Implausibly High Publication Rates Among Top Scientists Raise Red Flags

Researchers at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals have found that approximately 10% of the world's most influential scientists exhibit implausibly high publication and co-authorship rates. Many produce hundreds of papers annually and gain thousands of new collaborators yearly. Analyzing Stanford's 'Top 2%' researcher list, they discovered around 20,000 scientists with anomalously high metrics, suggesting efforts to inflate publication records. This includes roughly 1000 early-career researchers, highlighting systemic incentives to inflate metrics. The researchers suggest that excessive publication rates likely stem from 'paper pumping' and unethical co-authorship practices. They propose renormalizing research metrics to discourage quantity over quality and unethical practices.