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Browse the failure-mode index

21,691 real negative results, null findings, and replication failures. Search the index →

WASTE indexes published research — it does not host or republish full papers. Each entry is a metadata record compiled from open scholarly databases; the abstract is shown in full only where the paper is openly licensed, otherwise a short excerpt under fair use. Classifications are automated and approximate.

Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessMedicine

Interfering With DNA Decondensation as a Strategy Against Mycobacteria

Enzo M. Scutigliani, Edwin R. Scholl, Anita E. Grootemaat et al. · 2018 · Frontiers in Microbiology

Tuberculosis is once again a major global threat, leading to more than 1 million deaths each year. Treatment options for tuberculosis patients are limited, expensive and characterized by severe side effects, especially in the case of multi-drug resistant forms. Uncovering novel vulnerabilities of the pathogen is crucial to generate new therapeutic strategies. Using high resolution microscopy techniques, we discovered one such vulnerability of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. We demonstrate that the DNA of M. tuberculosis can condense under stressful conditions such as starvation and antibiotic trea

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Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessMedicine

Alexithymia and the Evaluation of Emotionally Valenced Scenes

Sarah N. Rigby, Lorna S. Jakobson, Pauline M. Pearson et al. · 2020 · Frontiers in Psychology

Alexithymia is a personality trait characterized by difficulties identifying and describing feelings (DIF and DDF) and an externally-oriented thinking style (EOT). The primary aim of the present study was to investigate links between alexithymia and the evaluation of emotional scenes. We also investigated whether viewers’ evaluations of emotional scenes were better predicted by specific alexithymic traits or by individual differences in sensory processing sensitivity (SPS). Participants (N = 106) completed measures of alexithymia and SPS along with a task requiring speeded judgments of the ple

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Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessPsychology

Trait mindful awareness predicts inter-brain coupling but not individual brain responses during naturalistic face-to-face interactions

Yi‐Ping Phoebe Chen, Ulrich Kirk, Suzanne Dikker · 2022 · Frontiers in Psychology

In recent years, the possible benefits of mindfulness meditation have sparked much public and academic interest. Mindfulness emphasizes cultivating awareness of our immediate experience and has been associated with compassion, empathy, and various other prosocial traits. However, neurobiological evidence pertaining to the prosocial benefits of mindfulness in social settings is sparse. In this study, we investigate neural correlates of trait mindful awareness during naturalistic dyadic interactions, using both intra-brain and inter-brain measures. We used the Muse headset, a portable electroenc

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Negative / Null Result ReportEnvironmental Science

Temporal variation in survival and recovery rates of lesser scaup: A response

Todd W. Arnold, Alan D. Afton, Michael J. Anteau et al. · 2017 · Journal of Wildlife Management

ABSTRACT We recently analyzed long‐term (1951–2011) continental band‐recovery data from lesser scaup ( Aythya affinis ) and demonstrated that harvest rates declined through time, but annual survival rates exhibited no such trends;…

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Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessMedicine

Kinetics of the West Nile virus induced transcripts of selected cytokines and Toll-like receptors in equine peripheral blood mononuclear cells

Muhammad Jasim Uddin, Willy W. Suen, Angela M. Bosco‐Lauth et al. · 2016 · Veterinary Research

West Nile virus (WNV) is one of the most common causes of epidemic viral encephalitis in horses worldwide. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) are amongst the first to encounter the virus following a mosquito bite. This study aimed to elucidate the transcription kinetics of cytokine, Toll-like receptor (TLRs) and TLRs-associated genes following WNV challenge of equine PBMCs. PBMCs were challenged with an Australian strain of WNV (WNVNSW2011) and transcriptomes were quantified at 2, 6, 12 and 24 h post-infection (pi) using qRT-PCR. Type I and II interferons (IFNα, β and γ) mRNA transcrip

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Failed Experiment ReportOpen accessMedicine

Detection of Two Highly Diverse Peribunyaviruses in Mosquitoes from Palenque, Mexico

Anne Kopp, Alexandra Hübner, Florian Zirkel et al. · 2019 · Viruses

. Orthobunyaviruses and pacuviruses are mainly transmitted by blood-feeding insects and infect a variety of vertebrates whereas herbeviruses and shangaviruses have a host range restricted to insects. Here, we tested mosquitoes from a tropical rainforest in Mexico for infections with peribunyaviruses. We identified and characterized two previously unknown viruses, designated Baakal virus (BKAV) and Lakamha virus (LAKV). Sequencing and de novo assembly of the entire BKAV and LAKV genomes revealed that BKAV is an orthobunyavirus and LAKV is likely to belong to a new genus. LAKV was almost equidis

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Negative / Null Result ReportPsychology

How literary can literariness be?

Massimo Salgaro · 2015 · Scientific Study of Literature

In literary theory, there are two common proposals about the nature of literature: that literariness is a distinctive characteristic of literary texts and that literariness is mostly characterized by highly foregrounded textual features.…

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Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

BMI variability and cardiovascular outcomes within clinical trial and real-world environments in type 2 diabetes: an IMI2 SOPHIA study

Robert Massey, Yu Chen, Marina Panova‐Noeva et al. · 2024 · Cardiovascular Diabetology

BACKGROUND: BMI variability has been associated with increased cardiovascular disease risk in individuals with type 2 diabetes, however comparison between clinical studies and real-world observational evidence has been lacking. Furthermore, it is not known whether BMI variability has an effect independent of HbA1c variability. METHODS: We investigated the association between BMI variability and 3P-MACE risk in the Harmony Outcomes trial (n = 9198), and further analysed placebo arms of REWIND (n = 4440) and EMPA-REG OUTCOME (n = 2333) trials, followed by real-world data from the Tayside Bioreso

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Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessMedicine

4-Aminobutyrate Aminotransferase (ABAT): Genetic and Pharmacological Evidence for an Involvement in Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disease

Johan Jirholt, Bengt Åsling, Paul Hammond et al. · 2011 · PLoS ONE

Gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD) is partly caused by genetic factors. The underlying susceptibility genes are currently unknown, with the exception of COL3A1. We used three independent GERD patient cohorts to identify GERD susceptibility genes. Thirty-six families, demonstrating dominant transmission of GERD were subjected to whole genome microsatellite genotyping and linkage analysis. Five linked regions were identified. Two families shared a linked region (LOD 3.9 and 2.0) on chromosome 16. We used two additional independent GERD patient cohorts, one consisting of 219 trios (affected

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Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

Topological requirements of the mitochondrial heavy-strand promoters

Ornella Zollo, Neal Sondheimer · 2017 · Transcription

In vitro studies of mitochondrial transcription often use linear templates that fail to replicate key features of transcription on a circular genome. We developed a plasmid-based system for the analysis of heavy-strand promoters that…

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Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessMedicine

Data-driven profiles of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder using objective and ecological measures of attention, distractibility, and hyperactivity

Pilar Fernández‐Martín, Rocío Rodríguez‐Herrera, Rosa Cánovas et al. · 2023 · European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry

In the past two decades, the traditional nosology of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has been criticized for having insufficient discriminant validity. In line with current trends, in the present study, we combined a data-driven approach with the advantages of virtual reality aiming to identify novel behavioral profiles of ADHD based on ecological and performance-based measures of inattention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity. One hundred and ten Spanish-speaking participants (6-16 years) with ADHD (medication-naïve, n = 57) and typically developing participants (n = 53) complete

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Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessMedicine

The FGA Thr312Ala polymorphism and risk of intracerebral haemorrhage in Polish and Greek populations

Jeremiasz Jagiełła, Efthimios Dardiotis, Jerzy Gąsowski et al. · 2014 · Neurologia i Neurochirurgia Polska

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Spontaneous intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH) is the most fatal form of stroke with the highest morbidity and disability rate of all stroke types. Recent data suggest that the genetic background has a sizeable and…

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Negative / Null Result ReportMedicine

Marijuana and Workplace Safety: An Examination of Urine Drug Tests

James W. Price · 2014 · Journal of Addictive Diseases

Although the decriminalization of recreational marijuana and medical marijuana laws provide a compassionate answer for treatment-related issues in patients' lives, they leave questions open as to the impact on other realms of life, such as…

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Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessSocial Sciences

Bidirectional Associations of Adolescents’ Momentary Social Media Use and Negative Emotions

Tyler Colasante, Katie Faulkner, Dana Kharbotli et al. · 2024 · Affective Science

Abstract Public discourse and empirical studies have predominantly focused on the negative repercussions of social media on adolescents’ mental health. However, pervasive social media use is a relatively new phenomenon—its apparent harms have been widely accepted before sufficient longitudinal and experimental research has been conducted. The present study used an intensive longitudinal design (four assessments/day × 14 days; N = 154 12- to 15-year-olds ( M age = 13.47, SD = 0.58); N = 6,240 valid measurement occasions) to test the directionality of social media–negative emotion links in early

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Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessPsychology

Communicating Evidence about the Causes of Obesity and Support for Obesity Policies: Two Population-Based Survey Experiments

James P. Reynolds, Milica Vasiljevic, Mark Pilling et al. · 2020 · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

Public support for numerous obesity policies is low, which is one barrier to their implementation. One reason for this low support is the tendency to ascribe obesity to failings of willpower as opposed to the environment. Correlational evidence supports this position. However, the experimental evidence is mixed. In two experimental studies, participants were randomised to receive no message, messages about the environment’s influence on obesity (Study 1 & 2), or messages about the environment’s influence on human behaviour (Study 1). We investigated whether communicating these messages cha

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Negative / Null Result ReportDecision Sciences

Statistically Significant! But Is Trust of Practical Significance?

Dapeng Liu, Heinz Roland Weistroffer · 2020 · Journal of Computer Information Systems

Trust, such as trust in a technology or believing that a technology has trustworthy utility, manifests its importance by affecting user behaviors toward information systems (IS). There is no dearth of evidence showing that the effect of…

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Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessMedicine

Does Moxa Smoke Have Significant Effect on the Acupuncturist’s Respiratory System? A Population-Based Study

Chang Yu, Ning Zhang, Weikang Zhu et al. · 2019 · Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine

Objectives . To evaluate the safety of moxa smoke, especially to provide quantitative information and details for the occupational prevention of acupuncturists. Methods . We combined the questionnaire-based cross-sectional survey and lung function testing-based historical retrospective cohort research to investigate the safety of moxa smoke exposure (MSE) among acupuncturists. A mathematical regression model was established to quantitatively evaluate the relationship between moxa smoke exposure and the respiratory health of the acupuncturist. The smoke exposure time of the acupuncturist and th

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Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessPsychology

Power vs. persuasion: can open body postures embody openness to persuasion?

Ioana M. Latu, Sean Duffy, Vaani Pardal et al. · 2017 · Comprehensive Results in Social Psychology

In the current study, we sought to replicate the finding that adopting an open/expansive body posture increases subjective feelings of power, while also investigating how these body postures influence the processing of persuasive messages.…

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Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessMedicine

No Significant Effect of the Individual Chronotype on the Result of Moderate Calorie Restriction for Obesity—A Pilot Study

Zofia Strojny, Rafał Rutkowski, Alina Kanikowska et al. · 2021 · Nutrients

Background: Chronotype is the pattern of the circadian rhythm that allows an individual to optimize times of sleep and activity. It has been observed that chronotypes may associate with some conditions and diseases, including obesity. It is not known, however, whether chronotypes determine the effectiveness of weight loss regimens. Therefore, in the present study, we compared the outcomes of a 3-week moderate calorie restriction undertaken by individuals with obesity under the same controlled hospital conditions. Methods: A total of 131 participants with obesity (median BMI 40.0) were studied.

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Negative / Null Result ReportMaterials Science

The significant effect of the phase composition on the oxygen reduction reaction activity of a layered oxide cathode

Shanshan Jiang, Jaka Sunarso, Wei Zhou et al. · 2013 · Journal of Materials Chemistry A

Layered oxides of Sr4Fe4Co2O13 (SFC2) which contains alternating perovskite oxide octahedral and polyhedral oxide double layers are attractive for their mixed ionic and electronic conducting and oxygen reduction reaction properties. In…

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Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessDecision Sciences

No relationship between researcher impact and replication effect: an analysis of five studies with 100 replications

John Protzko, Jonathan W. Schooler · 2020 · PeerJ

What explanation is there when teams of researchers are unable to successfully replicate already established ‘canonical’ findings? One suggestion that has been put forward, but left largely untested, is that those researchers who fail to replicate prior studies are of low ‘expertise and diligence’ and lack the skill necessary to successfully replicate the conditions of the original experiment. Here we examine the replication success of 100 scientists of differing ‘expertise and diligence’ who attempted to replicate five different studies. Using a bibliometric tool ( h -index) as our indicator

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Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessPsychology

The effects of exposure to objective coherence on perceived meaning in life: a preregistered direct replication of Heintzelman, Trent & King (2013)

Kaylin Ratner, Anthony L. Burrow, Felix Thoemmes · 2016 · Royal Society Open Science

Having a sense of meaning in life (MIL) has been acknowledged as a catalyst to psychological flourishing. As such, understanding ways to promote MIL represents a worthy goal for those interested in bolstering positive outcomes. This study sought to replicate the findings of Heintzelman, Trent & King (2013 Psychol. Sci. 24 , 991–998 ( doi:10.1177/0956797612465878 )), who found that MIL could be influenced by external stimulation. Their findings suggest that exposure to coherent stimuli produces significantly higher MIL scores than exposure to incoherent stimuli. Using materials and methodol

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