The peripatetic fossils: part 3
The articles printed below are by co-authors of some of the papers called into doubt by Talent. Two are by close colleagues of Gupta at the Centre of Advanced Study in Geology at Panjab University.
Research Integrity: The Bedrock of the Geosciences
Research integrity (RI) is fundamental in all areas of scientific endeavor. As scientists, we rely and build on the scientific record and if this is being deliberately distorted, then it not only results in the waste of resources, especially time, and may divert research into dead ends but it also erodes public confidence in science. Policies are now in place both to address misconduct and, through educational programs, to promote the responsible conduct of research. The frequency of misconduct is discussed and four famous cases in geosciences spanning the twentieth century are described. Recent developments in the formulation of RI policy are outlined culminating in the Singapore Statement, one of the key foundational documents in the evolution of RI policy. The four principles and 14 responsibilities of researchers and their institutions are given. While there is a need for education and training and for institutions to create the best conditions to promote good research, ultimately, responsibility for the good conduct must lie with the individual. There can be no other way.
The Inca Occupation of the South Coast of Peru
like the others, however; it forks into several nearly parallel ravines of which the largest are Huayuri, Rio Grande-Palpa, Ingenio (called Collao in ancient times), Nasca proper (the ancient Caxamarca), Taruga, and Poroma. Due to peculiarities of the local topography, the irrigated areas in Ica and the ravines of Nasca are located inland, at the foot of the mountains, rather than at the mouths of the rivers as is more usual in Peruvian coastal valleys. No sharp natural or cultural boundary separates the valley of Chincha from the valleys of Cafiete (ancient Huarco and Runahuana), Asia, and Mala, the next valleys going up the coast to the northwest. At the other end of the area we are considering, however, there is a sharp break; beyond Yauca the Andean foothills reach out to the sea, natural conditions are quite different, and there are important differences in the archaeological picture as well. The historical sources which mention the south coast are not particularly helpful, except in so far as they provide us with a few dates. To begin with, no chronicler gives an explicit account of the political organization of the south coast at the time it came into contact with the Incas. It can, perhaps, be inferred from Cabello Balboa's statements about common policy toward the Inca invaders that there was some sort of political connection between the valleys of Mala, Cafiete, and Chincha, but the connection need have been no more than a temporary military alliance. Cabello makes no mention at all of Pisco. The valleys of Ica, Nasca, and 125