German Minister Quits Over Plagiarized Dissertation

Germany's aristocratic defense minister has resigned after being caught in a plagiarism scandal. Tens of thousands of academics wrote to the government in protest after it was discovered that Baron Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg—now nicknamed "Baron Cut and Paste" and "zu Googleberg"—had plagiarized large chunks of his PhD thesis, reports the Independent.

Academics determined that Guttenberg had copied more than half of his 2006 thesis from other people's work without giving them credit. Resignation "is the most painful step I've ever had to take," said the 39-year-old baron, who is now expected to retreat to his castle in Bavaria to plan his next step, the Guardian notes. Before the scandal, Guttenberg was widely considered Germany's most popular politician, and he is expected to eventually return to politics. (More Angela Merkel stories.)