Scientific Research Plagiarism is Mostly Ignored

It’s sad, but true. Scientific research plagiarism not only happens, but it’s mostly ignored by the scientific community. When it comes to the distribution of information, those who collect data would rather have more of it available and are less likely to flag someone’s research as a duplicate or stolen effort, especially if it helps prove a point they are trying to make. Studies have been conducted in a number of research labs and libraries where duplicate data has been found in massive quantities.



Plagiarism rarely happens on an initial discovery, though there are cases where the originator of an idea or an invention has been accused of getting their initial data from a source other than their own hard work. Unlike cases of newspaper plagiarism or media plagiarism, this stealing of someone else’s ideas is hard to prove because the documentation is so limited. Scientists begin projects with notes and discussions. Reporters log sources and keep expense account logs. It’s much easier to prove they did the work to get the story, and computers have date and time stamps to back them up.



On the other hand, once a scientific project has begun, there’s loads of documentation to prove who is doing the work on the project. Plagiarism software offers a useful tool to catch the culprit. Once a report is made, if someone copies the statistics, findings, or supportive quotes from the report, it’s easy to see. In other words, you can’t possibly get away with it, so why are so many people doing it? The answer is that no one seems to care. Apathy in the scientific community has made these blatant acts of theft and duplication not only possible, but likely. Why bother to do your own work when you can just copy someone else’s findings?



The problem is viral. It’s rooted deep in society itself, not just in the scientific community. We live in the information age, where everything is available at the touch of a button. These days, you don’t even have to find a computer to get on the internet. Phones and mobile devices are everywhere, so digging up a quick report on any subject is a simple matter of doing a quick search and downloading. Children are taught in elementary school how to web surf, by high school they’re listening to stolen music and watching pirated videos. It’s no wonder that undergrad and grad school plagiarism is so widespread. Again, why do work that’s already been done?



Thankfully, hard work does still have its rewards. Those who do legitimate research go further in life, just as those who do the work in school tend to be more successful in the real world. Unfortunately, there will always be those who want to take shortcuts, and some of them succeed also. When it comes to scientific research, don’t let them get away with it. Stealing from each other impedes progress. It stunts original thought and sets a dangerous precedent for the next generation. Just think, if Edison had spent all his time stealing others ideas, we’d still be without electric light.