How would such research be conducted?
By making up the data of course, as the article stated! Sounds like corruption has entered even into the Elysian fields of science....it's one thing if you question the 'honesty' of creationist scientists...but now you can't even trust the ethical atheism of the practitioners of the "New Way" known as the scientific method!(sarcasm on)
Well I guess its back to feathers, incense, or to the bowing down before little black meteorites! (just be mindful of who is behind you)
" How would such research be conducted?"
The same way Darwin and others like him did. Formulate a conclusion and then converge the evidence toward it.