National Science Teachers Association

Can scientific integrity be taught? Student exercises in ethical thinking

Author(s): FRANCES VANDERVOORT
Source: The Science Teacher, Vol. 62, No. 4 (APRIL 1995), pp. 38-41
Published by: National Science Teachers Association
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/24149313
Accessed: 26-11-2017 04:05 UTC

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 I
I

(an scientific integrity be

ART BY CHARLES BEYL

38 THE SCIENCE TEACHER

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 Student

exercises

taught?
taught ? in ethical

thinking
tomorrow. As coordinator, you have finally

Your school science fair is

located enough electrical outlets and
judges. You are preparing to leave for the
day when you see a student waiting for you in the
hall. Obviously in distress, he informs you that his
science fair partner, a bright, articulate student, has

improperly recorded much of the data from their

project. You learn that the partner has not done
some of the experiments he promised to do, but
instead made up data to fit the requirements of the

project. The student has been afraid to say anything,

but now feels he must tell you. What should you do?
Although few students regularly engage in dishon
est behavior, most students recognize it when they see it.
Every school has students who cheat on exams, forge
teachers' signatures, steal other students' work and call
it their own, or falsify science experiments. Can teachers
help students learn the value of academic honesty? Can
scientific integrity be taught?

UNDERSTANDING SCIENTIFIC
INTEGRITY

Several kinds of scientific misconduct ar

ognized by the scientific community. The
fraud, the deliberate fabrication, plagiaris
tion of information that results in damage
the types of scientific misconduct, frau
frequently, probably because most scientis
in abhorrence of so serious a breakdown
responsibility. Other dishonorable behav
ming" data to make them look better t
"cooking" results by discarding data that
researcher's current idea of how they s
outright forgery—inventing results. Hone
no intent to deceive, is not included in a definition of
scientific misconduct.

Nobel Laureate Richard Feynman once said that

"... scientific integrity (is) a principle of scientific thought
that corresponds to a kind of utter honesty...For ex
ample, if you're doing an experiment, you should report
everything that might make it invalid—not only what you
think is right about it." This is how things should be. But
does an intrinsic honor code really prevent scientists
from disgracing themselves and their profession?

BY FRANCES VANDERVOORT

APRIL 1995 39

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 FAMOUS FRAUDS
Well-known names whose integrity has come under
question include such icons of scientific virtue as Charles Kettering Institute for Cancer Research in New York
Darwin, Gregor Mendel, and Louis Pasteur. Although in
1858 Darwin begrudgingly recognized the efforts of
Alfred Russel Wallace to formulate a mechanism for
evolution, he chose not to acknowledge the efforts
Patrick Matthew and other early nineteenth-century
ralists to do the same. Mendel, apparently dissatisfied
with results from crossing different types of peas,
In the case of the "patchwork mouse," Dr. William
Summerlin, a highly regarded scientist at the Sloan
City, claimed that he could make successful skin grafts
among mice if the skin to be grafted was grown in tissue
culture for several days before transplantation. To dem
onstrateof the success of his technique, he began trans
planting skin from black to white mice. A laboratory
natu
assistant noticed that a dark-colored patch on one mouse
washeddocoff with alcohol. Summerlin had darkened the

tored data to produce ratios that really were tooskin good oftothe mouse with a marking pen! After an expen
be true; and Pasteur, whose long sequestered notebooks sive, time-consuming investigation, he was forced to
only recently revealed their secrets, doctored data,his
resign ap position.
propriated results from another researcher without giv
ing credit, and used an untested rabies vaccine TEACHING on a SCIENTIFIC INTEGRITY
human subject (Geison, 1995). Although stories of fraud are sensationalized b
Pathological science, another kind of "misconduct," students need to know that flagrant cases
has been described by chemist Irving Langmuir misconduct
as "the are rare, largely because the c
science of things that aren't so." This occurs when scientists in the United States, nearly 3 milli
scientists become so involved with their work that they very successful at policing itself (Holton,
are incapable of detecting flaws in procedures or results. policing, combined with the inherent nature of the
The error is not deliberate, but results from a self-induced science process, is a powerful tool for maintaining scien
blindness brought about by over-enthusiasm. A well tific integrity. In addition to self-policing, institutional
known example is the strange case of N-Rays. Early this methods also control scientific misconduct. Colleges and
century, French physicist Rene Blondlot of the University universities are putting in place committees to review
of Nancy reported an unusual kind of radiation that he cases brought before them. The U.S. Department of
named "N-Rays" in honor of the university where he Health and Human Services has established an Office of
worked. The rays, he said, were emitted by a very hot Research Integrity to pursue allegations of misconduct
platinum wire and had peculiar properties, including the and promote integrity in scientific research supported by
ability to be stored for later release. When American the Public Health Service.

physicist R. W. Wood came to Nancy to observe Blondlot's The following activities may be useful to help
work, he surreptitiously placed in his pocket a special students understand how self-policing within the scien
aluminum prism Blondlot claimed was essential for the tific community works. First, invite students to brain
experiment's success. After Blondlot demonstrated the storm about values they think scientists should have. It
experiment and obtained the predicted results, Wood should not take long for someone to mention honesty,
withdrew the prism and showed it to the shocked along with hard work, diligence, joy of discovery, com
Blondlot. Blondlot's enthusiasm for his project had led mitment, and pride. Next, ask them to define scientific
him to see results that were not there. (Langmuir, 1989) honesty and explain why scientists should report their
findings honestly.
THE PILTDOWN HOAX AND THE Pose a dilemma for class discussion. A hypothetical
PATCHWORK MOUSE case sure to pique student interest is the development by
The best-known case of scientific fraud is the Piltdown a young researcher of a drug that shows promise in
Hoax, which began in 1912 when an unusual skull curing and AIDS. What should she do when she makes her
jaw were discovered in a pit in southern England. Anthro discovery? Should she discuss her work with her co
pologists puzzled about the skull until 1953, when so
workers? Why or why not? Should she write a report for
phisticated tests showed it to be a modern human skull, a science journal about her discovery? What values
cleverly darkened with stain and buried with an orangu should this researcher have? How many interests are at
tan jaw bearing teeth filed down to indicate age. Despite stake here? These are important questions to consider
extensive investigation, the perpetrators of this hoax when discussing scientific integrity.
have never been satisfactorily identified (Thomson ,1991), Have students work in teams of four or five to

although there are several theories. A person with more resolve sample dilemmas given in Figure 1. Some of th
than a passing understanding of anatomy and evolution dilemmas are based on actual events. Do not reveal the

could have planted the bones, then "discovered" them resolution

enhance his/her position in the scientific community.
Or, Piltdown simply could have been a prank that got
of hand.
to until teams have had a chance to report their
own conclusions. Dramatizations are also effective. Stu
out with dramatic flair may write skits or a one-act play
dents
about an actual dilemma or one they have made up.

40 THE SCIENCE TEACHER

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 REFERENCES
Integrity is as much a part of the scientific process
as prediction, methodology, data collection, and analy
Geison, G. To be published spring, 1995. The Private
sis. Teaching about integrity helps students learn profes
sional ethics and ensures the future of science in this
of Louis Pasteur. New Jersey: Princeton University P

country. -v>
FRANCIS VANDERVOORT taught science and biology at
Kenwood Academy in Chicago for 13 years and is now
a consultant in science education for the Chicago Pub
lic Schools, Kenwood Academy, 5015 S. Blackstone Ave.,
Chicago, IL 60615.
Holton, G. 1986. Niels Bohr and the integrity of scienc
can Scientist 74(3):237-243.
Langmuir, I. 1989- Pathological science. Physics Today 42(10).
Edited and transcribed by R. N. Hall.
Thomson, K. S. 1991. Piltdown Man: The great English mys
tery story. American Scientist 79(3): 194-201.

FIGURE 1.

Sample
Sample dilemmas
dilemmas
for class
fordiscussion.
class discussion.

1. You are a biochemist who has just discovered a simple, inexpensive substance that enables teenage boys to grow taller and
add muscle. There is no evidence that the teenagers are damaged by taking the drug. The drug cannot be detected in the
body. What should you do?
a. Seek advice from your doctor or pharmacist about what to do.
b. Find a way to produce this substance privately and sell it. After all, you know it is safe.
c. Write a letter to your newspaper reporting your discovery.
d. Talk to your local high school coach. He may know of a way of getting private funding for your research, and the sports
teams will benefit from taking the drug.

2. You are a graduate student working for a leading astronomer. Your job is to use a sophisticated radio telescope the
astronomer designed for observing variable radio sources in the Universe. After several weeks of analyzing data, you realize
you have discovered a totally new kind of star that provides evidence for the origin of the Universe. Your boss congratulates
you for your fine work, writes a major report on it, and wins a Nobel Prize. You should:

a. Simply accept what has happened. After all, the scientist invented the telescope, and you can a learn a lot from being
associated with him.
b. Resign, telling your boss that you would rather work for someone who has more respect for you and your work.
c. Ask your boss to help you find a new job, telling him that you feel you would be better off somewhere else.
d. Stay on, but spread gossip to your friends that your boss is taking unfair advantage of your talents.

3. You are a young scientist who recently sent a paper based on your research in adolescent anorexia to an important
scientific journal to be considered for publication. As is the custom, the journal's editor sends the paper out for review to other
experts in the field. After several weeks he returns the paper to you, rejecting it because he claims that its reviewers found that
"it contains several major errors and misinterpretations." Then, several months later, in another journal you find an article
containing data almost identical to your own. What should you do?
a. Nothing. Many scientists work on similar projects and this must be a matter of coincidence.
b. Write a letter of protest to the editor of the journal that published the paper similar to yours.
c. Talk with your supervisor about it. Tell her that you suspect plagiarism and ask for advice.
d. Tell other scientists you work with of your suspicions. Maybe your suspicions will reach the person you suspect of
plagiarism and he will confess his wrongdoing.

4. A scientist doing research on sickle cell disease finds a way to produce a chemical from genetically changed mice that
reduces the symptoms of sickle cell disease in many of its victims. Because he recognizes that he could earn a lot of money if
the chemical is produced commercially, he does not want to reveal some of the details of the procedure for production. He
submits a paper for publication in which he deliberately includes an incorrect gene sequence. The paper is well-written and
plausible, and unless the referees attempt to clone the gene themselves, they would have no way of knowing about the
deliberate error. When the paper is accepted for publication, the scientist corrects the error. In your opinion:
a. The scientist was justified in misrepresenting data.
b. The scientist should be disciplined for misrepresenting data.
c. All major journals should have a policy forbidding misrepresentation of data.
d. The journal's editors should have tested the experiment reported by the scientist, including the gene sequence he reported.

APRIL 1995 41

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