Time to accept academic investigation of achievement

Editor's Note: Han Chunyu, a biologist at Hebei University of Science and Technology in Shijiazhuang, Hebei province, published a paper in the prestigious science journal Nature, in which he claimed to have made a breakthrough with NgAgo geneediting technologies. However, other scientists, both at home and overseas, said they have failed to repeat the results of his experiments, and 13 scientists have now called for an academic investigation to be launched into his research and for Han to share his original materials and data. China Daily shares two views on the controversy.

Only repeatable experiments will be accepted by other scientists. If one scientist claims to have made a discovery but others cannot repeat it, then that discovery will not be accepted.

When a scientist achieves a result that cannot be repeated, there are two possibilities, either mistakes were made in the experiment or the data has been intentionally falsified. In the first instance it's an error and in the second a misdeed, both are unacceptable. The 13 researchers have asked for an investigation mainly because they want to find out if either is true in Han's case.