Last week, the Wikidata and Sister Projects event tooks place. The presentations are recorded, and I strongly encourage you to check the schedule. One presentation I liked (there are more), was the one by Mike Peel with the title “Best practices for reusing Wikidata’s data in the Wikimedia Projects”. At some point he walks us through the {{Cite Q}} template, around 26:07.

I learned that this template will highlight when an article cited in Wikipedia is actually retracted (withdrawn or replaced). Now, for the past months, I have been using the Crossref API to the Retraction Watch Database and annotated thousands of articles as retracted, using URLs from the database as reference. I use this script.

So, that means that this work actually has had a massive impact. Perhaps thousands of (English) Wikipedia readers have seen the results from running that script. That is pretty awesome! This is why we do open science.

But it made me also wonder something else. The Retraction Watch Database has over 60 thousand articles and Wikidata only about 22 thousand (at the time of writing). What if Wikipedia has an article not in Wikidata? Well, obviously, it cannot use {{Cite Q}}. But wouldn’t we want to have that article in Wikidata? Clearly, the article is notable; at least, in Wikipedia notability-sense. So, I was wondering, of those 40 thousand retracted articles not in Wikidata, how many are cited in English Wikipedia (to start with).

So, I wrote a first script that lists DOIs in the Retraction Watch Database (via the CrossRef API downloaded list) that are not found in Wikidata. A second script uses a Scholia (doi:10.1007/978-3-319-70407-4_36) SPARQL query develop by Finn Nielsen that uses wikibase:mwapi to do an efficient DOI search.

The results are fascinating and this is the list of DOIs found:

Searching 10.1016/j.engfailanal.2021.105457 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filippo_Berto
Searching 10.1002/14651858.CD002291 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antipruritic
Searching 10.1007/s12115-020-00496-1 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Mead
Searching 10.1515/9783110619768 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dead_Eagle_Owl
Searching 10.1016/j.sbi.2022.102426 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deborah_F._Kelly
Searching 10.1371/journal.pone.0240851 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Industrialization_of_China
Searching 10.1080/00927670309601525 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rouben_Azizian
Searching 10.1080/14693062.2016.1179616 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_K._Sovacool
Searching 10.1038/s41390-022-02127-3 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harald_Walach
Searching 10.1001/jamapediatrics.2021.2659 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harald_Walach
Searching 10.1109/CCECE.2007.335 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_scientific_misconduct_incidents
Searching 10.1002/14651858.CD001834 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meningococcal_vaccine
Searching 10.1007/s11356-021-16530-6 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamran_Bagheri_Lankarani
Searching 10.1016/j.biortech.2023.129044 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashok_Pandey
Searching 10.1002/14651858.CD003614 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trimetazidine
Searching 10.1002/14651858.CD003808 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hall_Technique
Searching 10.1002/14651858.CD003747 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venous_thrombosis
Searching 10.1002/14651858.CD003711 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myocarditis
Searching 10.1002/14651858.CD003225 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prevention_of_migraine_attacks
Searching 10.1002/14651858.CD003226 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prevention_of_migraine_attacks
Searching 10.1002/14651858.CD003498 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A2_milk
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autism
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autism_therapies
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casein
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casomorphin
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Causes_of_autism
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gluten-free%2C_casein-free_diet
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gluten-free_diet
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opioid_excess_theory
Searching 10.1093/restud/rdy054 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Managerial_economics
Searching 10.1039/d1nr00388g in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deborah_F._Kelly
Searching 10.1139/p90-116 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canada%27s_Stonehenge
Searching 10.3791/64256 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_J._Webster
Searching 10.1016/j.biortech.2022.127565 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashok_Pandey
Searching 10.1016/j.anbehav.2015.04.001 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stegodyphus_dumicola
Searching 10.1016/j.tafmec.2022.103573 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filippo_Berto
Searching 10.1155/2022/7002630 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dopamine_receptor_D3
Searching 10.1007/s11223-017-9884-2 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filippo_Berto
Searching 10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112115 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_A._McCullough
Searching 10.1002/14651858.CD002778 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temporomandibular_joint_dysfunction
Searching 10.1016/j.jcv.2022.105248 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kay_Davies
Searching 10.1002/14651858.CD002916 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bleomycin
Searching 10.1007/s11756-021-00841-7 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2021_in_archosaur_paleontology
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argentinadraco
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wellnhopterus
Searching 10.4132/KoreanJPathol.2009.43.4.306 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cho_Kuk
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cho_Min_academic_credentials_scandal
Searching 10.1503/cmaj.80742 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LetUsTalk
Searching 10.1002/14651858.CD004125 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Granisetron
Searching 10.1111/ffe.12616 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filippo_Berto
Searching 10.1007/s00366-008-0118-x in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamran_Daneshjoo
Searching 10.1002/jmv.28097 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noora_%28vaccine%29
Searching 10.1126/science.1070563 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sch%C3%B6n_scandal
Searching 10.1246/cl.170853 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enantioselective_Iridium-Catalyzed_C-H_Borylation
Searching 10.1016/j.marpol.2017.06.032 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Hilborn
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_J._Pitcher
Searching 10.1016/j.ijfatigue.2021.106450 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filippo_Berto
Searching 10.1016/j.crphar.2022 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desidustat
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emoxypine
Searching 10.1007/s10479-023-05261-1 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artificial_intelligence_marketing
Searching 10.1257/aer.20210369 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dividend_tax
Searching 10.1109/AIMSEC.2011.6010222 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SAP_CRM
Searching 10.1002/14651858.CD001103 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrocolloid_dressing
Searching 10.1007/978-3-642-27708-5 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IP_Multimedia_Subsystem
Searching 10.1351/PAC-CON-08-12-06 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parthenocissus_tricuspidata
Searching 10.1002/advs.202204315 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetrataenite
Searching 10.1353/sho.2011.0038 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maus
Searching 10.1111/jpim.12058 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulrich_Lichtenthaler
Searching 10.1136/bcr-2021-241572 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COVID-19_proxalutamide_trial_in_Brazil
Searching 10.1038/s44160-022-00068-7 in Wikipedia...
  ... found in this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Single-layer_materials