Sunday, 14 August 2011 20:46

Journal of Failed Experiment Results Featured

A new innovative journal make it possible to publish unsuccessful experimental results or results which are not accepted by established scientific magazines.

Creative individuals from the Material Sciences Dept. of the Mainz Graduate School have developed an innovative project – the journal JUNQ (Journal for Unsolved Questions) to publish  failed experiments in science and unsolved research questions.

Scientific results cannot be achieved at the touch of a button. Normally failed results are not published but stored in a drawer unnoticed by the public. Therefore many scientific results remain unknown. The factors which lead to failure are manifold. Nevertheless failed results are results too. They could be exceptionally valuable for interdisciplinary or transdisciplinary work. In addition, feedback from a new readership could potentially lead to a new insight.

The junior researchers under the leadership of Thomas-Christian Jagau and Leonie Anna Mueck from the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz have recognised this potential and founded a scientific journal. According to the motto "Science never fails. Just dig through the JUNQ to find the hidden treasures" publications are possible in two ways: as a scientific article about experiments or as an open question.

"The response has been mixed" says Jagau, "most people think, it´s a good idea but fewer want to publish". In principle publications from all scientific disciplines which have been refused otherwise are possible. In addition, experimental results which are normally rejected only because of the demands of "contemporary scientific fashion" - like in vitro methods which often, to be published, require the addition of animal experiments - can be published in JUNQ.

Source: http://junq.info/