Latest news with #PLOSOne
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Study sheds light on how reams of fake scientific papers are getting into literature
Fraudulent scientific research is now being produced and published on a large scale, with some unethical researchers colluding with unethical editors to attain the prestige that comes with publication, according to a new study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Large groups of editors and authors appear to have cooperated in what it called "the tide of fraudulent science." Among their efforts, the researchers who conducted the study obtained about 47,000 retracted articles. They collected reports of the same image used in multiple publications. They compiled 33,000 papers of suspicious origin. Making use of the fact that editors' names are public at some science publishers, they looked at whether some editors handled disproportionate numbers of problematic scientific papers, ones that were later retracted or noted negatively by other scientists. At the journal PLOS One, they were able to link 30.2% of the retracted articles to 45 editors. Of these editors, 25 had their own papers retracted. The 45 editors represented 0.25% of the total number of editors at the journal. PLOS One did not respond to a request for comment. Researchers also found clusters of articles accepted in less than a month, often involving the same editors and authors. 'They found cases where people submitted papers and those papers got accepted extremely fast, and when you looked at the editors, they were just sending them to each other,' said Luís Amaral, a systems biologist at Northwestern University and senior author of the study. 'There are people who believe that there is widespread fraud,' said Reese Richardson, a postdoctoral researcher in the Amaral Lab at Northwestern and lead author of the study. 'What this paper does is give a method and a starting point and the data to show that this is actually happening, and that the current mechanisms are not equipped to stop it.' The study's findings confirm the suspicions of many researchers, including Elisabeth Bik, a microbiologist and independent scientific integrity consultant who has spent years identifying fraudulent research. In one case, she found 125 papers that reused parts of the same image. 'It was the same photo, but different crops of the same image," she said. "They didn't generate the photos themselves. They got the photos from a third party — a broker, a paper mill.' Researchers have been using the term "paper mill" to describe organizations that sell mass-produced low quality and fabricated research articles. Many of these fraudulent papers, Bik added, seem to come from doctors or researchers in countries where promotions are tied to publication metrics. They see it as an investment, she explained, where a couple of thousand dollars gets them a paper, and a fast track up the promotional ladder. This institutional pressure is especially common in India and China, where promotions, medical licensing or graduation are linked by policy to publication counts, several experts said. In a survey of medical residents in China three years ago, 47% admitted to buying and selling papers, letting other people write papers, or writing papers for others. When the study authors analyzed an archive of articles from a business offering services to "research professionals who are desperate" for publication, they found 26% of the authors were from India. Although the "publish or perish" culture is also common in the U.S., it manifests more in expectations around prestige, funding and tenure, rather than fixed quotas. India and China are the world's most populous nations and both are scientific powerhouses. The paper notes that science fraud can happen anywhere. The accumulation of fake literature has turned some scientific fields — RNA biology, for example — into what Richardson called an academic "minefield," making it difficult for researchers to identify which studies are reliable. Some fraudulent studies have even made it into meta-analyses that shape the way doctors treat patients. They found evidence that this field of research has been targeted by bad actors. Experts say growing awareness of fraud could feed broader skepticism of science, especially if institutional action doesn't keep up. 'The more polluted the record becomes, the harder it is to clean up, and the harder it is to rebuild trust inside and outside the scientific community,' said Stephanie Kinnan, a longtime member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). The scientific community has tools to fight back. It fines and excludes researchers and universities. Journals retract articles. Aggregators can sideline problematic journals. But the authors of the paper found the amount of "research" from suspected paper mills has been doubling roughly every 1½ years. The actions are not keeping up. For Amaral, and many other scientists, the implications are deeply personal. 'I dreamed of being a scientist since I was 12,' he said. 'Seeing the thing that I've dreamt of being a part of, that I cherish, being potentially destroyed is really enraging.' All research is built on previous research, Amaral explained. That collapses without trust. "This is the great fear — that the entire scientific enterprise that gave us vaccines, that gave us medicine for cancer, that gave us, X-ray machines, computer scanning devices — would just disappear,' he said. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. Solve the daily Crossword
RNZ News
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- RNZ News
Cockatoos that feel the beat perform 30 distinct dance moves, study shows
Cockatoos can headbang, body roll and sidestep intentionally to music, according to a new study by Charles Sturt University. Researchers have analysed 45 social media videos of cockatoos dancing and identified 30 distinct movements, 17 of which had never been documented before. In the study, published today in the journal PLOS One, researchers found some cockatoos had their own signature moves, unique to each individual, while other species appeared to favour different styles. Natasha Lubke's research shows that dancing behaviour is more common in cockatoos than previously thought. Photo: Supplied: CSU Media To further investigate the behaviour of the cockatoos, the research team went beyond the screen and into the field to Wagga Wagga Zoo in New South Wales. There, they studied six cockatoos, including two Major Mitchells, two sulphur-crested cockatoos and two galahs. Over a 20-minute period, each bird experienced either silence, music or a podcast. Lead researcher Natasha Lubke chose the playlist, opting for Avicii's The Nights for the music and She's on the Money for the podcast. "It's a great podcast. We're just educating the birds on their finances," Ms Lubke joked. One particularly enthusiastic Major Mitchell cockatoo made a total of 257 moves in sequence while listening to a 20-minute loop of The Nights. In both parts of the study - the online video analysis and the zoo observation - dancing was observed in 10 of the 21 known cockatoo species in the Cacatuidae family of the parrot species. Natasha Lubke hopes music can be used to enrich the lives of captive cockatoos. Photo: Supplied: CSU Media Many of the dance moves were similar to courtship displays, indicating their dancing may have originated as courtship behaviour that has been redirected towards their owners. One of the cockatoos performed more than 250 dance moves. Photo: Supplied: Irena Schulz Spontaneous dancing in time to music had only been officially recorded in humans until Snowball, the sulphur-crested cockatoo, went viral for dancing to the Backstreet Boys more than a decade ago. In 2019, in a Current Biology study, professor of psychology at Tufts University, Aniruddh Patel, and his colleagues explored Snowball's ability to dance spontaneously, challenging the long-held belief that sophisticated movement to music was uniquely human. The study showed that Snowball developed 16 distinct moves without any formal training to dance. But it was not known if other cockatoos would develop other moves, or if a parrot's dance moves were largely determined by its genetic makeup as a member of a particular species. "By studying dancing to music in numerous parrots across several species, the new study found 17 new moves, and also showed that relatedness between species did not predict how similar the dance moves of different parrots were," Professor Patel said. "These findings are exciting because they demonstrate that flexible and creative dancing to music is not uniquely human." While it may seem like an amusing curiosity, for scientists it raises many questions. "Why is this behaviour seen in parrots but not in our closest living relatives - chimpanzees and bonobos - when raised by humans?" Professor Patel said. "After all, ape brains are much closer to ours in size and overall structure than parrot brains are, and genetically parrots are more closely related to extinct dinosaurs than to humans." Scientists are developing neuroscientific theories to explain the mystery of why dancing to music emerges without any special training in some human-raised parrots but not in human-raised apes. It's still unclear what motivates cockatoos to dance. Ms Lubke has a theory. "I don't believe that they dance based on imitation," she said. "That rules out the theory they're just dancing because people are dancing. I think they're definitely dancing, and it appears to be a form of play behaviour - they're doing it because they're in a positive welfare state." Researchers hope the discovery could lead to new ways to enrich the lives of captive birds - particularly intelligent parrots who may suffer in environments lacking stimulation. "The similarities with human dancing make it hard to argue against well-developed cognitive and emotional processes in parrots," said co-author Rafael Freire, an expert in animal behaviour. "Playing music to parrots may improve their welfare," Professor Freire said. "Further research would be beneficial to determine if music can trigger dance in captive birds and serve as a form of environmental enrichment." - ABC
ABC News
3 days ago
- Science
- ABC News
Cockatoos that feel the beat perform 30 distinct dance moves, study shows
Cockatoos can head-bang, body roll and side-step intentionally to music, according to a new study by Charles Sturt University. Researchers have analysed 45 social media videos of cockatoos dancing and identified 30 distinct movements, 17 of which had never been documented before. In the study, published today in the journal PLOS One, researchers found some cockatoos had their own signature moves, unique to each individual, while other species appeared to favour different styles. To further investigate the behaviour of the cockatoos, the research team went beyond the screen and into the field to Wagga Wagga Zoo in New South Wales. There, they studied six cockatoos, including two Major Mitchells, two sulphur-crested cockatoos and two galahs. Over a 20-minute period, each bird experienced either silence, music or a podcast. Lead researcher Natasha Lubke chose the playlist, opting for Avicii's The Nights for the music and She's on the Money for the podcast. "It's a great podcast. We're just educating the birds on their finances," Ms Lubke joked. One particularly enthusiastic Major Mitchell cockatoo made a total of 257 moves in sequence while listening to a 20-minute loop of The Nights. In both parts of the study — the online video analysis and the zoo observation — dancing was observed in 10 of the 21 known cockatoo species in the Cacatuidae family of the parrot species. Many of the dance moves were similar to courtship displays, indicating their dancing may have originated as courtship behaviour that has been redirected towards their owners. Spontaneous dancing in time to music had only been officially recorded in humans until Snowball, the sulphur-crested cockatoo, went viral for dancing to the Backstreet Boys more than a decade ago. In 2019, in a Current Biology study, professor of psychology at Tufts University, Aniruddh Patel, and his colleagues explored Snowball's ability to dance spontaneously, challenging the long-held belief that sophisticated movement to music was uniquely human. The study showed that Snowball developed 16 distinct moves without any formal training to dance. But it was not known if other cockatoos would develop other moves, or if a parrot's dance moves were largely determined by its genetic makeup as a member of a particular species. "By studying dancing to music in numerous parrots across several species, the new study found 17 new moves, and also showed that relatedness between species did not predict how similar the dance moves of different parrots were," Professor Patel said. While it may seem like an amusing curiosity, for scientists it raises many questions. "Why is this behaviour seen in parrots but not in our closest living relatives — chimpanzees and bonobos — when raised by humans?" Professor Patel said. "After all, ape brains are much closer to ours in size and overall structure than parrot brains are, and genetically parrots are more closely related to extinct dinosaurs than to humans." Scientists are developing neuroscientific theories to explain the mystery of why dancing to music emerges without any special training in some human-raised parrots but not in human-raised apes. It's still unclear what motivates cockatoos to dance. Ms Lubke has a theory. "That rules out the theory they're just dancing because people are dancing. I think they're definitely dancing, and it appears to be a form of play behaviour — they're doing it because they're in a positive welfare state." Researchers hope the discovery could lead to new ways to enrich the lives of captive birds — particularly intelligent parrots who may suffer in environments lacking stimulation. "The similarities with human dancing make it hard to argue against well-developed cognitive and emotional processes in parrots," said co-author Rafael Freire, an expert in animal behaviour. "Playing music to parrots may improve their welfare," Professor Freire said. "Further research would be beneficial to determine if music can trigger dance in captive birds and serve as a form of environmental enrichment."
Newsweek
3 days ago
- Science
- Newsweek
Scientists Reveal How to Dance Like a Cockatoo
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A study exploring dance behaviors in captive cockatoos has found that these birds have an impressive repertoire of 30 distinct moves—and some are even able to make their own choreographs by combining them. The researchers, led by Natasha Lubke from Charles Sturt University in Australia, analyzed 45 videos posted on social media and documented multiple different moves ranging from headbanging to sidesteps, foot taps and body rolls. About 17 of these dancing behaviors had never before been described in scientific literature. Surprisingly, closely related species did not display more similar dances than others, and each species had a unique top 10 most common dance moves. The study also examined six cockatoos from the Wagga Wagga zoo in Australia, pairing them with birds of the opposite sex, and exposing them to different settings including music, podcasts and silence. The birds danced regardless of the background. Some of the most commonly identified moves—which are depicted below—include downward bending, foot lifting, fluffing feathers and turning around. Illustration of the 10 most commonly recorded cockatoo dance movements from the study Illustration of the 10 most commonly recorded cockatoo dance movements from the study Lubke et al., 2025, PLOS One, CC-BY 4.0 The findings of the stufy suggest that cockatoo's dancing may not entirely be dependent on musical stimuli. Moreover, motivation to interact with the other sex may have overridden any attention or response to the music. Dancing behaviors are present in at least 10 out of 21 species of cockatoo—and many of their moves are similar to the courtship displays of wild parrots. This suggests that their dancing may have originated as courtship behavior that has been redirected towards their owners. The study also notes that dance behavior might fit the definition of play, as it is initiated voluntarily by the birds, and it appears to be intrinsically rewarding. This means that music might actually serve as enrichment for them. "As well as supporting the presence of positive emotions in birds and advancing dance behavior as an excellent model to study parrot emotions, the work suggests that playing music to parrots may provide a useful approach to enrich their lives in captivity, with positive effects on their welfare," Lubke said in a statement. However, paper coauthor professor Rafael Freire added that further research is necessary to determine whether or not music can actually trigger dance in captive birds and serve as a form of environmental enrichment. Do you have a tip on a science story that Newsweek should be covering? Do you have a question about cockatoos? Let us know via science@ Reference Lubke, N., Held, S. D., Massaro, M., & Freire, R. (2025). Dance behaviour in cockatoos: Implications for cognitive processes and welfare. PLoS ONE, 20(8).
Economic Times
3 days ago
- Science
- Economic Times
Blue whales' mysterious silence leave scientists worried as it sends a dire warning to humanity
Synopsis Alarming reports indicate a significant decline in blue whale vocalizations due to devastating heatwaves. These heatwaves have triggered toxic algae blooms, disrupting the whales' food sources like krill and anchovy. Researchers observed a nearly 40% drop in whale song, coinciding with a massive marine heatwave known as "The Blob. Scientists have raised an alarm over the ghostly silence of blue whales. The heatwave reduced the food whales rely on and triggered harmful changes in ocean chemistry, allowing toxic algae to bloom Scientists have raised alarms after noticing a significant drop in the in the number of vocalizations from blue whales. Scientists have used specialized underwater hydrophones (aquatic version of microphones) to record and trace the sounds of marine life and noticed a significant drop in whale calls. These recordings help scientists track marine life and understand how human activity affects different to the details published in the journal PLOS One, devastating heat waves have triggered worrying changes over the past decade, allowing toxic algae to bloom and undermine food sources for whales. The heatwaves have disrupted the whales' environment, causing a chain reaction in the ocean's food heatwave reduced the food whales rely on and triggered harmful changes in ocean chemistry, allowing toxic algae to bloom, the study reveals 'It caused the most widespread poisoning of marine mammals ever documented. These were hard times for whales,' John Ryan, a biological oceanographer at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, told National Geographic. ALSO READ: Shopify stocks surge amid Trump's shifting trade policies, CFO says demand remains unshaken in US In a study published earlier this year, which traced more than six years of acoustic monitoring in the central California Current Ecosystem, Ryan and a team of researchers found clear patterns in whale song across seasons and years. By chance, the recordings began during a massive marine heatwave unlike anything seen before in the region. As a result, blue whale vocalizations dropped by almost 40 percent, according to the study, with populations of krill and anchovy collapsing. "When you really break it down, it's like trying to sing while you're starving," Ryan explained. "They were spending all their time just trying to find food." ALSO READ: Uber shocks Wall Street with massive $20 billion buyback: What it means and why companies do it The trouble started with a strange patch of unusually warm water in the Pacific Ocean, nicknamed 'The Blob.' Discovered in 2013, it expanded by 2016 into a vast area spanning over 2,000 miles. The spike in ocean temperatures devastated essential food sources for whales. Scientists are still racing to understand the causes of devastating marine heatwaves. An ominous pool of warm water in the ocean, nicknamed "The Blob" following its discovery in early 2013, confounded scientists. Scientists are still racing to understand the effects of rising ocean temperatures. And as climate change continues to rear its ugly head, scientists are worried about future extreme weather events, including marine heatwaves. Scientists have found that the duration of these heatwaves has tripled since the 1940s. ALSO READ: ESPN adds WWE's WrestleMania, Royal Rumble as streaming service sets August 21 launch. Check details Kelly Benoit-Bird, a marine biologist at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, said, 'There are whole ecosystem consequences of these marine heat waves. If they can't find food, and they can traverse the entire West Coast of North America, that is a really large-scale consequence.' Oregon State University ecologist Dawn Barlow added, 'Fewer feeding opportunities' mean that blue whales 'put less effort into reproduction.' Barlow emphasized that their movement and behavior reveal a lot about ocean health. 'Where they are, and what they're doing can tell you a lot about the health of the voiced concerns of reaching a "tipping point," which could have devastating consequences on our climate, changing how the "ocean absorbs carbon.""Science shows that climate change is impacting the oceans," Barlow told NatGeo. "Listening and learning from these places is essential to our future. Now more than ever, it's important to listen."
