When big money for scientific research is at stake, as it so often is when federal government funding is on offer - especially for trendy topics with powerful constituencies (as in AIDS and global warming climate change) - corruption is to be expected. And so we discover (via the New York Post):

An Iowa State University professor resigned after admitting he falsely claimed rabbit blood could be turned into a vaccine for the AIDS virus.

Dr. Dong-Pyou Han spiked a clinical test sample with healthy human blood to make it appear that the rabbit serum produced disease-fighting antibodies, officials said.

The bogus findings helped Han's team obtain $19 million in research grants from the National Institutes of Health, said James Bradac, who oversees the institutes' AIDS research.

Han's results were published, but when others could not duplicate them suspicions were aroused. Upon investigation, the fraud was discovered.

So what is to be the punishment for a $19 million theft from taxpayers?

Han resigned from his university post as an assistant professor of biomedical studies  in October. His case came to light this week when it was reported in the Federal Register.

Han agreed last month not to seek government contracts for three years, the register said.

Yeah, that'll deter others.

Hat tip: Instapundit