A private researcher’s struggles against research fraud. I. A case study

Mechanical engineering is a mature branch of applied science. Consequently, it is characterized by steady evolutionary progress, rather than big theoretical breakthroughs and paradigm changes. However, what it lacks on the discovery front it makes up for with opportunities for invention. One key difference between an invention and a discovery is that inventions are more likely to bring riches and popular acclaim to the person who makes the breakthrough. Envy of these rewards for invention probably lies at the heart of the fraud to be described. In the summer of 1986, the author decided to celebrate his fortieth birthday by using one of the recently invented mountain bikes to bicycle off-road across the UK, from Land’s End to John o’Groats. For the first half of his journey he used foam-padded biking gloves, and for the second half gel-padded gloves. Neither type proved to be completely satisfactory for absorbing the vibrations and coping with the frequent falls resulting from his poor biking skills. So, on his return home he experimented with foam-plus-gel combinations, eventually developing a radically new mechanism for absorbing impact and vibration energy, which he referred to as shock-absorbing liquid (SALi) technology (Fig. 1).