“Idea stealing”- does it affect scientific innovation and creativity?

It is very interesting to note that “stealing others idea’ is a widely accepted common practice in research, both in academic and industrial laboratories. In a society where stealing, even petty things, is considered as a punishable crime, people steal ideas openly, without any hesitation, in academic and industrial organizations. Stealing expressions or ideas from other’s speech or articles (plagiarism) is considered wrong and can be punishable too. So many people have lost their reputation and career as a result of our harsh approach on preventing plagiarism. Conversely, people get away with stealing others ideas in a research set-up for making money or for attaining power or position. We all agree that this is wrong and unethical; however, most of the researchers may feel helpless and do not how to address this issue without jeopardizing their current and future job security. In this blog, we will discuss the direct scientific and socio-economic impact of “idea stealing” in a scientific research environment, particularly in industrial R&D laboratories. Read more: http://www.sciclips.com/sciclips/blogArticle.do?id=1016&blog=