Zenith Electronics Corporation is a brand of the South Korean company LG Electronics. The company was previously an American manufacturer of televisions and other consumer electronics, and was headquartered in Lincolnshire, Illinois. LG Electronics acquired a controlling share of Zenith in 1995 and eventually the rest in 1999. Zenith was the inventor of subscription television and the modern remote control, and the first to develop HDTV in North America.
Zenith-branded products are sold in North America, Germany, Thailand (to 1983), Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, India and Myanmar.

By now, most people have heard of Dr. Hwang Woo-suk. This once celebrated, but now disgraced, Korean scientist saw his shining reputation quickly dulled when a peer review panel discovered that his published research claims on stem cell cloning, thought to be groundbreaking, were, in reality, fraudulent. The incident has made headlines all over the world, raising significant questions about the future of stem cell research.
However, the more important question here might be, what about the future of medical research in general? While Dr. Hwang's fraud is rightly being regarded by many medical researchers as one of the most significant scientific frauds in history, it is not the first in history, nor is it the first in the past few years. In fact, statistics suggest scientific fraud is much more common than one might think.

According to a July 2005 report by the Associated Press, allegations of misconduct by researchers in the United States reached record highs in 2004, with the department of Health and Human Services receiving 274 complaints -- the most the department has received in one year since the federal government first established a program to deal with scientific misconduct in 1989. However, because of staff and funding shortfalls, the federal Office of Research Integrity closed only 23 of those complaints, with just eight individuals found guilty.

The Associated Press report goes on to note that cases of scientific misconduct that are officially reported represent merely a fraction of actual instances, stating, "In a survey published by the journal Nature, about 1.5 percent of 3,247 researchers who responded admitted to falsification or plagiarism. (One in three admitted to some type of professional misbehavior.)" Of course, here we are only talking about those who admit wrongdoing. Needless to say, there may be countless others who, in addition to lacking ethics in their research, lack the moral consciousness that would inspire them to disclose their wrongdoing, even anonymously.

The idea that such a degree of fraud in scientific and medical research exists is extremely disturbing. Not only do scientists who engage in such irresponsible behavior create a bad name for their very profession, they also may be endangering human health. What makes matters worse is that some research frauds, including Korea's Hwang Woo-suk, have had their false research claims published in prominent medical journals that people turn to for authoritative information. While these journals are typically quick to retract any fraudulent content they discover, the fact that such material makes it into a journal in the first place certainly calls into question the reputability of the publication.

If statistics are not enough, let's take a closer look at some recent instances of fraud in medicine, in both the United States and around the world, beginning with Hwang Woo-suk and the stem cell cloning fiasco.

Real-life examples of fraud in medicine

In 2004, Korean scientist Dr. Hwang Woo-suk, a specialist in veterinary medicine and animal cloning, and his research team, claimed to have created the world's first stem cells from a cloned human embryo. The implications were huge. The ability to clone stem cells suggested the potential for human cloning and the use of stem cell therapy to treat incurable diseases. However, an eight-member peer review panel at Seoul National University, where most of the research was conducted, concluded in January 2006 that the research claims, published in the prominent journal Science, were fraudulent. The researchers had not, in fact, successfully cloned human embryonic stem cells.
• The review panel also found that a follow-up article by Dr. Hwang's team, published in May 2005, was fraudulent. According to a Jan. 10 article in The Washington Post, "In that article, the researchers claimed to have created 11 embryonic stem-cell colonies said to be exact genetic matches of patients who might have benefited from the cells, which have the capacity to repair damaged tissues. Independent evidence, however, failed to find evidence that any of the stem cells had been made from clones, discrediting what had been considered one of the major scientific discoveries of 2005."

• Shortly after the incident with Dr. Hwang and his research team in South Korea, news of another medical fraud surfaced, this time in Norway. Jon Sudbo, a researcher at Norway's Comprehensive Cancer Center, reportedly admitted to fabricating research results to show that common over-the-counter painkillers like ibuprofen lowered the risk of oral cancer but increased the risk of heart problems and death from heart disease. As it turns out, Sudbo's study, published in the prestigious British medical journal The Lancet, was completely fictitious. Apparently, Sudbo made up patients for his supposed review of 454 people with oral cancer.

• The Lancet published Sudbo's study because it appeared to offer important information about pain relievers called non-steroidal anti-inflammatories, or NSAIDs, but Lancet editor Richard Horton later told the Associated Press that Sudbo was a "very clever fabricator," saying he "fooled his colleagues, he fooled his hospital, he fooled his funding agency, he fooled the journal."

• At the time of this writing, fresh concerns about Sudbo's research are being raised over papers published in the New England Journal of Medicine in April 2001 and April 2004 and the Journal of Clinical Oncology in October 2005. According to reports, Sudbo admitted those studies, both on oral cancer, were fabricated, as well.

• Another recent incidence of medical fraud, this one in the United States, involved Eric T. Poehlman, a top obesity researcher who apparently fabricated data in medical journals and on federal grant applications while working at the University of Vermont. According to the Boston Globe, Poehlman altered and invented research results between 1992 and 2002, during which period he published more than 200 articles. Among the fraudulent research was a study linking menopause to declines in women's health, which was published in The Annals of Internal Medicine in 1995 and retracted in 2003.
 
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Zenith Electronics Corporation is a brand of the South Korean company LG Electronics. The company was previously an American manufacturer of televisions and other consumer electronics, and was headquartered in Lincolnshire, Illinois. LG Electronics acquired a controlling share of Zenith in 1995 and eventually the rest in 1999. Zenith was the inventor of subscription television and the modern remote control, and the first to develop HDTV in North America.
Zenith-branded products are sold in North America, Germany, Thailand (to 1983), Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, India and Myanmar.

By now, most people have heard of Dr. Hwang Woo-suk. This once celebrated, but now disgraced, Korean scientist saw his shining reputation quickly dulled when a peer review panel discovered that his published research claims on stem cell cloning, thought to be groundbreaking, were, in reality, fraudulent. The incident has made headlines all over the world, raising significant questions about the future of stem cell research.
However, the more important question here might be, what about the future of medical research in general? While Dr. Hwang's fraud is rightly being regarded by many medical researchers as one of the most significant scientific frauds in history, it is not the first in history, nor is it the first in the past few years. In fact, statistics suggest scientific fraud is much more common than one might think.

According to a July 2005 report by the Associated Press, allegations of misconduct by researchers in the United States reached record highs in 2004, with the department of Health and Human Services receiving 274 complaints -- the most the department has received in one year since the federal government first established a program to deal with scientific misconduct in 1989. However, because of staff and funding shortfalls, the federal Office of Research Integrity closed only 23 of those complaints, with just eight individuals found guilty.

The Associated Press report goes on to note that cases of scientific misconduct that are officially reported represent merely a fraction of actual instances, stating, "In a survey published by the journal Nature, about 1.5 percent of 3,247 researchers who responded admitted to falsification or plagiarism. (One in three admitted to some type of professional misbehavior.)" Of course, here we are only talking about those who admit wrongdoing. Needless to say, there may be countless others who, in addition to lacking ethics in their research, lack the moral consciousness that would inspire them to disclose their wrongdoing, even anonymously.

The idea that such a degree of fraud in scientific and medical research exists is extremely disturbing. Not only do scientists who engage in such irresponsible behavior create a bad name for their very profession, they also may be endangering human health. What makes matters worse is that some research frauds, including Korea's Hwang Woo-suk, have had their false research claims published in prominent medical journals that people turn to for authoritative information. While these journals are typically quick to retract any fraudulent content they discover, the fact that such material makes it into a journal in the first place certainly calls into question the reputability of the publication.

If statistics are not enough, let's take a closer look at some recent instances of fraud in medicine, in both the United States and around the world, beginning with Hwang Woo-suk and the stem cell cloning fiasco.

Real-life examples of fraud in medicine

In 2004, Korean scientist Dr. Hwang Woo-suk, a specialist in veterinary medicine and animal cloning, and his research team, claimed to have created the world's first stem cells from a cloned human embryo. The implications were huge. The ability to clone stem cells suggested the potential for human cloning and the use of stem cell therapy to treat incurable diseases. However, an eight-member peer review panel at Seoul National University, where most of the research was conducted, concluded in January 2006 that the research claims, published in the prominent journal Science, were fraudulent. The researchers had not, in fact, successfully cloned human embryonic stem cells.
• The review panel also found that a follow-up article by Dr. Hwang's team, published in May 2005, was fraudulent. According to a Jan. 10 article in The Washington Post, "In that article, the researchers claimed to have created 11 embryonic stem-cell colonies said to be exact genetic matches of patients who might have benefited from the cells, which have the capacity to repair damaged tissues. Independent evidence, however, failed to find evidence that any of the stem cells had been made from clones, discrediting what had been considered one of the major scientific discoveries of 2005."

• Shortly after the incident with Dr. Hwang and his research team in South Korea, news of another medical fraud surfaced, this time in Norway. Jon Sudbo, a researcher at Norway's Comprehensive Cancer Center, reportedly admitted to fabricating research results to show that common over-the-counter painkillers like ibuprofen lowered the risk of oral cancer but increased the risk of heart problems and death from heart disease. As it turns out, Sudbo's study, published in the prestigious British medical journal The Lancet, was completely fictitious. Apparently, Sudbo made up patients for his supposed review of 454 people with oral cancer.

• The Lancet published Sudbo's study because it appeared to offer important information about pain relievers called non-steroidal anti-inflammatories, or NSAIDs, but Lancet editor Richard Horton later told the Associated Press that Sudbo was a "very clever fabricator," saying he "fooled his colleagues, he fooled his hospital, he fooled his funding agency, he fooled the journal."

• At the time of this writing, fresh concerns about Sudbo's research are being raised over papers published in the New England Journal of Medicine in April 2001 and April 2004 and the Journal of Clinical Oncology in October 2005. According to reports, Sudbo admitted those studies, both on oral cancer, were fabricated, as well.

• Another recent incidence of medical fraud, this one in the United States, involved Eric T. Poehlman, a top obesity researcher who apparently fabricated data in medical journals and on federal grant applications while working at the University of Vermont. According to the Boston Globe, Poehlman altered and invented research results between 1992 and 2002, during which period he published more than 200 articles. Among the fraudulent research was a study linking menopause to declines in women's health, which was published in The Annals of Internal Medicine in 1995 and retracted in 2003.

Hey netra, i am very thankful to you for sharing such an important market research report on Zenith Electronics and it is going to be useful for many people. After reading your report, i thought i should also add some information on Zenith Electronics and that is why uploading a document.
 

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