In this episode, Julia describes the process of finding and correcting a major error in one of her published papers. A programming mistake had generated a pattern of data that was, in fact, completely untrue. Julia shares how she discovered the error, the temptation to conceal it, and the process of disclosing it to her co-authors, the journal it was published in, her tenure committee, and others. Along the way, Julia and Jonathan talk about the incentive structures of science, the benefits of programmatic research and scientific transparency, and the importance of sharing our mistakes and how we fix them.

Theme music courtesy of The Bobby Dazzlers

Links:

• Talking points: A modulating circle reduces listening effort without improving speech recognition | SpringerLink — The original version
• Talking Points: A Modulating Circle Increases Listening Effort Without Improving Speech Recognition in Young Adults | SpringerLink
• Loss-of-Confidence Project – Lost confidence in one of your own findings? Join our project and share your story!
• When Science Needs Self-Correcting - Julia Strand - Medium
• Retraction Watch – Tracking retractions as a window into the scientific process