Germany's Defense Minister resigned today amid a scandal involving allegations that he plagiarized his doctoral thesis. The scandal involving Mr. Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg's 475-page doctoral thesis erupted after a German newspaper reported that chunks of the work were copied from other scholars without properly crediting them. The German Minister today said stepping down was the most painful step of his life, but that the controversy has made it impossible to carry out his duties. The popular minister has acknowledged making errors in his writing, but insisted he did not deliberately cheat. The president of the University of Beyreuth said last week the institution had withdrawn the minister's title of doctor because Guttenberg's thesis violated the university's standards.