Race is on to publish the most scientific research papers in a career

Publish but be damned

The race – a marathon, run with participants having staggered start times – continues to determine who can publish the most scientific research papers during their career.

The Spanish newspaper El Pais reported last month on an up-and-comer, “one of the world’s most cited scientists, Rafael Luque”, a “prolific chemist” who has been “sanctioned by the University of CÓrdoba over his research work for other institutions in Russia and Saudi Arabia” and “suspended without pay for 13 years”.

The article explains that Luque, whose full name is Rafael Luque Alvarez de Sotomayor, has already published about 700 …