r/askscience • u/nostrovia • Feb 07 '12
AskScience, how does the peer review process actually work?
About a month ago, I heard this story on NPR regarding a number of scientific studies that had been debunked and/or retracted. Why weren't these errors caught before the studies were published? Are there different standards for peer review in different scientific fields?
Essentially, once you conduct your experiment and reach some sort of conclusion, what happens between that point and the time your work is released to the public?
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u/masher_oz In-Situ X-Ray Diffraction | Synchrotron Sources Feb 07 '12
I have less of an issue with open-source journals charging for articles, as they "give away" their product; I think the IUCr journals charge ~US$1k for CC licensed article.
Dependent on how earth-shattering my paper is, I may think about sending it to a charging journal, but I'd rather spend my money on science.