Science

Retractions of old papers are on the rise: when should bad science be culled?

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Based on a feed excerpt; full article content has not been acquired. Source evidence retrieved 11/11/2026, 10:20:24 UTC.

Briefings

A recent article reports a significant increase in the retraction of decades-old scientific papers, creating challenges for researchers and the scientific community. The evidence indicates that papers published over two decades ago are increasingly being pulled from the literature, though specific numbers and causes remain unclear.

Key points

• Decades-old papers are increasingly being pulled from the literature, bringing a host of challenges.

Context

The article reports on the rise of retracted papers, noting that decades-old research is increasingly removed from the scientific record. This trend presents challenges for researchers and the scientific community, though specific details about the causes and scale are not fully established.

Limitations

The evidence is limited to a single sentence from a 2026 article. Specific numbers, dates, or causes for the increase in retractions are not provided. The scope of the retraction trend is not quantified, and the reasons for the increase remain unexplained.

Generated by Bittrees-hosted qwen35-2b sha256:aaf42c8b7c3c on 11/11/2026, 11:05:03 UTC. Based on publisher-provided feed evidence; may not cover the full original article. Check the source for details.

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