Scientists often ignore negative findings that might raise a warning, cherry picking the results and putting the best face on their research. The practice involves many parties — not just the scientists — in the research process who turn blind eyes to questionable actions.
“To obtain funding, a job, promotion or tenure, researchers need a strong publication record…Journal editors, reviewers, and grant review committees [and I might add journalists—R.B.] often look for a scientific finding that is simple, clear and complete—a ‘perfect’ story. It is therefore tempting for investigators to submit suspected data sets for publication, or even to massage data.”
Publish or Perish is the story of Academia but at what cost? Biased research is not the way to find cures for cancer nor is it the way to change behavior of human beings.
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