In this case I'd interpret "trick" to be more like a skateboard trick, i.e. a non-obvious, but probably skillful manipulation of the data. If Tony Hawk pulls of

In this case I'd interpret "trick" to be more like a skateboard trick, i.e. a non-obvious, but probably skillful manipulation of the data. If Tony Hawk pulls off something cool, nobody thinks he's trying to pull a fast one on his spectators or sponsors. I'd want to look at the Nature paper in question to see whether that interpretation is correct, though.