I think the damage is much more than just the integrity of the knowledge base. There are people who spend years focusing their (very expensive!) academic pursui

I think the damage is much more than just the integrity of the knowledge base. There are people who spend years focusing their (very expensive!) academic pursuits in reliance on these studies. They spend years of their lives researching and trying to replicate in vain. The damage to our collective knowledge is costly and unacceptable but there are also real people who are real victims of this fraud. It’s not just some theoretical cost borne by society at large.