Unfortunately, the reaction has gone much farther. Though it is by no means clear that fraud has increased substantially in recent years, Congress has become convinced that the problem has grown rapidly and requires forceful action. Moreover, the vindictive pursuit of David Baltimore by Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich), for a case involving normal error rather than fraud, has inflamed the discussion. In this atmosphere, Congress has suggested that we need an Office of Scientific Integrity, and that it should audit laboratory records on a random basis.
Though this idea initially seemed wild to most scientists, some administrators and editors have suggested that audits are inevitable and that the scientific community should initiate them. The advantages would be forestalling an invasion by government inspectors, and replacing mere impressions of the magnitude of the problem by hard facts. However, there are good reasons for strenuously resisting this solution.
In the first place, ...
