You Can Change Science With Just One Letter!
A letter to the editor (LTE) and online public comments on papers on platforms such as PubPeer can be used for post-publication review, to spark debate, and to challenge authors. Such comments can even lead to the retraction of flawed studies. All studies have some flaws, which are not always picked up by editors and reviewers. The tone of the LTE should be polite, not harsh; the critical appraisal or comment can be strong. Journals prefer LTE as they increase their impact factor, so letters tend to have a high acceptance rate. Win-win situation! Write an LTE in proper structure, starting it with 'Dear Editor', and then a couple of constructive introductory lines referencing the article to which the comment will pertain. The second paragraph should be about the issue you want to highlight. The conclusion should be about how this issue could be avoided in the future, what is a fairer interpretation of the findings, etc. The above approach can be adapted to comment online on ...