The series offers an opportunity for students, faculty and the public to learn more about celestial forensics, National Academy of Sciences’ reports and recommendations, the Innocence Project and Homeland Security measures from various experts.
Seminars are held Fridays from 3:30 to 5 p.m. in Room 124 of Pastore Hall, 51 Lower College Road, Kingston. They are free and open to the public.
The schedule is as follows:
• Sept. 17, Thomas Groff, assistant flammables and explosives technician – Division of R.I. State Fire Marshal, “Explosives Threat and IED Incidents: A View of Street Level Response.”
• Sept. 24, Pat Beauchamp, development manager – Outer Planet Flagship Missions Jet Propulsion, “Celestial Forensics: Missions to Titan, an Enigmatic Moon of Saturn.”
• Oct. 1, Amy Diver, firearms examiner – Bulletpath.com, “National Academy of Sciences Report on Forensic Science: A Firearms Examiner’s Perspective.”
• Oct. 8, John Leo, emergency response team– R.I. Department of Environmental Management, “The Floods of 2010 and the Aftermath of the Spills and Cleanups.”
• Oct. 15, Robert B. Kimsey, assistant adjunct professor of entomology – University of California, Davis, “Forensic Entomology: Introduction, Strengths and Limitations.”
• Oct. 22, Anthony Amore, Director of Security – Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, “The Three Most Significant Art Thefts in America.”
• Oct. 29, Carl Czajkowski, detector development and testing division head – Brookhaven National Laboratory, “Homeland Security Initiatives at Brookhaven National Lab.”
• Nov. 5, Sarah Chu, forensic policy associate, Innocence Project, “Innocence Project and the National Academy of Sciences Report.”
• Nov. 12, Marilyn London, forensic anthropology consultant – Smithsonian Institution, “What Bones Can’t Tell Us.”
• Nov. 19, Constantine Gatsonis, professor of biostatistics – Brown University, “The National Academy of Sciences Recommendations for the Forensic Disciplines.”
• Dec. 3, William Smith, judge – United States District Court of Rhode Island, “Overview of Expert and Scientific Testimony In Federal Court.”