>I also thought it was funny that she complained about the committee not raising those questions when she submitted her proposal years ago. That's the whole poi

>I also thought it was funny that she complained about the committee not raising those questions when she submitted her proposal years ago. That's the whole point dummy... She also mentions submitting multiple drafts and requests for feedback, over the course of years, which Dr. Mao (who based on the description appears to be her thesis advsior) ignored. E.g. when she says "Dr. Mao had provided me with next to no feedback on my dissertation--- nothing substantial anyway. Emails with drafts went unanswered. There was the occasional promise to read it the following month, which always went unfulfilled." If the very basis of the dissertation "had no validity" or the missing references were so fundamental as you imagine, her thesis advisor should have mentioned those things before the day of the defense. She also seems to state (though she is less clear about this) that actual substantial wording from her essay (not just ideas) were copied. Several credible people she consulted (including her fellowship director) seemed to concur. I suppose it's possible for substantial amounts of exact wording to be "accidentally" plagiarized, but it's a lot less likely.