Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, the journal I lead, has retracted three papers for fabrication and falsification of data: https://bit.ly/3088zQ9 , https://bit.ly/3gXA58U , https://bit.ly/374CbiT  1/X

I personally handled the investigation of the three retracted papers in my role as Executive Editor and because the topics covered are familiar to me. These appear to be the first retractions in GCA history. 2/X

I first became aware of problems in one of these papers by reading a shocking report: https://bit.ly/2UdjnZf . Thanks is due to those who brought this to the light of day. 3/X

The initial investigation of these three papers took at least 40 hours of my time. The publisher, @ElsevierConnect, then followed with its own investigation, and the authors were contacted and allowed to respond multiple times. 4/X

The entire process took nearly a year to allow for due process for the authors and because of legal matters considered by the publisher. 5/X

Retracting these papers was necessary to protect the integrity of the science we pursue. The advancement of science fundamentally relies of trust. We move forward by building on what was done before. These papers violated the trust required for progress. 6/X

Do not blame the editors or reviewers that originally examined these papers. The problems identified could only be found by deliberately looking for them. Review would be impossible if every submission went through a forensic examination. 7/X

Reviewers and editors proceed from a position of trust, fully expecting the authors to have prepared their paper in good faith. We may find scientific or writing problems, but no one expects research misconduct as they review. 8/X

Please also do not presume an author guilty should charges of misconduct be raised in the future. Everyone deserves an investigations and due process. But all journals have a responsibility to investigate serious allegations. 9/X

Finally, please do not malign Chinese scientists. While the authors of the retracted papers are from China, misconduct occurs in all countries, and there are many, many Chinese scientists doing excellent science the right way. 10/X