Published in 1974 in a peer reviewed journal, Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, it is recognized as the shortest academic article ever[1] and a classic example of humor in science,[2] or at the very least among behavioral psychologists.
[1] I have studied this manuscript very carefully with lemon juice and X-rays and have not detected a single flaw in either design or writing style.
Clearly, it is the most concise manuscript I have ever seen – yet it contains sufficient detail to allow other investigators to replicate Dr. Upper's failure.
Surely we can find a place for this paper in the Journal – perhaps on the edge of a blank page.The article has led to at least five similarly humorous and peer-reviewed, published replication studies,[5][6][7][8][9] and several similar papers[10][11][12][13] and scholarly articles.
[14] More seriously, the paper is said to be a case reinforcing the image of a writer's block as a "blank page",[15] and encouraging brevity in writing.