Reproducibility and Replicability - Harvey Fineberg

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

One of the pathways by which the scientific community confirms the validity of a new scientific discovery is by repeating the research that produced it. When a scientific effort fails to independently confirm the computations or results of a previous study, some argue that such an observed inconsistency can be an important precursor to new discovery while others fear it may be a symptom of a lack of rigor in science. When a newly reported scientific study has far-reaching implications for science or a major, potential impact on the public, the question of its reliability takes on heightened importance.