Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock (
) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.
Technical Colloquium: Quantifying the Weight of Forensic Evidence
June 26, 2017
Final Final program here .
June 19, 2017 Update
Final program is posted here.
Register here . Registration will close soon.
May 3, 2017 Update
The theme of the 2017 NIST Technical Colloquium on Weight of Evidence is Defining, Collecting and Understanding. The goal of the Colloquium is to get stakeholders across forensic science to think about ways to transform from reporting a “match/no match” to statements that integrate error and uncertainty.
The first day is about defining the weight of evidence - what it means, and how to quantify it. The second day is about collecting and will cover data and its use and analysis within forensic science. The third day is about understanding and will focus on how to communicate and report forensic examination findings. Current program is here.
Register here . There is no cost to attend the colloquium. If you are not registered, you will not be allowed on site. Registered attendees will receive security and campus instructions prior to the workshop. Registration closes on June 20, 2017.
April 27, 2017: Registration opens
Registration for the technical colloquium is now open. There is no cost to attend the colloquium. If you are not registered, you will not be allowed on site. Registered attendees will receive security and campus instructions prior to the workshop. Registration closes on June 20, 2017.
Registration link here.
Feb. 14, 2017: Announcing program outline
We are pleased to announce our program outline and confirmed speakers:
Program Outline
- Introduction and Theme: Defining, Collecting, and Understanding the weight of evidence (WoE)
- What is WoE
- Quantifying the WoE
- The importance of data in evaluation of forensic evidence
- Data and population statistics
- Uniform Language in Testimony and Reporting
- Inter-Laboratory testing
Confirmed Speakers
Niko Brummer, AGNITIO
John Butler, NIST
Christophe Champod (keynote), Forensic Science Institute, University of Lausanne
Will Guthrie, NIST
Graham Jackson, University of Abertay Dundee
Didier Meuwly, University of Twente
Cedric Neumann, University of South Dakota
Daniel Ramos, University of Autonoma de Madrid
Doug Reynolds, MIT Lincoln Laboratory
Toni Roberts, Federal Bureau of Investigation
Mike Smith, Federal Bureau of Investigation
Geoffrey Stewart Morrison, Aston University
Bill Thompson, University of California Irvine
Nov 29, 2016: Announcing the 2nd TC on WoE
The NIST 2017 Technical Colloquium on the Weight of Evidence (WoE) will be held June 27-29, 2017 at NIST Headquarters in Gaithersburg, Maryland. The theme for the 2017 Colloquium is “Defining, Collecting, and Understanding” in the Weight of Evidence. We seek both presenters and panel participants to discuss topics related to:
- What is the Weight of Evidence
- Quantifying the Weight of Evidence
- Collaborative Exercises and Inter-laboratory Evaluations
- Researcher Needs and Data Access in the Evaluation of Forensic Evidence
- Relevant Populations
Please send your suggestion to tc.forensicweightofevidence [at] nist.gov (tc[dot]forensicweightofevidence[at]nist[dot]gov).
May 5-6, 2016
May 12, 2016: Presentations available
The Technical Colloquium on quantifying the weight of was attended by around 140 individuals from several countries. The audience heard from 17 speakers giving 21 presentations along with lively discussion which are now archived as the TC on quantifying the weight of evidence webcast and proceedings.
April 14, 2016: Final program and registration
The final program for the colloquium is now available. All speakers and attendees should proceed to register via this link
March 21, 2016: Updated program available
The current program for the colloquium is now available. Please note that we expect some minor changes to content and schedule ahead of the conference in May. All speakers and attendees should proceed to register via this link.
March 1, 2016: Initial program available
The initial program for the IBPC is now available. Please note that we expect some minor changes to content and schedule ahead of the conference in May. All speakers and attendees should proceed to register via the link below.
February 26, 2016: Registration opens
Registration for the technical colloquium is now open. You are automatically registered for this technical colloquium if you have already registered for IBPC 2016. Otherwise, you must register online before April 22. There is no cost to attend the colloquium only.
January 27, 2016: Bibliography
We have assembled a set of influential and seminal papers relevant to the quantification of the weight of evidence. We invite suggestions to expand this list. Please send your suggestions to tc.forensicweightofevidence [at] nist.gov (tc[dot]forensicweightofevidence[at]nist[dot]gov).
January 9, 2016: Announcement
NIST is organizing a technical colloquium on the topic of Quantification of the Weight of Forensic Evidence. The purpose of the technical colloquium is to facilitate a technical discussion about theories and current approaches and practices for assigning the weight of evidence. Issues related to statistical methods for quantifying the weight of evidence and their introduction into courts of law, are of great interest and importance in forensic science.
Mathematically speaking, it has been argued that the Likelihood Ratio (LR) is the optimal approach for quantifying the weight of evidence. However, there are still a great deal of unknowns surrounding the implementation and computation of LRs across specific forensic domains. There is also ongoing debate about the interpretation of LR values in courtroom testimony.
The technical colloquium aims to address different mathematical or statistical methods for quantifying the weight of evidence, their scientific underpinning, pros, cons, limitation as well as the criteria for applying such methods, and development of guidelines for the forensic science community. We encourage participants to review the bibliography posted prior to the technical colloquium.
The technical colloquium which is part of the IBPC2016 will be held May 5-6 at NIST in Gaithersburg, Maryland.