Most faked research today comes from Ph.D. hopefuls and bush-league scientists angling for grants. Think what it will be like with hackers and pranksters get to work. Wait till the bush-league scientists start writing papers under new names, confirming their fictitious “discoveries.” … I’m afraid those of you who work in university libraries are going to find yourselves hip-deep in it.
Predictor: Wolfe, Gene
Prediction, in context:In a 1994 speech for the American Library Association Annual Conference in Miami, Gene Wolfe writes: ”A lot of the data available on the superhighway will be false. It’s currently estimated that one quarter to one half the research reported in scientific journals has been faked. This is a relatively new phenomenon and a dangerous one, and the amount of faking is increasing. Futhermore, this faked data has been filtered for us, like cigarette smoke. It has had to pass the staff and the editorial board of the journal that published it, and these staffs and boards are very much alert to the problem, turning away masses of ill-conceived, poorly-executed or suspicious-looking research. The information superhighway will bypass the filters. Anyone looking into a hypothetical connection between hamburgers and child molesting will get research sponsored by what used to be called the beef trust and research promulgated by Hindus and vegetarians. Wait. It gets worse. Most faked research today comes from Ph.D. hopefuls and bush-league scientists angling for grants. Think what it will be like with hackers and pranksters get to work. Wait till the bush-league scientists start writing papers under new names, confirming their fictitious ‘discoveries.’ … I’m afraid those of you who work in university libraries are going to find yourselves hip-deep in it.”
Date of prediction: January 1, 1994
Topic of prediction: Controversial Issues
Subtopic: Crime/Fraud/Terrorism
Name of publication: American Library Association
Title, headline, chapter name: Libraries on the Superhighway
Quote Type: Direct quote
Page number or URL of document at time of study:
Printed in Information Technology and Libraries Vol. 14, Issue 4, Page 219 ISSN: 07309295
This data was logged into the Elon/Pew Predictions Database by: Anderson, Janna Quitney