800 crystallography-related papers appear to stem from one paper mill
Preprint reports questionable images in papers that are all from authors based at Chinese hospitals
At least 800 research studies published in crystallography and exotic-chemistry journals originate from a paper mill, a new study suggests.
The preprint identified around 800 research studies published between 2015 and 2022 that recycle images, contain oddities in the methods section and references that cite papers of no relevance. The study suggests that one main purpose of the paper mill is to artificially boost researchers’ performance indicators.
‘I found a few pieces from the same jigsaw,’ says David Bimler, an online sleuth who often comments about questionable research using the pseudonym ‘Smut Clyde’, who authored the study. But when I put the pieces together, he says, ‘it got larger than I was expecting’.