888
Well to be perfectly frank...this is nothing new and certainly not unique to Korea. Noble prize winner David Baltimore (US) got nailed maybe 10 years ago (not for his Nobel work). There was the whole controversy with Gallo and the French researcher in the 80s about the identificstion of the AIDS virus (isolates were apparently stolen).
And I can, unfortunately, state for a fact that things like this happen all the time in the *international* research community. It is just not given airplay. In fact, it is amazing some of the stories you hear about the goings on in some insbreastutions. I guess ethics is sometimes left by the wayside when your funding (i.e. livelihood) is at stake. I think it is offensive, but when lots of money and livelihood and fierce compebreastion are involved, I can understand why people can get tempted.
The field itself (i.e. generating stem-cell lines) is not rocket science, and in fact, it has always been trial and error. You try enough times and maybe you will get something. This isn't "science" in the true sense of the word. The difference is that this whole field has gotten huge media attention, and with it funding. So the temptation to do something like this is great particularly if the standard of research in the field in general is somewhat lacking.
If there is any saving grace to this debacle, it is that Seoul National University did an incredibly efficient job in investigating Hwang and his work. It is a good sign that Korea has become intolerant of corruption, and it can only lead to the continued production of more high quality science.
Austin
