Identify and Evaluate Sources

Even before publishing most science is dependent on grants and funding priorities. 

Publishing

• For profit business model so could only accept articles in popular fields or that have mass market appeal. 
• Some publishers have political biases.
• The review process can cause publication delays.
• Studies with negative results get published less.

Problems with Peer Review - It is not objective or consistent

• Peer reviewers are biased
• Work for free so quality could suffer
• Relies on trust. Reviewers cannot replicate the studies. 

Who author's cite is also controversial. Authors can excessively cite themselves or others for reciprocal citations.

Authors can pay to make articles free for anybody to read. One criticism is that not all articles are peer-reviewed, anybody can publish anything.

Predatory Publishers 

• Limited or no peer review or editing
• Huge author fees
• Some authors give away the copyright
• Fake impact metric

Always identify any retractions or revisions before using and citing scientific literature.

Possible reasons for a Retraction

• Plagiarism
• Data Fabrication
• Peer Reviewer Fraud
• Ghost Writing and Paper Mills
• Statistical and Mathematical Errors
• Ethical Standards.