<h2 class=" eplus-wrapper">What's happening? </h2>

Around the world, thousands of new papers are published every day. They include the latest research and new science. But some of them, scientists say, are totally made up.

Experts think there are groups of people who publish thousands of fake studies, sharing information that is wrong. These groups of people mostly work in IranA country in Western Asia, officially called the Islamic Republic of Iran. It has a population of 84 million. , RussiaThe largest country in the world by area. It has a population of 144 million people. and ChinaA country in East Asia, home to 1.4 billion people..

Many of them look and sound like they could be real. It is impossible to say how many people have been fooled. And nobody knows exactly how many fake papers there are.

This is a big problem, experts say. China publishes lots of research. We do not know how much of that information is false.

Some fear that China is choosing to spread false information so that it can stay ahead in the science world.

<h2 class=" eplus-wrapper">Find out more</h2>

Yes! It looks like China is trying to stop other countries from catching up. But this will only hold everyone back.

No! We do not know how many papers are false. It could be much fewer than we think. We should not let disagreements between the West and China shape how we think.

Iran - A country in Western Asia, officially called the Islamic Republic of Iran. It has a population of 84 million.

Russia - The largest country in the world by area. It has a population of 144 million people.

China - A country in East Asia, home to 1.4 billion people.