Previously, we have looked at some questionable research practices, such as p-hacking. Now, I want to discuss some practices that are considered to be even more serious, namely scientific misconduct. Also known as fraud. Although there is no clear boundary between questionable research practices, and outright fraud, the following three types of conduct are widely agreed to be fraudulent. Fabrication of data, or making up results, the falsification of data, or manipulating results, and plagiarism, or presenting as one's own, the work of another. In fact, we all know that we should not lie, cheat, or steal. Now in the movie, we have seen Nicholas Ponter accuse his student, Rebecca, of plagiarism. In her thesis, Rebecca used a phrase identical to death in a dissertation of Descartes. There is no acknowledgement or citation, and there are no quotation marks. Of course, in this case, the accusation is highly questionable, given the fact that she did not copy the phrase from the original source. She was not even aware of the original source, as Descartes had dictated the sentence to her without mentioning his dissertation. But in general, plagiarism is a serious offense, and also a widespread problem in the academic world. Offenders is subject to harsh sanctions, ranging in the case of students from a fail for course to expulsion. And in the case of academic staff, from a reprimand to suspension, or even termination. Nowadays, many academic institutions provide that teachers with plagiarism detection software for student work. Nonetheless, plagiarism is still rampant. Some teachers simply do not use the available methods. Moreover, there are ways to elude detection software. But the largest problem is, perhaps, that many students fail to understand the concept and scope of plagiarism. If you don't understand it, you don't know how to avoid it. So let us look at a useful definition. Yale University defines plagiarism as, the use of another's work, words, or ideas without attribution, including using a source's language without quoting, using information from a source without attribution, and paraphrasing a source in a form that stays too close to the original. Plagiarism is a much broader category than many people tend to think. Now, what can we do to decrease this problem, first of all, students should be taught how to take effective notes, so to be able to retrace the sources of their information. How to quote sources using quotation marks, or indenting when you use the exact words from a source. How to paraphrase sources using your own language, and how to cite them including all the relevant bibliographic details. Without proper citation, a paraphrase can also be seen as plagiarism. Now sometimes, it may be hard to decide whether some piece of information is common knowledge. If, for instance, you mention the circumference of the earth, there is no need to cite the source. However, if you refer to a particular measurement of the circumference, you do need to refer to your source. The golden rule is, to side sources whenever you are in doubt. Now, the irony of Accusation, is the importer himself have been accused of presenting an ideal of former collaborator as is only namely If only by accepting a price for their joint work. It is, however, not unusual that a principal investigator gets the main credits for the work of her or his team. In general, intellectual property is a rather tricky thing. As scientists continuously exchange ideas in informal settings, and read lots of papers, it is often hard to assess the true source of an idea. Moreover, scientific breakthroughs or discoveries, are usually the outcome of a long and complex process, that involved many contributions from several scientists. More and more, science has become teamwork, rather than a matter of individual achievement. In this case however, Ponter was fully aware of the contribution of Descartes, and could have been more generous in acknowledging that contribution. Even in a competitive world as that of science, one should honor the work of one's colleagues.
