Pork Barrel Science?

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Obviously, the title, Pork Barrel Science is a deliberate allusion to pork barrel politics. What is that, and how is that form of politics comparable in some sense to the writings of some scientists and others? One online definition for pork barrel politics reads in part: "when politicians or governments "unofficially" undertake projects that benefit a group of citizens in return for that group's support or campaign donations." The author has noted articles written in relation to various fields of science that consist largely of proven science or interesting cutting-edge material related to science. But there are occasional, often disconnected, bits that can be deleted with no negative effect that are added to appease some readers. I just read an otherwise good article on chromatography and organic compounds found in nature (chemistry) that included a statement at the end which suggested cave men had experimented with natural products to isolate medication to heal their ailments. I wonder that there was no listed source material, such as Dr. Orangutan, published in the Journal of Monkey Medicine. But then, maybe the author was there...