The Radford University Forensic Science Institute (RUFSI) is an interdisciplinary institute whose goal is to promote and support forensic science education, research, and public service. The institute faculty are comprised of specialists in Forensic Anthropology and Forensic Archaeology.  The FSI mission is to serve as a center for innovative interdisciplinary forensic science research and to provide, with integrity, the highest quality educational training, consultation, and public service in the forensic sciences.  Its faculty also provide objective and unbiased court testimony in regard to medicolegal death cases in the Commonwealth and beyond. Learn more.

Science Daily: Forensic News

  • New method developed to detect and trace homemade bombs

    Researchers have developed a new way of detecting homemade explosives which will help forensic scientists trace where it came from.

  • Solving a hairy forensic problem

    For decades, forensic scientists have tested strands of hair to reveal drug use or poisoning. But in recent years, reports have questioned the technique -- in particular, its ability to distinguish between the intake of a substance and external contamination of the hair.

  • Sensitive sensor detects Down syndrome DNA with blood test during pregnancy

    According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Down syndrome is the most common birth defect, occurring once in every 700 births. However, traditional noninvasive prenatal tests for the condition are unreliable or carry risks for the mother and fetus. Now, researchers have developed a sensitive new biosensor that could someday be used to detect fetal Down syndrome DNA in pregnant women's blood.

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News and Upcoming Events

  • Dr. Cliff Boyd was recently honored for his 30 years of outstanding contributions in Archaeology at the    Annual Uplands Archaeology in the East Symposium XII held at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina, Feb. 24 – 26, 2017.
  • Research entitled “Comparability of Macroscopic, Microscopic, and Radiologically Defined Pediatric Antemortem Healing Stages” (by Drs. C. Boyd, D. Boyd, S. Roller, D. Foley) received the Ellis R. Kerley award for Outstanding Research in Forensic Anthropology at the 68th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences for 2016-2017.
  • Dr. Donna Boyd was recently selected as Secretary of the Board of Directors of the American Board of Forensic Anthropology as well as the American Standards Board, Anthropology Group, of the American Academy of Forensic Anthropology.

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