Department of Organismal Biology, Uppsala Universitet, Uppsala, Sweden.
Natuurmuseum Fryslân, Leeuwarden, Netherlands.
PeerJ. 2024 Nov 13;12:e18519. doi: 10.7717/peerj.18519. eCollection 2024.
A recent article by DePalma et al. reported that the season of the End-Cretaceous mass extinction was confined to spring/summer on the basis of stable isotope analyses and supplementary observations. An independent study that was concurrently under review reached a similar conclusion using osteohistology and stable isotope analyses. We identified anomalies surrounding the stable isotope analyses reported by DePalma et al. Primary data are not provided, the laboratory where the analyses were performed is not identified, and the methods are insufficiently specified to enable accurate replication. Furthermore, isotopic graphs for carbon and oxygen contain irregularities such as missing data points, duplicate data points, and identical-length error bars for both elements despite different scales, that appear inconsistent with laboratory instrument outputs. A close examination of such methodological omissions and data irregularities can help to raise the standards for future studies of seasonality and prevent inaccurate claims or confirmation bias.
最近,DePalma 等人发表的一篇文章报道称,根据稳定同位素分析和补充观测,白垩纪末期大灭绝的季节仅限于春季/夏季。一项同时进行的独立研究使用骨组织学和稳定同位素分析得出了类似的结论。我们发现了围绕 DePalma 等人报告的稳定同位素分析的异常。没有提供原始数据,没有确定进行分析的实验室,而且方法不够具体,无法进行准确复制。此外,碳和氧的同位素图存在不规则性,例如缺少数据点、重复数据点以及尽管元素不同但长度相同的误差条,这似乎与实验室仪器输出不一致。仔细检查这些方法上的遗漏和数据不规则性有助于提高季节性研究的标准,并防止不准确的结论或确认偏差。