Most new findings in Computer Science are now published in conferences. While journals have some policy on reporting of errors in the papers that they have published, I have not seen any conferences having anything related to problems. I have found a major flaw in a paper published in a top conference. So what should I do in this situation?
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1@StephanKolassa No, its not my paper. I have found a flaw while reading a paper.– AraniCommented Jun 2, 2015 at 12:32
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@StephanKolassa Thanks -- I have now added this information.– AraniCommented Jun 2, 2015 at 12:43
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3@Arani I am not sure if this is uncommon in computer science but (major) flaws do occur in some mechanical engineering conferences. The reason for this is usually that the deadline for the conference paper submission is much earlier (~6 months in advance even) with respect to the actual conference presentation. Hence the paper is not up to date. What does happen is that the author has already taken note of this and has made sufficient adjustments to their PRESENTATION. They might have forgotten to do the same for the paper. Your best bet would be to contact the author and ask them about it.– dearNCommented Jun 2, 2015 at 12:54
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4Related: How to address a mistake in an old paper in a very prestigious scientific journal? and What should you do if you spotted a non-trivial error in a highly cited paper? and What should/can I do on finding an error in a published article?– Stephan KolassaCommented Jun 2, 2015 at 13:00
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1 Answer
- First contact the authors of the paper, and discuss the issue with them.
- When the flaw is small and does not affect their results too much, they might simply put an erratum on their website. When they are unwilling to do so, let it rest (it is a small flaw).
- When the error is significant, you might co-publish together with the original authors a new conference article that addresses this (it might even be called 'Erratum on paper XYZ')
answered Jun 5, 2015 at 8:09
