Neri Oxman caught up in academic plagiarism row

Architect and designer Neri Oxman has responded to allegations of plagiarism following a report by the news website Business Insider.

In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Oxman apologised for citation errors in her PhD, which she completed at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 2010, stating that she "omitted quotation marks for certain work that I used".

"I regret and apologize for these errors"

The American–Israeli architect and designer made the statement following a piece published on Business Insider, which alleged that her dissertation was "marred by plagiarism".

"I was forwarded an email this morning from a reporter at Business Insider who noted that there are four paragraphs in my 330-page PhD dissertation: "Material-based Design Computation," which I completed at MIT in 2010, where I omitted quotation marks for certain work that I used," she wrote.

"For each of the four paragraphs in question, I properly credited the original source's author(s) with references at the end of each of the subject paragraphs, and in the detailed bibliography end pages of the dissertation," she continued.

"In these four paragraphs, however, I did not place the subject language in quotation marks, which would be the proper approach for crediting the work. I regret and apologize for these errors."

"I have always recognized the profound importance of the contributions of my peers"

In her response, Oxman also responded to a series of other apparent citation errors in her PhD that were highlighted in the Business Insider article, including paraphrasing German physicist Claus Mattheck in a sentence without a proper citation.

"I deeply apologize to Mattheck for inadvertently not citing him when I paraphrased [him]," Oxman said, stating that Mattheck's work is properly cited elsewhere in her thesis.

"As I have dedicated my career to advancing science and innovation, I have always recognized the profound importance of the contributions of my peers and those who came before me," she added.

The accusations of plagiarism directed at Oxman follow the resignation of Harvard University president Claudine Gay, who has also been accused of plagiarism.

Gay resigned following a campaign against her presidency, in which billionaire hedge-fund manager Bill Ackman, who is married to Oxman, played a significant role.

Gay was initially under pressure due to criticism of Harvard University's response to the Israel-Hamas conflict and alleged campus antisemitism. The pressure intensified when an investigation by conservative activist Christopher Rufo and journalist Aaron Sibarium alleged multiple instances of plagiarism in her dissertation and journal pieces.

"We expect to dispute a substantial number of facts"

Following the Business Insider article, Ackman posted a series of posts on X criticising its reporting.

"We expect to dispute a substantial number of facts in the story," he wrote on X.

"Unfortunately we were never given the opportunity to analyse the facts before Business Insider published its story 90 minutes after alleging plagiarism in a 6,900 word email," he continued. "Once we have completed our analysis we will revert with corrections of the record."

Oxman is a former tenured professor at MIT and led The Mediated Matter Research Group who is known for her pioneering work in the field of material ecology.

She was a contributor to Dezeen's recent Dezeen 15 series marking our 15th anniversary. Oxman used her Dezeen 15 manifesto and an accompanying movie to set out the vision for her new studio.

In her statement on X, Oxman gave more details of the studio, which is called Oxman and "has been in stealth mode" since she founded it in 2020.

"I have continued my work in a new company I founded in New York City called Oxman, which along with 27 other members of my team, we are working to advance innovation in product, architectural, and urban design," she wrote.

"Oxman has been in stealth mode. I look forward to sharing more about Oxman later this year."

Comments have been turned off on this story due to its sensitivity.

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