Peter Davis
@peterbyarddavis.bsky.social
Repurposed, not retired, kiwi academic, policy person, blogger, and would-be public intellectual
Fighting coordinated publication fraud is like ‘emptying an overflowing bathtub with a spoon,’ study coauthor says retractionwatch.com/2025/08/04/f...
Fighting coordinated publication fraud is like ‘emptying an overflowing bathtub with a spoon,’ study coauthor says
The observed and forecasted growth rate of paper mill papers outpaces corrective measures, a new study finds. R. Richardson et al./PNAS 2025 Systematic research fraud has outpaced corrective measur…
retractionwatch.com
August 5, 2025 at 9:16 PM
Fighting coordinated publication fraud is like ‘emptying an overflowing bathtub with a spoon,’ study coauthor says retractionwatch.com/2025/08/04/f...
Will Denmark Lead Europe Towards a Super-Rich Tax? www.socialeurope.eu/will-denmark...
Will Denmark Lead Europe Towards a Super-Rich Tax?
Despite past failures, growing public support and recent international initiatives offer Copenhagen an opportunity to push for wealth taxation.
www.socialeurope.eu
July 21, 2025 at 6:51 PM
Will Denmark Lead Europe Towards a Super-Rich Tax? www.socialeurope.eu/will-denmark...
"Could we live with a nuclear-armed Iran? Reluctantly, yes". In among all the tough talk about taking out Iran's nuclear capability preventively, a useful corrective that, unfortunately, a balance of nuclear deterrence may be strategically an acceptable outcome. theconversation.com/could-we-liv...
Could we live with a nuclear-armed Iran? Reluctantly, yes
Both Israel and the US claim a nuclear-armed Iran would pose an existential threat. It wouldn’t. Here’s why.
theconversation.com
June 29, 2025 at 8:52 PM
"Could we live with a nuclear-armed Iran? Reluctantly, yes". In among all the tough talk about taking out Iran's nuclear capability preventively, a useful corrective that, unfortunately, a balance of nuclear deterrence may be strategically an acceptable outcome. theconversation.com/could-we-liv...
"The war won’t end Iran’s nuclear program – it will drive it underground, following North Korea’s model". The failure to negotiate a solution could lead Iran to go 'secret' in its programme, leave non-proliferation treaty, and start a cascade of nuclear armament. theconversation.com/the-war-wont...
The war won’t end Iran’s nuclear program – it will drive it underground, following North Korea’s model
The US and Israel bombing campaigns may only delay an Iranian bomb by a few years. Could this signal the death of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty?
theconversation.com
June 24, 2025 at 11:23 PM
"The war won’t end Iran’s nuclear program – it will drive it underground, following North Korea’s model". The failure to negotiate a solution could lead Iran to go 'secret' in its programme, leave non-proliferation treaty, and start a cascade of nuclear armament. theconversation.com/the-war-wont...
Many experts say US attacks make a diplomatic and peaceful control and management of Iran's nuclear capabilities less likely in future.
thebulletin.org/2025/06/unit...
thebulletin.org/2025/06/unit...
United States attacks Iranian nuclear facilities, raising the possibility of Iranian retaliation, sprint for nuclear weapons
The United States bombed three Iranian nuclear sites on Saturday, an intervention that came just days after President Donald Trump suggested he would wait two weeks before deciding whether to take mil...
thebulletin.org
June 23, 2025 at 8:14 PM
Many experts say US attacks make a diplomatic and peaceful control and management of Iran's nuclear capabilities less likely in future.
thebulletin.org/2025/06/unit...
thebulletin.org/2025/06/unit...
“The Future of Social Democracy: How the German SPD can Win Again”. Although focus here is Germany, there may be broader lessons for the Left: less transactional politics, more local connection & long-term vision. Sounds familiar in our “neck of the woods” too! www.socialeurope.eu/the-future-o...
The Future of Social Democracy: How the German SPD can Win Again
Social democracy can’t survive without vision. The SPD must rediscover its purpose and emotional power.
www.socialeurope.eu
June 20, 2025 at 7:18 PM
“The Future of Social Democracy: How the German SPD can Win Again”. Although focus here is Germany, there may be broader lessons for the Left: less transactional politics, more local connection & long-term vision. Sounds familiar in our “neck of the woods” too! www.socialeurope.eu/the-future-o...
"Citation issues cost these 20 journals their impact factors this year". Because the research community is unable to police the explosion of questionable journals, we rely on commercial operators. We need same attention to paper mills, authorships for sale etc. retractionwatch.com/2025/06/18/c...
Citation issues cost these 20 journals their impact factors this year
Twenty journals lost their impact factors in this year’s Journal Citation Reports, released today, for excessive self-citation and citation stacking. Nearly half of the journals on the list are fro…
retractionwatch.com
June 19, 2025 at 7:29 PM
"Citation issues cost these 20 journals their impact factors this year". Because the research community is unable to police the explosion of questionable journals, we rely on commercial operators. We need same attention to paper mills, authorships for sale etc. retractionwatch.com/2025/06/18/c...
"Iran war: from the Middle East to America, history shows you cannot assassinate your way to peace". A useful corrective. On one estimate Israel has carried out 2,700 assassinations over the last 75 years, including possibly Rabin and Arafat. Putin's Russia also. theconversation.com/iran-war-fro...
Iran war: from the Middle East to America, history shows you cannot assassinate your way to peace
Far from having solved the issue of Middle East peace, assassinations continue to pour oil on the flames.
theconversation.com
June 16, 2025 at 9:05 PM
"Iran war: from the Middle East to America, history shows you cannot assassinate your way to peace". A useful corrective. On one estimate Israel has carried out 2,700 assassinations over the last 75 years, including possibly Rabin and Arafat. Putin's Russia also. theconversation.com/iran-war-fro...
"Uncovering misconduct among the Alzheimer’s ‘amyloid mafia’". If correct, this is a very worthwhile intervention since medications following the amyloid thesis are being funded despite poor trial results. The author claims/hopes science is 'self-correcting'. healthjournalism.org/blog/2025/06...
Uncovering misconduct among the Alzheimer’s ‘amyloid mafia’
At HJ25 in L.A., Charles Piller spoke about his book delving into the world of Alzheimer's research misconduct.
healthjournalism.org
June 16, 2025 at 7:57 PM
"Uncovering misconduct among the Alzheimer’s ‘amyloid mafia’". If correct, this is a very worthwhile intervention since medications following the amyloid thesis are being funded despite poor trial results. The author claims/hopes science is 'self-correcting'. healthjournalism.org/blog/2025/06...
“The Weak Strongman: How Trump’s Presidency Emboldens America’s Enemies”. By gutting key institutions Trump has removed his tools for dealing with adversaries abroad. The likes of Putin know this, even if Americans don’t. www.socialeurope.eu/the-weak-str...
The Weak Strongman: How Trump’s Presidency Emboldens America’s Enemies
Trump performs strength at home—but abroad, adversaries see only institutional collapse and strategic weakness.
www.socialeurope.eu
June 16, 2025 at 6:43 PM
“The Weak Strongman: How Trump’s Presidency Emboldens America’s Enemies”. By gutting key institutions Trump has removed his tools for dealing with adversaries abroad. The likes of Putin know this, even if Americans don’t. www.socialeurope.eu/the-weak-str...
"NZ has a vast sea territory but lags behind other nations in protecting the ocean". A conundrum, perhaps explained by the lobbying power of the fishing industry. Hard to see why given the vastness of the resource. theconversation.com/nz-has-a-vas...
NZ has a vast sea territory but lags behind other nations in protecting the ocean
Two international ocean science and policy meetings this month have called on nations to be more ambitious in their efforts to protect and restore marine ecosystems.
theconversation.com
June 15, 2025 at 9:15 PM
"NZ has a vast sea territory but lags behind other nations in protecting the ocean". A conundrum, perhaps explained by the lobbying power of the fishing industry. Hard to see why given the vastness of the resource. theconversation.com/nz-has-a-vas...
"Science’s reform movement should have seen Trump’s call for ‘gold standard science’ coming, critics say". By overstating problems of everyday science - such as 'reproducibility crisis' - the science reform movement handed an open door to bad-faith actors via Trump. www.science.org/content/arti...
Science’s reform movement should have seen Trump’s call for ‘gold standard science’ coming, critics say
Efforts to improve the rigor of research may have unwittingly handed the administration a way to attack science
www.science.org
June 12, 2025 at 6:57 PM
"Science’s reform movement should have seen Trump’s call for ‘gold standard science’ coming, critics say". By overstating problems of everyday science - such as 'reproducibility crisis' - the science reform movement handed an open door to bad-faith actors via Trump. www.science.org/content/arti...
Apparent NCI director candidate wants ‘open, respectful’ post-publication peer review while promoting anonymous site that calls sleuths a ‘mob’ retractionwatch.com/2025/06/10/w...
Apparent NCI director candidate wants ‘open, respectful’ post-publication peer review while promoting anonymous site that calls sleuths a ‘mob’
Wafik S. El-Deiry Brown University physician-scientist Wafik El-Deiry has been a longtime critic of the post-publication forum PubPeer, where 75 of his papers have been flagged. For example, in an …
retractionwatch.com
June 11, 2025 at 9:17 PM
Apparent NCI director candidate wants ‘open, respectful’ post-publication peer review while promoting anonymous site that calls sleuths a ‘mob’ retractionwatch.com/2025/06/10/w...
apnews.com/article/rhin... off rhinos' horns is a contentious last resort to stop poaching. A new study found it works
Cutting off rhinos' horns is a contentious last resort to stop poaching. A new study found it works
A study published in the academic journal Science has found that cutting off the horns of rhinos in Africa leads to a reduction in poaching of the endangered species.
apnews.com
June 9, 2025 at 8:44 PM
apnews.com/article/rhin... off rhinos' horns is a contentious last resort to stop poaching. A new study found it works
"WorkSafe's road cone hotline a bright orange distraction". At last some common sense after the populist musings of the politicians. Thank god for our universities where we have people who know what they are talking about and are willing to set the record straight! newsroom.co.nz/2025/06/06/w...
WorkSafe's road cone hotline a bright orange distraction
Opinion from Auckland University: Just as NZ’s absurd safety culture is moving from rigid compliance to professional judgment, WorkSafe launches a tip line undermining that very shift.
newsroom.co.nz
June 5, 2025 at 10:10 PM
"WorkSafe's road cone hotline a bright orange distraction". At last some common sense after the populist musings of the politicians. Thank god for our universities where we have people who know what they are talking about and are willing to set the record straight! newsroom.co.nz/2025/06/06/w...
"Making it easier to build a granny flat makes sense – but it’s no solution to a housing crisis". As always, piecemeal incrementalism when it comes to housing. There are defensible models of increasing density that are at present being fudged. theconversation.com/making-it-ea...
Making it easier to build a granny flat makes sense – but it’s no solution to a housing crisis
Rule changes to allow larger granny flats follow a well-established pattern in New Zealand: modest reforms to address big and complicated problems.
theconversation.com
June 5, 2025 at 9:26 PM
"Making it easier to build a granny flat makes sense – but it’s no solution to a housing crisis". As always, piecemeal incrementalism when it comes to housing. There are defensible models of increasing density that are at present being fudged. theconversation.com/making-it-ea...
Resignation of PM’s press secretary highlights gaps in NZ law on covert recording and harassment
theconversation.com/resignation-...
theconversation.com/resignation-...
Resignation of PM’s press secretary highlights gaps in NZ law on covert recording and harassment
Criminal law struggles to keep up with predatory uses of the technology for ‘image-based sexual abuse’. It’s time to step back and build future-proof protections.
theconversation.com
June 5, 2025 at 9:18 PM
Resignation of PM’s press secretary highlights gaps in NZ law on covert recording and harassment
theconversation.com/resignation-...
theconversation.com/resignation-...
‘Anyone can do this’: Sleuths publish a toolkit for post-publication review retractionwatch.com/2025/06/04/c...
‘Anyone can do this’: Sleuths publish a toolkit for post-publication review
For years, sleuths – whose names our readers are likely familiar with – have been diligently flagging issues with the scientific literature. More than a dozen of these specialists have teamed up to…
retractionwatch.com
June 5, 2025 at 7:56 PM
‘Anyone can do this’: Sleuths publish a toolkit for post-publication review retractionwatch.com/2025/06/04/c...
$900,000 grant to Retraction Watch’s parent organization will fund forensic analysis of articles that affect human health retractionwatch.com/2025/06/04/m...
$900,000 grant to Retraction Watch’s parent organization will fund forensic analysis of articles that affect human health
The Center for Scientific Integrity, the parent nonprofit of Retraction Watch, has launched a new initiative to investigate and rapidly disseminate problems in the medical literature that directly …
retractionwatch.com
June 5, 2025 at 7:53 PM
$900,000 grant to Retraction Watch’s parent organization will fund forensic analysis of articles that affect human health retractionwatch.com/2025/06/04/m...