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Journal of Cosmology

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The Journal of Cosmology is a website that describes itself as a "scientific journal".[1][2] It has been criticized for lacking oversight and proper peer-review, and promoting fringe theories.[3][4][5][6] It was established in 2009 by neuroscientist Rhawn Joseph; as of 2023, Rudolph Schild is the editor-in-chief.[7]

Journal of Cosmology
no; see text
LanguageEnglish
Edited byRudolph Schild
Publication details
History2009–present
Publisher
Modern Cosmology Associates LLC (United States)
Standard abbreviations
ISO 4J. Cosmol.
Indexing
ISSN2159-063X
LCCN2010203854
OCLC no.651009010
Links
Not to be confused with Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics or International Journal of Astrobiology.

Scope

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The Journal of Cosmology is an online publication that contains material on a wide range of subjects in cosmology, astronomy, astrobiology, and Earth and planetary sciences. Writing on biology, geology, physics, chemistry, extinction, the origin and evolution of life, panspermia and Martian colonization and exploration has all been published.[7][8]

Reliability

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The quality of the claimed peer review has been heavily criticized.[3][9][6][4][5] The website promotes fringe viewpoints and speculative viewpoints on astrobiology, astrophysics, and quantum physics. Skeptical blogger and biologist PZ Myers said that "it isn't a real science journal at all, but [the] website of a small group... obsessed with the idea of Hoyle and Wickramasinghe that life originated in outer space and simply rained down on Earth."[6][10] It was identified as a predatory journal by Jeffrey Beall.[3]

History

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Disputes with scientists

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Scientists who have posted accounts of personal attacks by the journal's staff members include Susan Blackmore,[11] David Brin,[12] and PZ Myers.[13]

Hoover paper

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In early March 2011, a controversy erupted[6][14] over the publication of a paper by Richard B. Hoover,[15] a retired NASA scientist, with claims of evidence in meteorites that life on Earth could have come from space via debris carrying life from a comet. The website published a dismissal of the criticism as "a barrage of slanderous attacks" from "crackpots and charlatans", calling themesleves courageous for resisting the "terrorists" whose actions they equated with the Inquisition.[16]

NASA distanced itself from Hoover's findings,[17] and issued a statement saying that the paper had been previously submitted in 2007 to International Journal of Astrobiology which did not accept it for review.[18]

On 11 March, in an open letter to the editors of Science and Nature, Schild proposed to establish a commission to investigate the validity of the Hoover paper, which would be led by three experts appointed by Journal of Cosmology, Science and Nature.[19] Schild said he would interpret "any refusal to cooperate, no matter what the excuse" from Nature or Science as "vindication for the Journal of Cosmology and the Hoover paper, and an acknowledgment that the editorial policies of the Journal of Cosmology are beyond reproach".[19] Schild subsequently issued another statement standing by their publication process and suggesting that criticisms were "slander and histrionic tirades", and comparing their critics to "lunatics... unleashed to throw filth", suggesting that their own actions were part of a 2000-year struggle of science against religion. Since their critics had "refused to cooperate" in a review, they reaffirmed the study to be "beyond reproach".[20]

 
Location where "Pinnacle Island" rock was dislodged by the Opportunity rover

The James Randi Educational Foundation awarded Hoover the tongue-in-cheek Pigasus Award, for repeatedly announcing, "[a]long with the crackpot Journal of Cosmology",[21] widely dismissed claims that he had found signs of life in Mars rocks.[21][22]

NASA lawsuit

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See also: Opportunity (rover) § 2014

On 17 January 2014, NASA reported that a martian rock, named "Pinnacle Island", that was not in an Opportunity rover image taken on Sol 3528, "mysteriously" appeared 13 days later in a similar image taken on Sol 3540. One possible explanation, presented by Steven Squyres, principal investigator of the Mars Exploration Rover Mission, was that the rover, in one of its turning motions, flicked the rock from a few feet away and into the new location.[23][24] In response to the finding, Rhawn Joseph published an article on the website on 17 January 2014, concluding that the object is in fact a living organism resembling apothecia.[25] Joseph then filed a writ of mandamus on 27 January 2014 in San Francisco Federal Court, demanding that NASA examine the rock more closely.[26][27][28]

NASA had already examined the rock on 8 January 2014[29] and confirmed it was a rock with a high sulphur, manganese, and magnesium content.[30] According to Squyres, "We have looked at it with our microscope. It is clearly a rock."[28] On 14 February 2014, NASA released an image showing the location from where the "Pinnacle Island" rock was dislodged by the Opportunity rover.

References

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  1. ^ I. O'Neil (7 March 2011). "NASA Refutes Alien Discovery Claim". Discovery News. Archived from the original on 1 June 2012. Retrieved 7 March 2011. The Journal of Cosmology is known to have less than stringent submission guidelines (even though the website claims that articles are peer reviewed by "at least two recognized experts").
  2. ^ P. Z. Myers (6 March 2011). "Did Scientists Discover Bacteria in Meteorites?". Pharyngula. Retrieved 6 March 2011. a fringe website that pretends to be a legitimate science journal
  3. ^ a b c Beall, Jeffrey. "Potential, possible, or probable predatory scholarly open-access journals". Scholarly Open Access. Archived from the original on 3 April 2013. Retrieved 9 April 2013.
  4. ^ a b P. Plait (7 March 2011). "Followup Thoughts on the Meteorite Fossils Claims". Discover Magazine. Retrieved 6 March 2011.
  5. ^ a b Martin, Mike (7 March 2011). "'Alien Life' Claim Hampered by Journal's Dubious Reputation". Retrieved 18 July 2013.
  6. ^ a b c d P. Z. Myers (6 March 2011). "Did Scientists Discover Bacteria in Meteorites?". Pharyngula. Retrieved 6 March 2011.
  7. ^ a b "The Journal of Cosmology". Journal of Cosmology. Archived from the original on 3 September 2009. Retrieved 14 January 2012.
  8. ^ N. K. Geranios (15 November 2010). "Scientists propose one-way trips to Mars". MSNBC. Archived from the original on 4 January 2013. Retrieved 8 October 2011.
  9. ^ I. O'Neil (7 March 2011). "NASA Refutes Alien Discovery Claim". Discovery News. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
  10. ^ P. Z. Myers (23 July 2009). "An Amusingly Suspicious "Paper"". Pharyngula. Archived from the original on 26 August 2011. Retrieved 6 March 2011.
  11. ^ ""A note on the book 'Neurotheology' ", Susan Blackmore, April 2007, susanblackmore.co.uk". Archived from the original on 7 January 2015. Retrieved 7 January 2015.
  12. ^ "An "explanation" for life's origins that falls way short", David Brin, 23 September 2009, "Sentient Developments"
  13. ^ "Professional science journalism", PZ Myers, 20 July 2011, "Pharyngula"
  14. ^ D. Dobbs (6 March 2011). "Aliens Riding Meteorites: Arsenic Redux or Something New?". Wired. Retrieved 6 March 2011.
  15. ^ R. B. Hoover (5 March 2011). "Fossils of Cyanobacteria in CI1 Carbonaceous Meteorites". Journal of Cosmology. 13. Archived from the original on 26 December 2018.
  16. ^ "The Controversy of the Hoover Meteorite Study: Official Statement The Journal of Cosmology, Have the Terrorists Won?". Journal of Cosmology. 8 March 2011.
    The statement was taken down, but a copy of the original can be found at D. Dobbs (10 March 2011). "Journal of Cosmology calls criticism of Hoover alien paper a witchhunt". David Dobbs's Somatic Marker. Archived from the original on 14 April 2013. Retrieved 22 September 2011.
  17. ^ "NASA shoots down alien fossil claims". ABC News. 8 March 2011. Retrieved 9 October 2011.
  18. ^ "Scientists skeptical of meteorite alien life claim". Chicago Sun-Times. Associated Press. 7 March 2011. Retrieved 9 October 2011.
  19. ^ a b R. Schild (11 March 2011). "The Journal of Cosmology Proposes a Scientific Commission, Established Co-Jointly with Science and Nature, To Investigate & Confirm the Validity of the Hoover Paper". Journal of Cosmology.
    A copy of the original can be found at G. Munevar (25 March 2011). "A New Controversy". Philosophy of Space Exploration. Retrieved 9 October 2011.
  20. ^ D. Dobbs (18 March 2011). "Cosmology journal declares war won, enemies evil, new Galileo". Posterous. Retrieved 12 October 2011.
  21. ^ a b S. Crabtree (1 April 2011). "The 5 Worst Promoters of Nonsense". James Randi Educational Foundation. Retrieved 9 October 2011.
  22. ^ R. Mestel (1 April 2011). "Dr. Oz, Andrew Wakefield and others, um, 'honored' by James Randi". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2 April 2011.
  23. ^ O'Neill, Ian (17 January 2014). "Mystery Rock 'Appears' in Front of Mars Rover". Space.com. Retrieved 18 January 2014.
  24. ^ Chang, Kenneth (24 January 2014). "Mars Rover Marks an Unexpected Anniversary With a Mysterious Discovery". New York Times. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
  25. ^ Joseph, Rhawn Gabriel (17 January 2014). "Apothecia on Mars? Life Discovered on the Red Planet". Journal of Cosmology. Retrieved 1 February 2014.
  26. ^ Lecher, Colin (28 January 2014). "Lawsuit Alleges NASA Is Failing To Investigate Alien Life". Popular Science. Retrieved 31 January 2014.
  27. ^ Weiss, Debra Cassens (29 January 2014). "Suit says NASA was 'recklessly negligent and bizarre' for failing to investigate Mars rock". American Bar Association. Retrieved 31 January 2014.
  28. ^ a b Bailey, Lorraine (29 January 2014). "Is Mysterious Mars Rock a Fungus?". Courthouse News Service. Archived from the original on 1 February 2014. Retrieved 31 January 2014.
  29. ^ OPPORTUNITY UPDATE: sols 3541–3547, 8 January 2014 – 15 January 2014.
  30. ^ Staff (24 January 2014). "Scientist closer to solving Mars rock mystery, says NASA expert". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 25 January 2014. Retrieved 31 January 2014.

Further reading

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