Under the Microscope – Jodie Ward

The Australian Facility for Taphonomic Experimental Research (AFTER) is the only human decomposition facility in the Southern Hemisphere. In April 2019, the Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Agency DVI Committee (ADVIC) conducted a two-day national DVI exercise at AFTER involving 50 participants representing every police jurisdiction in Australia and New Zealand, the Australian Defence Force, specialist forensic […]
This Week in Forensic Science

No one has hours to scour the papers to keep up with the latest news, so we’ve curated the top news stories in the field of Forensic Science for this week. Here’s what you need to know to get out the door! Thousands of Bones Discovered in Vatican as Forensics Team Searches for […]
What Does the Future Hold for Forensics?

Since the late 1980s forensic DNA typing has undoubtedly been developed as a powerful tool in police investigations for identifying perpetrators of crime or missing persons, via the analysis of autosomal, Y-chromosome or mitochondrial DNA markers. But is this all that we can expect from forensic genetic testing? Certainly not! As a result of […]
Introducing the ISHI Ambassadors

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the International Symposium on Human Identification. Much has changed since the first gathering in 1989 when the field was in its infancy. Throughout this anniversary year, we’ll be celebrating the men and women who perform the demanding but crucial work of the forensic scientist, as well as exploring […]
This Week in Forensic Science

No one has hours to scour the papers to keep up with the latest news, so we’ve curated the top news stories in the field of Forensic Science for this week. Here’s what you need to know to get out the door! When Ancient DNA Gets Politicized (Smithsonian – 7/12/2019) What responsibility do […]
Human DNA Standard — A Q&A With NIST’s Becky Steffen

How do you solve a crime using DNA? First, you have to find biological evidence — such as blood, other bodily fluids, or maybe just a few skin cells — that might be related to the crime. Then you can try to generate a DNA profile from that evidence. That is a genetic fingerprint, and no […]
New Issue of The ISHI Report Released!

We know that you have many options when it comes to forensic DNA publications, and we were gratified by your response to the inaugural issue of The ISHI Report. We are excited to announce the release of the July issue and look forward to hearing your feedback. Written by: Tara Luther, Promega The […]
Pollen Genetics Can Help with Forensic Investigations

Karen L. Bell, Emory University; Berry Brosi, Emory University, and Kevin Burgess, Columbus State University Imagine you’re a detective working on a murder case. You have a body, but you believe it was moved from another location. Now what? There’s one unexpected tool you might use to follow up on this suspicion: forensic palynology. […]
Networking for Introverts at ISHI

Ah networking; has there ever been a topic that was more polarizing? Well, yeah, there are a few others that come to mind, but if you’re an introvert, this one is definitely on the list. Introverts the world over know why they should network, but they also know the joy that comes from calling it […]