Bogdanov affair

The Bogdanov affair was an academic dispute over the legitimacy of the <a href="/facts/Doctorate/hb3AGQ6A">doctoral</a> degrees obtained by French twins <a href="/facts/Igor_and_Grichka_Bogdanoff/RBXdu8WQ">Igor and Grichka Bogdanov</a> (usually spelled Bogdanoff in French language publications) and a series of <a href="/facts/Theoretical_physics/Cs2Y12rQ">theoretical physics</a> papers written by them in order to obtain degrees. The papers were published in reputable <a href="/facts/Scientific_journal/A4Slzknw">scientific journals</a>, and were alleged by their authors to culminate in a theory for describing what occurred before and at the <a href="/facts/Big_Bang/I5T1vTnv">Big Bang</a>.
The controversy began in 2002, with an allegation that the twins, popular celebrities in France for hosting science-themed TV shows, had obtained PhDs with nonsensical work. Rumors spread on <a href="/facts/Usenet/lYJWFBR6">Usenet</a> newsgroups that their work was a deliberate hoax intended to target weaknesses in the <a href="/facts/Peer_review/ly6yEgcW">peer review</a> system that physics journals use to select papers for publication. While the Bogdanov brothers continued to defend the legitimacy of their work, the debate over whether it represented a contribution to physics spread from Usenet to many other internet forums, eventually receiving coverage in the mainstream media. A <a href="/facts/Centre_national_de_la_recherche_scientifique/z8RBcY1j">Centre national de la recherche scientifique</a> (CNRS) internal report later concluded that their theses had no scientific value.
The incident prompted criticism of the Bogdanovs' approach to <a href="/facts/Science_popularization/cnhLw9rI">science popularization</a>, led to a number of lawsuits, and provoked reflection among physicists as to how and why the peer review system can fail.

Bogdanov affair open-in-new

Bogdanov affair