PITTSBURGH, Oct. 6 (UPI) -- A former assistant professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing admitted to plagiarizing journal articles he claimed to be original research.
An investigation into work published by Scott J.M. Weber culminated in sanctions against the assistant professor Wednesday, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported.
Weber admitted to stealing the work of others and forging data in journal articles that he purported to be his own, said a statement from the Office of Research Integrity in the Department of Health and Human Services.
The statement also said Weber agreed to exclude himself from working with federal agencies for the next three years.
The investigation was sparked after trade publisher, John Wiley & Sons Inc., retracted seven peer-reviewed articles by Weber dating back to 2009, citing "significant overlaps with previously published material."
Susan Spilka, vice president of corporate communications for John Wiley & Sons Inc. said the editor in chief found something "that looked suspicious" in one of Weber's articles earlier this year.
The article, which passed a peer review, was then run through the Cross Check database, which verified suspicions of plagiarism.
"The machine caught it. The system worked," Spilka said.
University of Pittsburgh spokeswoman Jennifer Yates said Weber is no longer working for the nursing school.
"I'm a little surprised that someone would think they could get away with it with all the tools out there," said Shawn Kennedy, editor of the American Journal of Nursing.
