The Great Leap Fraud: China's Wake-up Call on Scientific Misconduct and Fake Science

Overview

• Title: The Great Leap Fraud: China's wake-up call on scientific misconduct and fake science
• Source: ABC Listen, Science Friction Program
• Date: September 2, 2018
• Duration: 30 minutes 46 seconds
• Presenter: Natasha Mitchell

Main Themes

• Focus on the proliferation of fake or fraudulent science, especially in China.
• China's ambition to become a scientific superpower is challenged by mass retractions of scientific papers authored by Chinese scientists.
• Presence of a black market in China for fake papers and peer reviews.

Key Issues Discussed

China's Scientific Ambitions

• China's leadership aims to position the country as a global scientific leader.
• This ambition is undermined by numerous instances of scientific misconduct.

Retractions and Scientific Fraud

• Numerous papers by Chinese scientists have been retracted by scientific journals.
• Retractions often due to fake peer reviews and fabricated data.
• Example: A major publisher retracted over 100 studies from a cancer journal due to fake peer reviews (April 2017).

Global Impact

• While China is a focal point, the issue of scientific fraud is not confined to China alone.
• The implications of fraudulent science affect the global scientific community.

Key Guests

• Ivan Oransky: Medical journalist, Co-founder of Retraction Watch, Clinical Professor at NYU.
• Professor Cong Cao: Professor in Innovation Studies, University of Nottingham Ningbo China.
• David Cyranoski: Asia Pacific correspondent for Nature Magazine.

Additional References

• "China introduces sweeping reforms to crack down on academic misconduct" - Nature News, June 2018.
• "Retraction Note to multiple articles in Tumor Biology" – Springer, April 2017.
• Books by Cong Cao on China's science and technology development.

Conclusion

• The episode highlights the critical issue of scientific integrity in the context of China's rise as a scientific and economic power.
• Stresses the need for rigorous academic practices and reforms to maintain the credibility of scientific research.

Related Resources

• Science Friction Live: Discussions on hot-button science topics at the Melbourne Museum (September-December 2018).
• Further episodes and discussions available on the ABC listen app.