Brian Wansink

Wansink will retire from Cornell University, where he is director of the Food and Brand Lab, after a university investigation found that he had committed academic misconduct. His departure from Cornell is a steep fall for a researcher who had been considered one of the university's savviest public ambassadors. Wansink brought in millions in federal grants and was the author of a best-seller, Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think (Bantam, 2006). He was a regular guest on TV shows and a pro at dealing with the news media. His attention-grabbing studies, like the one that suggested people ate more food if their plates were larger, were easy to understand and implement. Plus his work had genuine influence: Wansink’s Smarter Lunchrooms program was used in more than 30,000 schools.