Daily briefing: Research sleuthing is being 'twisted' to cast doubt on science
Briefly

Proteins from the extinct rhino species Epiaceratherium itjilik were partially sequenced, revealing their lasting integrity over 23 million years. The research integrates these findings with genome data, suggesting a new branch in the rhino family tree that separated 41 million to 25 million years ago. This raises hopes of gleaning insights about ancient species, including dinosaurs, from proteins. Meanwhile, scientific integrity researchers feel their work is misrepresented, leading to narrative suggesting a fundamental crisis in science, especially by citing flawed studies to undermine established theories like those surrounding Alzheimer’s disease.
Researchers were able to partially sequence seven proteins from a 23-million-year-old extinct rhino species, Epiaceratherium itjilik, which integrates with genomic data to redefine its place in the rhino family tree.
The findings suggest that proteins can provide more molecular insights into evolutionary relationships, biological sex, and diet, potentially extending to even older species, including dinosaurs.
Scientific sleuths fear that their uncovering of research flaws is being misused to discredit science as a whole, with prominent figures citing retractions to argue science is fraudulent.
Elisabeth Bik expressed concern that the work of scientific sleuths is being weaponized, leading to a perception that all science is faulty and detrimental to public trust.
Read at Nature
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