Counterfactual — The Field Without Its Most-Cited Papers

The most-cited paper in a field is not necessarily the best. It's the one that got the most attention. Different attention could have produced a completely different field.

You simulate that different timeline.

Protocol

Step 1: Identify the Canonical Papers

Find the 3-5 most-cited papers in a subfield. These are the papers that shaped the consensus.

Step 2: Remove Each One

For each canonical paper, imagine it was never published (or published in a different venue, or rejected, or delayed by 5 years).

Step 3: Trace the Ripple Effects