Majority of society believes in the myth of a noble scientist; taking no consideration that scientists are just as human as your average employee. It’s in human nature to make mistakes, to rationalize actions, and to make hard decisions to benefit themselves or others. Science has never been perfect, and most results that are known in the field come from failure. Moreover, it is difficult to meet the expectations of a perfect scientist because conflict occurs when trying to handle the responsibilities of research. There are a plethora of intrinsic and extrinsic factors that may have an effect on an individual. This includes pressures such as: family, tenure, funding, and publications. Researchers yearn to produce good work and to have their projects continued; however, to achieve such a notable career, one may have to cut a few corners. Will temporary inconvenience lead to long term benefit? …show more content…
Both West and Archer have respectable careers at this point in their lives and have their sights on progression. Charlie is in a transition period between institutions. He is dealing with the pressures of providing for his new family, providing funding for his new position at HSU, and completing his obligations for his current laboratory. Unfortunately, these pressures have caused West to plagiarize nearly his whole “Background and Significance” section in order to meet the grant proposal deadline. Diane Archer soon comes across Charlie’s grant proposal; only to find that the section that she is most impressed with is