Adrian Barnett

Jan 8, 2025 | medianwatch.netlify.app | Adrian Barnett

Call the fraud policeA solution – or at least a partial one – seems obvious: somebodyshould employ lots of people like Bik to check quality. However,“somebody should” is adangerous phrase, because it could easily mean nobody will. Research funders wait for scientific publishers to take action. Publishers expect universities and other institutions to do something. Those institutions in turn look to government for a solution.

Jun 11, 2024 | newscientist.com | Adrian Barnett

A plastic particle (red) is colonised by the marine fungus Parengyodontium albumAnnika Vaksmaa/NIOZA fungus found on litter floating in the North Pacific Ocean can break down the most abundant type of plastic that ends up in the sea.

May 3, 2024 | nsojournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com | Thiago Cavalcante |Finnish Museum |Adrian Barnett |Jasper Van doninck

Introduction Climate change forecasts anticipate a massive redistribution of biota worldwide, with unprecedented negative consequences for ecosystem health and human well-being (Pecl et al. 2017). Studies attempting to predict climate-driven range shifts often rely only on predicted temperature increases and changes in rainfall patterns based on global emission scenarios (IPCC 2014).

Mar 25, 2024 | newscientist.com | Adrian Barnett

A 38-centimetre-tall deer, found in an arid region in the central Andes, is the first new deer species found in South America for over 60 yearsA tiny deer about the size of a Jack Russell terrier has been recognised as the first new deer species found in South America for over 60 years. It is the newest member of a group of dwarf deer unique to the central Andes. Known as pudu, they range from cold and windswept Andean grasslands to the misty cloud forests of the range’s lower slopes.

Mar 12, 2024 | newscientist.com | Adrian Barnett

Some plants emit sounds when they are under attack by herbivoresRaymond Keller/ShutterstockThe idea that plants communicate by sound has caught on among some scientists and the media – but there is no solid evidence that it is true, according to a review of published studies. “Plants are not capable of exchanging information through the acoustic channel,” says Nicolas Mathevon at Jean Monnet University in Saint-Etienne, France.