that Harvard Business School professor Francesca Gino’s research on why people lie and cheat was based on falsified data.

It takes time to correct the record and enact justice, but it happens from time to time, even in higher ed.

Article: In extremely rare move, Harvard revokes tenure and cuts ties with star business professor

Meaning... #Gino #SciComment #fraud

I'm looking for examples of post-publication peer review on social media that resulted in considerable harms to the study authors (mistaken accusations or cyberbullying).

Are there examples I've missed over the past few years?

#SciComment #MetaScience #PeerReview

#SciComment

Thoughts on a draft of a personality manuscript using age to predict personality traits accurately?

You should check out #SciComment then, as it's an existing "informal peer review" community that could be studied and expanded.

Consider R4E for #GivingTuesday 2024 — R4E R4E Taught Me! R4E’s December Campaign to Support Reproducibility Education #R4EtaughtMe

#Academicsky
##StatsEd #StatEd #SciComment

This is so simple but so important. If you make an error, fix it!
#SciComment

What are the analogs of #SciComment on LinkedIn, Mastodon, and Reddit?

So far, I only see r/PeerReview as a close cousin of this feed on Reddit (via @jamesheathers.bsky.social).

Are there truly so few established communities for "informal peer review" discussions?

🧐 #SciComment + #ResearchIntegrity

I've got a challenge for you re: journal websites with comments sections:

Do you have any examples of critiques of the article?

It'd be great to find cases when the comments section:
a. led to updates/retractions
b. didn't lead to updates/retractions

Inappropriate causal assumptions underlie Killingsworth, Kahneman, and Mellers’ conclusions | PNAS Inappropriate causal assumptions underlie Killingsworth, Kahneman, and Mellers’ conclusions

Finally out:

Rohrer, J. M., & Wenz, S. E. (2024). Inappropriate causal assumptions underlie Killingsworth, Kahneman, and Mellers’ conclusions. PNAS, 121(46). www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

#methods #methodology #causality #causalinference #sociology #psychology #SciComment #quantileregression

#SciComment

#SciComment

#SciComment I'm curious to know...

❓If you evaluate papers online using PubPeer, blogs, microblogging services, personal websites, etc... why do you like certain technologies over others?

🤔 What prevents you from using PubPeer or ResearcHub instead of other transient or hard-to-find platforms?