Research Integrity & Open Science
A “Smith (1998) found” copied from someone else’s paper can carry their mistake for twenty years. How to cite honestly when you cannot get the original, check c
Research Integrity & Open Science
A message offers third-author position on a paper “about to be accepted” in an indexed journal. How paper mills operate, why their products get caught, and the
Research Integrity & Open Science
Three years on, a journal asks for the raw data behind Figure 4 and you have changed laptops twice. What to record, paper or electronic notebooks, and how long
Research Integrity & Open Science
Accepting a review invitation means holding unpublished work in confidence. When to decline, how to involve a PhD student properly, and the things a reviewer mu
Research Integrity & Open Science
A reviewer wants seven papers by the same author, or an editor nudges you to cite the journal: how to recognise coercive citation, citation cartels and excessiv
Research Integrity & Open Science
Splitting one survey into three papers, republishing a paper in another language, reusing old data: where legitimate use of a dataset ends and redundant publica
Research Integrity & Open Science
Can you boost contrast on a faint blot? Splice lanes from two gels? A practical classification of image edits that are fine, edits you must declare and edits th
Publishing & Peer Review
An invitation promising review in seven days; a website identical to a respected journal but on a different domain. How to tell predatory, hijacked and grey-zon
Research Integrity & Open Science
Having a conflict of interest is not misconduct; hiding one is. How to spot financial and non-financial conflicts, model disclosure wording, and when reviewers
Research Integrity & Open Science
Authorship disputes tend to erupt just before submission, when everyone is tired. The four ICMJE criteria, CRediT roles and an early written agreement prevent m
