20. The Fake Science Detectives w/ David Sangers & Elisabeth Bik

Follow the Science

To cheat is human – and cheating affects most human endeavors, even science. Fake science refers to a growing problem with papers that look like they describe real experimental results but the data are made up, or copied from someone else’s work, often on a different disease altogether. Meet two scientists who’ve volunteered to become fake paper sleuths.

David Sanders is a virologist at Purdue University who tracks scientific plagiarism, and has acted as a whistle blower. Elisabeth Bik is a microbiologist with a remarkable talent for spotting faked graphs. She eventually left her research job to focus full time on fake science papers and the infamous “paper mills” that churn them out for a profit. She was recently awarded the Peter Wildy Award for microbiologists who have championed outreach activities and enhanced the knowledge of microbiology as a subject.

“Follow the Science" is produced, written, and hosted by Faye Flam, with funding by the Society for Professional Journalists. Today’s episode was edited by Seth Gliksman with music by Kyle Imperatore. If you’d like to hear more "Follow the Science," please like, follow, and subscribe!