2013 Essays

Why we published a paper we knew was wrong

Drew, Joshua Adam

I have to admit, we recently published a paper that was wrong. Well not totally wrong, more like incomplete. This is how science works we put something forward and people say if they think the idea is solid or needs work. If the latter they hopefully do something productive, like amend the formulae to be more generalizable. This is what I am hoping happens. Let me tell you about my errant paper. This paper started as a chat during the closed door session of my doctoral defense. The day was Good Friday, 2008 and I had just given an hour-long presentation on the biogeography, evolution and conservation of Melanesian fishes. My committee member, Les Kaufman, asked me how the genetic approaches that I had used in my dissertation could help with the shifting baselines of coral reefs.