The Most-Cited Papers of the Twenty-First Century
Nature has unveiled an intriguing analysis showcasing the most-cited scientific papers of the 21st century. Surprisingly, rather than groundbreaking discoveries like mRNA vaccines and CRISPR, the top spot is claimed by a 2016 Microsoft paper on “deep residual learning” networks, racking up citations between 103,756 and 254,074. The majority of papers listed focus on methodologies and software tools instead of major scientific breakthroughs, with AI research heavily represented.
The second-most-cited paper, a 2001 guide for gene expression data analysis, was specifically crafted to garner citations. As noted by sociologist Misha Teplitskiy, the trend shows a preference for citing methods over theories and discoveries within the scientific community.
Key Points
- The most-cited paper is a 2016 Microsoft study on deep residual learning networks.
- Many papers on the list focus on methodologies and software tools rather than notable scientific discoveries.
- AI research is prominent, with four papers in the top ten.
- The second-most cited paper is a 2001 guide for analysing gene expression data that was purposefully designed for citations.
- The trend highlights a greater valuation of methods over empirical discoveries in scientific citations.
Why should I read this?
If you’re curious about what’s shaping scientific research today, this article clued us in on the surprising trends in citation practices. Forget the usual suspects of Nobel-winning achievements; it’s the nitty-gritty methods that are grabbing the limelight. Save yourself some time and check out what really makes the academic world tick these days!