Nina Bhardwaj cleared by NYU

Nina Bhardwaj cleared by NYU

A researcher accused of misconduct by a fired colleague was given the all-clear by her institution this week. Nina Bhardwaj (right), a New York University School of Medicine vaccine researcher, co-authored a paper with David O’Neill, who was later dismissed from NYU for “unprofessional behavior.” O’Neill is claiming in a lawsuit that he was fired in retaliation for resisting when Bhardwaj allegedly wanted to “spin” the results of that paper by selecting a more favourable statistical analysis. The paper found that a new ‘dendritic cell’ vaccine, which O’Neill argues Bhardwaj also has a financial stake in, is no better that older, cheap vaccine technology.  Read more

A load of carp

A load of carp

Fear the Asian carp. The fish jump several feet into the air. And they are big—up to 80 pounds. They’ll slap a fisherman in the face with their tails, and leave him with a black eye…if he’s lucky. They’ve been known to break jaws. But it isn’t for their man-slapping prowess that Great Lakes ecologists fear the Asian carp. They are more worried that the fish will out-compete native fish and destroy economies based on commercial and recreational fishing. (No one much likes the taste of the Asian carp in the United States, except this guy.) In their fervor to  … Read more

In the heavens, science. But on earth…

In the heavens, science. But on earth...

Does it matter what you think about the history of life on earth if your job is looking at the stars? According to the Louisville, Kentucky Courier-Journal, astronomer Martin Gaskell was a shoo-in to be the first director of a new observatory at the University of Kentucky back in 2007. Until, that is, the University got wind of his lectures on the biblical creation story and his belief that there are “major scientific problems in evolutionary theory.” The University figured this wouldn’t do for the head of an observatory that counted public understanding of science as among their missions. Gaskell sued, claiming that he was the victim of religious discrimination. The University asked the courts to dismiss the case, but their prayers—ahem—weren’t granted. Gaskell will have his day in court: 8 February, to be precise.  Read more

Enstrom und drang: Air quality contrarian fights expulsion

Enstrom und drang: Air quality contrarian fights expulsion

The UCLA School of Public Health is trying to get rid of epidemiologist James Enstrom, and the media is taking notice. Enstrom has made news before. In 2003, Enstrom co-authored a paper, which looked at a 100,000-person cohort over almost 40 years and concluded that second hand smoke was no big deal (British Medical Journal, 326, 1057 – 1061, 2003). The study was partly funded by the tobacco industry and roundly pooh-poohed by the British Medical Association (which publishes the BMJ) and the American Cancer Society. [See our story from 2003].  Read more