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Failure-mode index

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A searchable index of real negative results, null findings, and replication failures from the published literature — so you can learn what didn't work before repeating it.

WASTE indexes published research — it does not host or republish full papers. Each entry is a metadata record (title, authors, DOI) compiled from open scholarly databases, with the abstract shown in full only where the paper is openly licensed (e.g. Creative Commons); otherwise a short excerpt is shown for reference under fair use. WASTE classifies each work by failure type; classifications are automated and approximate.

1759 results in Negative / Null Result Report for "Mpro" · page 27 of 59

Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessPolitical science (General)

The (null) effect of climate change beliefs on disaster preparedness by houses of worship

Jason M. Pudlo · Politics and Religion

Houses of worship are often shelters after the storm. Yet, as climate change fuels natural disasters and communities increasingly rely on congregations during disaster recovery, are houses of worship ready to be houses of refuge? Examining clergy influence, does a higher concern about climate change by clergy result in improved congregational disaster readiness? Data for the study come from a 2019 nationwide survey of clergy. The survey includes measures of congregational disaster preparedness along with one of the first applications of the SASSY climate concern measure to clergy. Results show

View details →DOI: 10.1017/s1755048325000082
Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessNutrition. Foods and food supply

Effects of Dietary Supplementation with Moringa oleifera on HIV Viral Load in Adults Receiving Standard Care

Phyllis Waruguru, Dasel Mulwa, Michael Okoth et al. · 2025 · Journal of Food Innovation, Nutrition, and Environmental Sciences

Background: Antiretroviral therapy (ART) effectively suppresses HIV viral load. However, people living with HIV (PLWH) fail to achieve optimal viral suppression and especially in resource limited settings. Nutritional supplements such as Moringa oleifera have been traditionally used to improve health outcomes in PLWH, yet their effects on viral load remain under researched. Objective: To evaluate the effect of dietary supplementation with Moringa oleifera seed flour on HIV viral load among adult women receiving ART in a resource-limited setting. Methods: This was a crossover clinical trial inv

View details →DOI: 10.70851/ynxgrq90
Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessComputer Science

Prompting Science Report 3: I'll pay you or I'll kill you -- but will you care?

Lennart Meincke, Ethan Mollick, Lilach Mollick et al. · 2025 · arXiv

This is the third in a series of short reports that seek to help business, education, and policy leaders understand the technical details of working with AI through rigorous testing. In this report, we investigate two commonly held prompting beliefs: a) offering to tip the AI model and b) threatening the AI model. Tipping was a commonly shared tactic for improving AI performance and threats have been endorsed by Google Founder Sergey Brin (All-In, May 2025, 8:20) who observed that 'models tend to do better if you threaten them,' a claim we subject to empirical testing here. We evaluate model p

Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessComputer Science

Indefinite causal order strategy does not improve the estimation of group action

Masahito Hayashi · 2025 · arXiv

We consider estimation of unknown unitary operation when the set of possible unitary operations is given by a projective unitary representation of a compact group. We show that neither indefinite causal order strategy nor adaptive strategy improves the performance of this estimation when error function satisfies group covariance. That is, the optimal parallel strategy gives the optimal performance even under indefinite causal order strategy and adaptive strategy. To study this problem, we newly introduce the concept of generalized positive operator valued measure (GPOVM), and its convariance c

Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessEducation (General)

THE EFFECTIVENESS OF LANGUAGE PROGRAM TOWARDS STUDENTS SPEAKING SKILL IN UNIVERSITY

Sasmita Tarihoran, Jufrizal Jufrizal · 2024 · English Review: Journal of English Education

This study examines the impact of a language program on the speaking skills of students at UIN SYAHADA Padangsidimpuan. With English proficiency being crucial for global communication, the research aimed to assess the program's effectiveness in improving students' speaking abilities. Using an ex post facto research design, 43 English department students were assessed. Speaking tests were administered at the start and end of the semester, and the data were analyzed using the Wilcoxon test. Findings showed a modest increase in mean scores, indicating some positive effect of the program. However,

View details →DOI: 10.25134/erjee.v12i3.10091
Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessComputer Science

What does RL improve for Visual Reasoning? A Frankenstein-Style Analysis

Xirui Li, Ming Li, Tianyi Zhou · 2026 · arXiv

Reinforcement learning (RL) with verifiable rewards has become a standard post-training stage for boosting visual reasoning in vision-language models, yet it remains unclear what capabilities RL actually improves compared with supervised fine-tuning as cold-start initialization (IN). End-to-end benchmark gains conflate multiple factors, making it difficult to attribute improvements to specific skills. To bridge the gap, we propose a Frankenstein-style analysis framework including: (i) functional localization via causal probing; (ii) update characterization via parameter comparison; and (iii) t

Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessMedicine

Urolithin A improves motility, antioxidant defense, and mitochondrial function of chilled canine spermatozoa during 72-h liquid storage.

Mirzaei R, Soleimanzadeh A, Asri-Rezaei S · 2026 · Scientific reports

Dog semen conservation at cold temperatures (5 °C) is a valuable reproductive management tool, but it is bedeviled by issues of oxidative stress and mitochondrial damage that reduce sperm quality and viability. Urolithin A (UA), a natural…

View details →DOI: 10.1038/s41598-026-49089-8
Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessMedicine

Animal-origin-free culture improves mitotic response for chromosome aberration analysis of human peripheral blood.

Fujishima Y, Anderson D, Kamakura S et al. · 2026 · PNAS nexus

The lymphocyte culture method for chromosomal aberration analysis was established in the 1960s, and culture media supplemented with fetal bovine serum (FBS) have been routinely used. However, issues such as lot-to-lot variability,…

View details →DOI: 10.1093/pnasnexus/pgag120
Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessMedicine (General)

Anesthesia’s Influence on Postoperative In-Hospital Morbidity–Mortality in Proximal Femoral Fractures in the Elderly

Oded Hershkovich, Inga Tetroashvili, Adam Lee Goldstein et al. · 2024 · Medicina

Background and Objectives: The incidence of proximal femoral fractures (PFFs) is rising, causing significant morbidity and mortality. Regional anesthesia (RA)’s benefits include the avoidance of intubation and mechanical ventilation, decreased blood loss, and improved analgesia. General anesthesia (GA) offers improved hemodynamic stability. This study examines the in-hospital post-surgical morbidity and mortality seen in PFFs in a cohort of the elderly undergoing GA or RA. Materials and Methods: This is a retrospective cohort study of 319 PFF patients older than 65 years over a single year. Re

View details →DOI: 10.3390/medicina60091446
Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessEconomics, Econometrics and Finance

Board gender diversity and emissions performance: Insights from panel regressions, machine learning, and explainable AI

Mohammad Hassan Shakil, Arne Johan Pollestad, Khine Kyaw et al. · 2025 · arXiv

With European Union initiatives mandating gender quotas on corporate boards, a key question arises: Is greater board gender diversity (BGD) associated with better emissions performance (EP)? To answer this question, we examine the influence of BGD on EP across a sample of European firms from 2016 to 2022. Using panel regressions, advanced machine learning algorithms, and explainable AI, we reveal a non-linear relationship. Specifically, EP improves with BGD up to an optimal level of approximately 35 %, beyond which further increases in BGD yield no additional improvement in EP. A minimum BGD t

Negative / Null Result Report

Improvement in Long‐term Household Food Security among Indiana Households with Children did not Differ between Rural and Urban Counties after a Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program‐Education Intervention

Rebecca L Rivera, Melissa K Maulding, Angela R Abbott et al. · 2016 · The FASEB Journal

Objective To determine the relationship of rural and urban county household status to long‐term food security among households with children in Indiana after a Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program‐Education (SNAP‐Ed) intervention.…

View details →DOI: 10.1096/fasebj.30.1_supplement.674.26
Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessComputer Science

Scale Alone Does not Improve Mechanistic Interpretability in Vision Models

Roland S. Zimmermann, Thomas Klein, Wieland Brendel · 2023 · arXiv

In light of the recent widespread adoption of AI systems, understanding the internal information processing of neural networks has become increasingly critical. Most recently, machine vision has seen remarkable progress by scaling neural networks to unprecedented levels in dataset and model size. We here ask whether this extraordinary increase in scale also positively impacts the field of mechanistic interpretability. In other words, has our understanding of the inner workings of scaled neural networks improved as well? We use a psychophysical paradigm to quantify one form of mechanistic inter

Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessMedicine

Impact of Cross-Sectoral Video Consultation on Perceived Care Coordination and Information Satisfaction in Cancer Care: Randomized Controlled Trial

Fereshteh Baygi, Theis Bitz Trabjerg, Lars Henrik Jensen et al. · 2025 · JMIR Formative Research

BackgroundEnhancing care coordination and sharing information in cancer care improves patient experiences by promoting clarity and satisfaction. ObjectiveThis study aims to assess the impact of cross-sectoral video consultation on patient perceptions of care coordination and satisfaction with received information compared to usual care. MethodsThis study presents secondary outcomes on patient perceptions of care coordination and satisfaction with received information from a 7-month follow-up of the Partnership Project. In this randomized controlled trial, patients with cancer were allocated to

View details →DOI: 10.2196/76910
Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessNeurology. Diseases of the nervous system

Placebo effect after visual restitution training: no eye-tracking controlled perimetric improvement after visual border stimulation in late subacute and chronic visual field defects after stroke

Michael Christian Leitner, Michael Christian Leitner, Michael Christian Leitner et al. · 2023 · Frontiers in Neurology

IntroductionA significant number of Restitution Training (RT) paradigms claim to ameliorate visual field loss after stroke by re-activating neuronal connections in the residual visual cortex due to repeated bright light-stimulation at the border of the blind and intact fields. However, the effectiveness of RT has been considered controversial both in science and clinical practice for years. The main points of the controversy are (1) the reliability of perimetric results which may be affected by compensatory eye movements and (2) heterogeneous samples consisting of patients with visual field de

View details →DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2023.1114718
Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessOtorhinolaryngology

Comparison of Endoscopic Versus Microscopic Tympanoplasty

Iqra Zakir, Ahmad Ahmad, Hamdan Pasha et al. · 2022 · Iranian Journal of Otorhinolaryngology

Introduction:Tympanoplasty is a common surgery for chronic otitis media and has conventionally been performed with a microscope for decades. The trend of endoscopic minimally invasive surgeries has been increasing worldwide for the last few decades. Few studies have discussed the outcomes of microscopic and endoscopic tympanoplasty. This study aims to compare results of tympanoplasty done with microscope vs endoscope in terms of graft take rate and improvement in conductive hearing loss.Materials and Methods:We did a retrospective review of 120 patients (54 male and 66 female) who underwent Ty

View details →DOI: 10.22038/ijorl.2022.61234.3104
Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessBiotechnology

The Influence of Backpack Weight and Hip Belt Tension on Movement and Loading in the Pelvis and Lower Limbs during Walking

Katja Oberhofer, Patrick D. Wettenschwiler, Navrag Singh et al. · 2018 · Applied Bionics and Biomechanics

The introduction of hip belts to backpacks has caused a shift of loading from the spine to the hips with reported improvements in musculoskeletal comfort. Yet the effects of different hip belt tensions on gait biomechanics remain largely unknown. The goal of this study was to assess the influence of backpack weight and hip belt tension on gait biomechanics. Data from optical motion capture and ground reaction forces (GRF) during walking were acquired in nine healthy male subjects (age 28.0 ± 3.9 years). Six configurations of a commercial backpack were analyzed, that is, 15 kg, 20 kg, and 25 kg

View details →DOI: 10.1155/2018/4671956
Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessPhysics

Why material slow light does not improve cavity-enhanced atom detection

B. Megyeri, A. Lampis, G. Harvie et al. · 2017 · arXiv

We discuss the prospects for enhancing absorption and scattering of light from a weakly coupled atom in a high-finesse optical cavity by adding a medium with large, positive group index of refraction. The slow-light effect is known to narrow the cavity transmission spectrum and increase the photon lifetime, but the quality factor of the cavity may not be increased in a metrologically useful sense. Specifically, detection of the weakly coupled atom through either cavity ringdown measurements or the Purcell effect fails to improve with the addition of material slow light. A single-atom model of

Negative / Null Result Report

Modified string test to improve and confirm by molecular characterization for bacterial identification

Muhammad Dawood Mian, Saadullah Jan Khan, Rehana Rani et al. · 2026 · Access Microbiology

Rapid and reliable identification of bacteria is essential in clinical and environmental microbiology. Gram staining remains a widely used method for preliminary classification; however, it may require additional steps and can be difficult…

View details →DOI: 10.1099/acmi.0.000965.v3
Negative / Null Result Report

Abstract 17917: Is Small Change Significant? Association of Small Differences in Life's Simple 7 and Mortality: the Reasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in Stroke (REGARDS) Cohort

Mary Cushman, Suzanne E Judd, Virginia J Howard et al. · 2011 · Circulation

Background. The AHA 2020 Goal includes improving cardiovascular health, defined using a metric consisting of 7 health factors, Life's Simple 7. A central concept of the goal is that small improvements in behavior / lifestyle factors at the…

View details →DOI: 10.1161/circ.124.suppl_21.a17917
Negative / Null Result ReportMedicine

A Pilot Study Examining Elements to Improve Generalized Word Reading Skills for Students With Significant Word Reading Difficulties.

Clemens NH, Boucher AN, Vaughn S et al. · 2026 · Journal of learning disabilities

Students in grades 2 through 4 with significant word reading difficulties were randomly assigned to one of two 10-week interventions. In the Dual Treatment condition, decoding instruction emphasized regularity in spelling-sound…

View details →DOI: 10.1177/00222194261417589
Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessComputer Science

Does Diversity Improve the Test Suite Generation for Mobile Applications?

Thomas Vogel, Chinh Tran, Lars Grunske · 2019 · arXiv

In search-based software engineering we often use popular heuristics with default configurations, which typically lead to suboptimal results, or we perform experiments to identify configurations on a trial-and-error basis, which may lead to better results for a specific problem. To obtain better results while avoiding trial-and-error experiments, a fitness landscape analysis is helpful in understanding the search problem, and making an informed decision about the heuristics. In this paper, we investigate the search problem of test suite generation for mobile applications (apps) using SAPIENZ w

Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessComputer Science

KNN-LM Does Not Improve Open-ended Text Generation

Shufan Wang, Yixiao Song, Andrew Drozdov et al. · 2023 · arXiv

In this paper, we study the generation quality of interpolation-based retrieval-augmented language models (LMs). These methods, best exemplified by the KNN-LM, interpolate the LM's predicted distribution of the next word with a distribution formed from the most relevant retrievals for a given prefix. While the KNN-LM and related methods yield impressive decreases in perplexity, we discover that they do not exhibit corresponding improvements in open-ended generation quality, as measured by both automatic evaluation metrics (e.g., MAUVE) and human evaluations. Digging deeper, we find that interp

Negative / Null Result Report

Dampak Sosial Ekonomi pada Keluaga Penerima Manfaat (KPM) Program Keluarga Harapan (PKH) Exit Mandiri di Kecamatan Pagelaran Kabuoaten Pringsewu dalam Perspektif The Most Significant Change Technique (MSCt)

Ainun Oktavia Sari, Rahayu Sulistyowati, Ita Prihantika · 2020 · Administrativa: Jurnal Birokrasi, Kebijakan dan Pelayanan Publik

The Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) is a conditional social cash transfer program that provides assistance to Very Poor Households (RTSM) appointed as participants in the Conditional Cash Transfer program which is related to improving the…

View details →DOI: 10.23960/administrativa.v2i3.51
Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessDentistry

Genotoxicity effects of nano bioactive glass and Novabone bioglass on gingival fibroblasts using single cell gel electrophoresis (comet assay): An in vitro study

Mohammad Tavakoli, Ensiyeh Bateni, Mansour Rismanchian et al. · 2012 · Dental Research Journal

Background: The greater surface of bioactive glass nanoparticles presents an incomparable and promising feature similar to the biological apatite. Nanoparticles improve cellular adhesion, enhance osteoblast proliferation and differentiation, and increase biomineralization for periodontal regeneration and dental implants. Considering the fact that interaction between periodontal cells and bone graft materials are important for periodontal lesion regeneration, the present study was undertaken to investigate the genotoxicity of a novel synthesized nanoscale bioactive glass and compared it with No

View details →DOI: 10.4103/1735-3327.99831
Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessComputer Science

Haptic human-human interaction does not improve individual visuomotor adaptation

Niek Beckers, Edwin van Asseldonk, Herman van der Kooij · 2020 · arXiv

Haptic interaction between two humans, for example, a physiotherapist assisting a patient regaining the ability to grasp a cup, likely facilitates motor skill acquisition. Haptic human-human interaction has been shown to enhance individual performance improvement in a tracking task with a visuomotor rotation perturbation. These results are remarkable given that haptically assisting or guiding an individual rarely benefits their individual improvement when the assistance is removed. We, therefore, replicated a study that reported that haptic interaction between humans was beneficial for individ

Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessNeoplasms. Tumors. Oncology. Including cancer and carcinogens

Daratumumab Plus Atezolizumab in Previously Treated Advanced or Metastatic NSCLC: Brief Report on a Randomized, Open-Label, Phase 1b/2 Study (LUC2001 JNJ-54767414)

Rathi N. Pillai, MD, Suresh S. Ramalingam, MD, Meena Thayu, MD et al. · 2021 · JTO Clinical and Research Reports

Introduction: The programmed death-ligand 1 inhibitor atezolizumab improves progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) for patients with previously treated advanced NSCLC. Preclinical studies indicate that targeting CD38-positive cells with daratumumab may synergistically enhance atezolizumab’s antitumor activity by increasing the effector T-cell activity. Methods: This phase 1b-2 study included a safety run-in (one cycle of daratumumab plus atezolizumab) and randomized phases (daratumumab plus atezolizumab versus atezolizumab alone). The primary objective of the randomized phas

View details →DOI: 10.1016/j.jtocrr.2020.100104
Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessComputer Science

Understanding Why Generalized Reweighting Does Not Improve Over ERM

Runtian Zhai, Chen Dan, Zico Kolter et al. · 2022 · arXiv

Empirical risk minimization (ERM) is known in practice to be non-robust to distributional shift where the training and the test distributions are different. A suite of approaches, such as importance weighting, and variants of distributionally robust optimization (DRO), have been proposed to solve this problem. But a line of recent work has empirically shown that these approaches do not significantly improve over ERM in real applications with distribution shift. The goal of this work is to obtain a comprehensive theoretical understanding of this intriguing phenomenon. We first posit the class o

Negative / Null Result ReportOpen accessMathematics

Does preregistration improve the credibility of research findings?

Mark Rubin · 2020 · arXiv

Preregistration entails researchers registering their planned research hypotheses, methods, and analyses in a time-stamped document before they undertake their data collection and analyses. This document is then made available with the published research report to allow readers to identify discrepancies between what the researchers originally planned to do and what they actually ended up doing. This historical transparency is supposed to facilitate judgments about the credibility of the research findings. The present article provides a critical review of 17 of the reasons behind this argument.