OSAC Lexicon

Records—such as evidence receipts, chain of custody, and submission forms (electronic or hard copy)—that do not constitute data or information resulting from examination work.

Evaluation of records (3.49) to verify consistency with the forensic service provider’s (3.26) administrative policies and with editorial correctness

Numbers in the parenthesis refers to additional terms in the standard.

Also referenced in ANSI/ASB 143 Standard for Technical Review in Friction Ridge Examination.

evaluation of records to verify consistency with administrative policies and editorial correctness

An evaluation of the report and supporting documentation for consistency with laboratory policies and for editorial correctness.

The individual who oversees, but does not participate in, the evaluation; this will usually be, but is not restricted to, the technical leader.

A court determination whether the trier of fact may hear and consider the proffered evidence.

A witness that has been deemed to have done something wrong.

Accessory visual structures.

The interval in human dental development that begins after all primary teeth are normally shed, and the permanent teeth are developing or developed. The adolescent interval ends when all permanent teeth present are fully developed. Note: During the adolescent and adult dental age intervals, primary teeth may be atypically retained for various reasons, including congenital absence or ectopic eruption of the permanent teeth that would typically replace them.

The interval begins when human dental development ends and all permanent teeth have completely formed crowns and roots and continues throughout life. Note: During the adolescent and adult dental age intervals, primary teeth may be atypically retained for various reasons, including congenital absence or ectopic eruption of the permanent teeth that would typically replace them.

Automated Fingerprint Identification System

Automatic gain control is an adaptive system that effectively reduces the amplitude orenergy of an audio signal if it is strong and raises it when it is weaker.

Automatic Gain Control. A closed-loop regulating circuit which provides a controlled signal amplitude at its output,despite variation of the amplitude in the input signal.

Information that can be processed to generate normal distribution data or percentile data and assembled to create a reference data set.

The estimated age and estimated age interval derived from the dental developmental stage or stages present at the time an individual's estimated age is calculated by the forensic dental age assessment practitioner. (For example, the mean age for a subject with observed dental characteristics similar to the individual being evaluated is estimated to be 10.34 years with a minimum and maximum age distribution of 8.67 to 14.33 years on the day of assessment).

The estimation of chronological age from osseous, dental, and/or cartilaginous material, reported as an interval.

A phenomenon that occurs when means and confidence intervals for particular features/phases are calculated directly from the ages of individuals with those features in the reference sample, resulting in a method that produces results more influenced by the composition of the reference sample than the true age distribution of the features in the population.

Specific human scent that has been present for a period longer than 24 hours

A specific human scent pathway that has been present for a period longer than 24 hours.

Description of an act of a canine that is an outcome of an agonistic interaction. It can be appropriate or inappropriate, and involve a threat, challenge or contest. NOTE: The word 'aggressive' is often used as a descriptive term for intense, enthusiastic, or forceful behavior of any kind, and these canines may not be truly aggressive or possess aggression.

A decision that an accumulation of observed similarities in pattern type, ridge flow, and friction ridge features in sequence, of the same or similar type, in the same relative position to each other, with associated intervening ridge counts suggests overall conformity.

Observed similarities in pattern type, ridge flow, and friction ridge features in sequence, of the same or similar type, in the same relative position to each other, with associated intervening ridge counts. An accumulation of similarities between two impressions resulting in overall conformity that supports a conclusion of source identification.

Observation of pattern type, ridge flow, and friction ridge features in sequence, of the same or similar type, in the same relative position to each other, with associated intervening ridge counts. An accumulation of similarities between two impressions resulting in overall conformity.

The Audio Interchange File Format stores audio data in uncompressed pulse-codemodulation (PCM). The file extensions commonly used are '.aiff' and 'aif'. There is acompressed variant which has the extension '.aifc', but in reality, sometimes acompressed version is stored with the file extension '.aiff'. 

A technique used by a canine to locate a target odor/scent. The canine searches for the target odor/scent on wind/air currents and attempts to identify/work on an odor/scent cone to the source of the odor/scent.

A characteristic change in ongoing behavior in response to a trained odor/scent, as interpreted by the canine handler. The components of the alert may include: change of behavior (COB), interest, and final response or indication. . (See final response, and indication.)

The stair stepped or jagged effect resulting from analog to digital conversion (see 3.1.294 pixelation).

An arrangement of two or more nucleotide or protein sequences that is used to illustrate similarity among those sequences. 

The appearance or position of a handwritten or printed character(s) or text relative to a real or imaginary baseline or to another handwritten or printed character(s) or text.

Position of writing with respect to a real or imaginary baseline. (NIST HF)

The adjustment of various mechanisms of a typewriter to ensure the even printing of the characters and their proper positioning relative to the baseline and to the other characters. (SWGDOC E04-13)

A deviation from the intended appearance or position of a character relative to another character (see impression defect). 

NOTE Alignment defects are usually categorized as vertical misalignment (character too high or low relative to the baseline established by the other characters), horizontal misalignment (character too far to the left or right relative to the other characters), and twisted or leaning (character leans to the left or to the right); because they are corrected in the alignment process, impression defects are considered as alignment defects. (SWGDOC E04-13)

One of two or more versions of a genetic sequence at a particular location (a locus) in a genome.

One member of a series of possible alternative forms of a DNA sequence found at aparticular genetic location.

One of two or more versions of a genetic sequence at a particular location in the genome.

The value identified for the allele, either via expert system or by an analyst.

In STR testing, a standardization tool, consisting of the most commonly observed alleles, used for assigning an allele designation to a peak in an electropherogram at a particular genetic locus.

Different forms of the same character such as capital hand-printed “A” and cursive “a.” (Adopted from HH)