Kiel's former president under suspicion: What is behind the allegations?

Kiel's former president under suspicion: What is behind the allegations?

At the beginning of 2024, serious accusations against Dr. Simone Fulda, who was President of the Christian Albrechts University in Kiel until February 2024. In a report in the science blog "for Better Science", a science journalist expressed accusations regarding alleged scientific misconduct, which refers in particular to manipulated representative illustrations in their work. Simone Fulda had a career as a professor of experimental tumor research and Vice President of Research and Academic Infrastructure from 2010 to 2024.

The allegations led to the university management of the Goethe University in Frankfurt quickly appointed an investigation commission to pursue the claims. However, after careful examination, this commission found that the supposed confusion of illustrations were unintentional and that no manipulations had taken place. Therefore, the procedure against Fulda was discontinued due to insignificance, as the Goethe University Frankfurt announced in a statement. It was emphasized that no indications of conscious data manipulation have been found in the past fifteen years.

Results of the Commission

The result of the investigation was clear: the Commission only recognized unintentional confusion and added that it had not affected the content of the publications. Fulda himself had immediately correct mistakes in her previous work by correction reports in the specialist magazines. According to the report of ndr

However, the investigation is not the only challenge with which Fulda is faced. There are two more procedures: one from the German Research Society (DFG) and one at the University of Ulm. The DFG procedure is currently being checked and could possibly also be stopped, provided that no misconduct is determined. However, if the Commission comes to the conclusion that Fulda has actually violated the guidelines, it could be obliged to repay funding.

context for scientific misconduct

The definition of scientific misconduct includes several points, including the deliberate fake of data and plagiarism. Questionable research practices contain less clear violations, such as picking up or distorting results. The duties of care that scientists have to comply with are essential for the trust of society and politics in research, as well as gwp explained in detail.

The argument about Simone Fulda illustrates the complexity of the topic and the sensitivity, which is associated with the allegations of scientific misconduct. Even if the current procedures against them have been declared for a minor, it remains to be seen how the ongoing studies will assume.