Nicolas Galtier
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nicolasgaltier.bsky.social
Nicolas Galtier
@nicolasgaltier.bsky.social
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Molecular evolution and publication ethics at ISEM (CNRS Montpellier)
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Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
hansonmark.bsky.social
We wrote the Strain on scientific publishing to highlight the problems of time & trust. With a fantastic group of co-authors, we present The Drain of Scientific Publishing:

a 🧵 1/n

Drain: arxiv.org/abs/2511.04820
Strain: direct.mit.edu/qss/article/...
Oligopoly: direct.mit.edu/qss/article/...
A table showing profit margins of major publishers. A snippet of text related to this table is below. 1. The four-fold drain 1.1 Money Currently, academic publishing is dominated by profit-oriented, multinational companies for whom scientific knowledge is a commodity to be sold back to the academic community who created it. The dominant four are Elsevier, Springer Nature, Wiley and Taylor & Francis, which collectively generated over US$7.1 billion in revenue from journal publishing in 2024 alone, and over US$12 billion in profits between 2019 and 2024 (Table 1A). Their profit margins have always been over 30% in the last five years, and for the largest publisher (Elsevier) always over 37%. Against many comparators, across many sectors, scientific publishing is one of the most consistently profitable industries (Table S1). These financial arrangements make a substantial difference to science budgets. In 2024, 46% of Elsevier revenues and 53% of Taylor & Francis revenues were generated in North America, meaning that North American researchers were charged over US$2.27 billion by just two for-profit publishers. The Canadian research councils and the US National Science Foundation were allocated US$9.3 billion in that year. A figure detailing the drain on researcher time. 1. The four-fold drain 1.2 Time The number of papers published each year is growing faster than the scientific workforce, with the number of papers per researcher almost doubling between 1996 and 2022 (Figure 1A). This reflects the fact that publishers’ commercial desire to publish (sell) more material has aligned well with the competitive prestige culture in which publications help secure jobs, grants, promotions, and awards. To the extent that this growth is driven by a pressure for profit, rather than scholarly imperatives, it distorts the way researchers spend their time. The publishing system depends on unpaid reviewer labour, estimated to be over 130 million unpaid hours annually in 2020 alone (9). Researchers have complained about the demands of peer-review for decades, but the scale of the problem is now worse, with editors reporting widespread difficulties recruiting reviewers. The growth in publications involves not only the authors’ time, but that of academic editors and reviewers who are dealing with so many review demands. Even more seriously, the imperative to produce ever more articles reshapes the nature of scientific inquiry. Evidence across multiple fields shows that more papers result in ‘ossification’, not new ideas (10). It may seem paradoxical that more papers can slow progress until one considers how it affects researchers’ time. While rewards remain tied to volume, prestige, and impact of publications, researchers will be nudged away from riskier, local, interdisciplinary, and long-term work. The result is a treadmill of constant activity with limited progress whereas core scholarly practices – such as reading, reflecting and engaging with others’ contributions – is de-prioritized. What looks like productivity often masks intellectual exhaustion built on a demoralizing, narrowing scientific vision. A table of profit margins across industries. The section of text related to this table is below: 1. The four-fold drain 1.1 Money Currently, academic publishing is dominated by profit-oriented, multinational companies for whom scientific knowledge is a commodity to be sold back to the academic community who created it. The dominant four are Elsevier, Springer Nature, Wiley and Taylor & Francis, which collectively generated over US$7.1 billion in revenue from journal publishing in 2024 alone, and over US$12 billion in profits between 2019 and 2024 (Table 1A). Their profit margins have always been over 30% in the last five years, and for the largest publisher (Elsevier) always over 37%. Against many comparators, across many sectors, scientific publishing is one of the most consistently profitable industries (Table S1). These financial arrangements make a substantial difference to science budgets. In 2024, 46% of Elsevier revenues and 53% of Taylor & Francis revenues were generated in North America, meaning that North American researchers were charged over US$2.27 billion by just two for-profit publishers. The Canadian research councils and the US National Science Foundation were allocated US$9.3 billion in that year. The costs of inaction are plain: wasted public funds, lost researcher time, compromised scientific integrity and eroded public trust. Today, the system rewards commercial publishers first, and science second. Without bold action from the funders we risk continuing to pour resources into a system that prioritizes profit over the advancement of scientific knowledge.
November 11, 2025 at 11:52 AM
nicolasgaltier.bsky.social
So Nature-Springer, which absorbs several billion dollars in research funding each year, provides us with an API that attributes all citations to the first article in the volume.

Well done Springer Nature, at least I know where not to submit my next paper.
steamtraen.eu Nick Brown @steamtraen.eu · 19d
Oops. Ooooooooooooops.

I do hope that nobody has been given or denied a job/promotion based on their SpringerNature citation counts in the past 15 years.

arxiv.org/pdf/2511.01675

h/t @nathlarigaldie.bsky.social
November 7, 2025 at 5:15 PM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
abalkina.bsky.social
I’m looking at a specific paper mill in India. So far, I have detected 339 papers, 105 of which were published in 2025. Only the biggest publishers are being targeted. Only two papers have been retracted.
This is the dashboard of a paper mill.
lookerstudio.google.com/reporting/36...
#papermills
September 25, 2025 at 10:47 AM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
samuelmoore.org
Archive link: archive.ph/xUITn
archive.ph
August 29, 2025 at 12:14 PM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
samuelmoore.org
It's refreshing to hear about researchers putting in the effort to not pay APCs. You can still publish where you want by retaining your rights to do so -- lots of US universities already have rights retention policies enabling this. oad.simmons.edu/oadwiki/Univ...
University rights-retention OA policies - Open Access Directory
oad.simmons.edu
August 29, 2025 at 12:22 PM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
samuelmoore.org
"Things don’t have to be this way, open-science experts say: These fees are imposed entirely by publishers. The most prominent examples are Springer Nature and Elsevier, for-profit enterprises that generate billions in revenue."

www.chronicle.com/article/maki...
Making Your Research Free May Cost You
Under a new requirement that NIH-funded research be freely, immediately available, some journals are forcing researchers to pay to publish.
www.chronicle.com
August 29, 2025 at 12:14 PM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
semifossorial.bsky.social
It’s finally out!

Our work addressing the origins of reptiles is published in PCJ! peercommunityjournal.org/articles/10....

We use novel info gleaned from the scan data of dozens of stem reptiles to substantially revise our understanding of early reptile evolution #paleontology #herpetology
August 28, 2025 at 12:22 PM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
marcrr.ecoevo.social.ap.brid.gy
Hear even more about genome duplication in fishes, and how gene expression allows us to study gene evolvability, come to my talk at 14:15 in room S51-07 #eseb2025
August 19, 2025 at 6:48 AM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
mrtnj.bsky.social
Beatriz Vicoso: Artemia brine shrimp have complete dosage compensation of their Z chromosome. She proposes that they're using a system similar to MSL for Drosophila X. Cool contrast to e.g. birds, whose ZW are doing something different entirely. academic.oup.com/mbe/article/...

#eseb2025
Chromatin Landscape Is Associated With Sex-Biased Expression and Drosophila-Like Dosage Compensation of the Z Chromosome in Artemia franciscana
Abstract. The males and females of the brine shrimp Artemia franciscana are highly dimorphic, and this dimorphism is associated with substantial sex-biased
academic.oup.com
August 19, 2025 at 7:28 AM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
anneroulin.bsky.social
Genetic drift and TEs!
academic.oup.com/mbe/article/...
Relaxed Purifying Selection is Associated with an Accumulation of Transposable Elements in Flies
Abstract. Although the mechanisms driving genome size evolution are not yet fully understood, one potentially important factor is the dynamics of the accum
academic.oup.com
August 13, 2025 at 6:45 AM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
alainqueffelec.bsky.social
Come join us with this new post-doctoral position in the Quanta project: emploi.cnrs.fr/Offres/CDD/U... (2 years in Bordeaux)

If you love artifacts (especially bones), notches, microscopes, and exploring the big question of the origin of quantification systems in human lineage, this is for you!
Portail Emploi CNRS - Offre d'emploi - Postdoctoral contract on the origin of quantification systems M/F
emploi.cnrs.fr
August 6, 2025 at 9:50 AM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
carlbergstrom.com
Fox finds raccoons in henhouse.

www.frontiersin.org/news/2025/07...
Frontiers' Research Integrity team uncovers peer review manipulation network
Frontiers Research Integrity Auditing team has uncovered a network of authors and editors who conducted peer review with undisclosed conflicts of interest and w
www.frontiersin.org
August 4, 2025 at 5:23 AM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
peeer.bsky.social
Another addition to the growing list of mass editorial resignations: editors of a math journal resign and launch a diamond open-access journal ‘free from pressure or influence’. Check out our latest post at peeer.net/2025/07/31/r....
#BetterPublishing
Rising editorial resignations underscore disputes over academic independence
Mass resignations of managing editors and entire editorial boards from scholarly journals aren’t new, but the frequency has picked up in recent years. Since 2023, editors of over 25 journals have r…
peeer.net
July 31, 2025 at 8:58 AM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
petersuber.fediscience.org.ap.brid.gy
Update. Springer Nature has now retracted this book.
https://retractionwatch.com/2025/07/16/springer-nature-to-retract-machine-learning-book-following-retraction-watch-coverage/

Thanks to @retractionwatch for exposing it.
Springer Nature to retract machine learning book following Retraction Watch coverage
Springer Nature is retracting a book on machine learning that had multiple references to works that do not exist, Retraction Watch has learned. The move comes two weeks after we reported on the book’s fake references. The link to the information page for the book, Mastering Machine Learning: From Basics to Advanced, now returns “Page … Continue reading Springer Nature to retract machine learning book following Retraction Watch coverage
retractionwatch.com
July 18, 2025 at 1:19 PM
nicolasgaltier.bsky.social
New preprint about open science in eco-evo!
We sampled 110 journals, 550 articles, and assessed whether data and code are accessible: (1/5)
ecoevorxiv.org/repository/v...

#ScientificPublishing #OpenScience #ecology #conservation #EvolutionaryBiology #paleobio #systematics #archeology
An overview of open science in eco-evo research and the publisher effect.
ecoevorxiv.org
July 17, 2025 at 7:14 AM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
wcrifoundation.bsky.social
"Gaming the Metrics? Bibliometric Anomalies and the Integrity Crisis in Global University Rankings"

#ResearchIntegrity

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Gaming the Metrics? Bibliometric Anomalies and the Integrity Crisis in Global University Rankings
This study explores how global university rankings incentivize institutions to prioritize bibliometric indicators at the expense of research integrity. Analyzing 98 fast-growing universities, we ident...
www.biorxiv.org
June 26, 2025 at 3:36 AM
nicolasgaltier.bsky.social
New preprint: we advertise DAFNEE, a database of academia-friendly eco-evo-archaeo journals. 1/6
#AcademicPublishing #ecoevo #archaeology #EthicalPublishing #SocietyJournals #DiamondOpenAccess
doi.org/10.32942/X24...
Time to publish ethically: DAFNEE, a database of academia-friendly journals in ecology and evolutionary biology.
doi.org
June 24, 2025 at 6:42 PM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
couplingdmi.bsky.social
Deadline for applying for this #postdoc has been extended. You'll work with Erika Burioli, as well as @metzgerm.bsky.social and me, on long reads and Hi-C data of mussel transmissible cancers. Contract is for 18 months, but possibility of extension. #PopGen #MarEvol euraxess.ec.europa.eu/jobs/333894
Post-Doctoral Researcher – Haplotype-Resolved Assembly and Structural Variation of Polyploid Genomes in Transmissible Cancers of the Blue Mussel (M/F)
- work environment: Host-Pathogen-Environment Interactions Laboratory (UMR5244 IHPE), Montpellier - main mission:
euraxess.ec.europa.eu
June 21, 2025 at 11:20 AM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
alainqueffelec.bsky.social
The DAFNEE database of academia-friendly journals is now using OpenAlex instead of PubMed to find your papers for the author index.
That's great especially for #archaeology since most are not indexed in PubMed.
Go see the second tab on dafnee.isem-evolution.fr !
@nicolasgaltier.bsky.social 🏺🧪
DAFNEE, a Database of Academia Friendly jourNals in Ecology and Evolution
dafnee.isem-evolution.fr
June 18, 2025 at 3:27 PM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
tiboleroyinen.bsky.social
Happy to see our preprint now published in MBE, one of my preferred journals: academic.oup.com/mbe/article/...
🎁🎄
tiboleroyinen.bsky.social Thibault (Tibo) Leroy @tiboleroyinen.bsky.social · Sep 9
🐝🧬 Excited to share my first preprint on honey bees! We explore the evolutionary history of the world’s most important pollinator, the impact of modern beekeeping on their genetic diversity & the effectiveness of conservation programs.
Check it out: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
1/6
December 18, 2024 at 7:26 PM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
hansonmark.bsky.social
To celebrate this (urp 🤢) exciting new journal series, we made a mini game!

Can YOU guess which journals are Discover, MDPI, or both? No cheating! There's even the challenge mode "APC Ladder."

Share your high score with the hashtag #ResearchIntegrity

pagoba.shinyapps.io/publi_guess/

FUN!! 🤮 6/n
June 10, 2025 at 5:49 AM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
sortee.bsky.social
🚨 ESEB 2025, here we come! 🚨
We're thrilled to announce our symposium:
"Enhancing Diversity & Transparency in Ecology & Evolution: Reliable Practices for Research & Organizations" 🌍✨
Featuring invited speakers:
🔹 Dr. Malgorzata (Losia) Lagisz
🔹 Dr. Joel Pick
📅 Aug 17-22, 2025 | 📍 Barcelona, Spain
April 18, 2025 at 12:49 PM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
duckswabber.bsky.social
Between 2019 and 2023, researchers paid $8.968 billion to make papers open access. Imagine what else could be done with this money if it wasnt paid to for profit publishing companies...
👉 arxiv.org/abs/2407.16551
January 27, 2025 at 12:33 AM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
liberation.fr
Trump : l'Amérique en science inverse. C'est la une de Libération vendredi.

L’offensive obscurantiste menée par la Maison Blanche contre la recherche fait vaciller le monde scientifique. Les chercheurs américains se mobilisent ce vendredi. Un mouvement soutenu massivement en France.
March 6, 2025 at 8:55 PM
Reposted by Nicolas Galtier
standupforscifr.bsky.social
#StandUpForScience
Ce vendredi 07 mars, nous aurons l’occasion d’affirmer collectivement notre solidarité aux scientifiques et universitaires travaillant aux États-Unis, en Argentine et dans tous les pays où la liberté académique est menacée.
March 7, 2025 at 7:58 AM