Beyond the Crime Shows: NIST Experts Introduce STEM Fellows to the Science Behind Forensics
DNA results do not arrive during a television commercial break, and reliable forensic conclusions require more than just sophisticated laboratory equipment. They depend on careful evidence handling, sound methods and an understanding of how people make decisions. Those lessons framed a lively conversation recently between the Sandra Lee Heyman STEM Fellows and two National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) experts: Dr. John Butler, an internationally recognized forensic DNA researcher and textbook author, and Melissa Taylor, a senior forensic science research manager whose work focuses on human factors.
Taylor described forensic science as “science in service of law,” encompassing fields as varied as chemistry, biology, anthropology, psychology and digital evidence. Butler explained that their role at NIST is to research and improve forensic methods, helping laboratories produce more reliable, efficient results. The stakes extend beyond solving crimes to exonerating innocent people and identifying human remains. “Every case matters,” he said, emphasizing the responsibility to analyze evidence properly regardless of whether an investigation attracts public attention.
Students’ questions brought the technology into focus. Butler described how his doctoral research helped advance capillary electrophoresis, which separates DNA inside a narrow glass tube, and discussed newer sequencing methods that can reveal additional information from a sample. He also recalled contributing to efforts to identify victims of the September 11, 2001, World Trade Center attacks in New York City. His work on tests known as mini-STRs helped scientists analyze damaged DNA, illustrating how research can address an urgent human need and help families obtain answers.
Taylor explored another essential part of reliable forensic work: the people performing it. Her research examines how bias, distractions, fatigue and working conditions can affect examiners’ decisions, then develops recommendations to improve laboratory practices. She stressed that creating a useful technology also requires understanding how people will operate it, interpret its results and explain their conclusions. Responding to a question about computer science, she outlined opportunities both to develop forensic tools and to examine digital evidence from phones, computers and vehicle systems.
The guests’ contrasting career paths offered students two examples of finding a place in the field. Butler’s early enthusiasm for puzzles, science magazines and Sherlock Holmes led to chemistry studies and doctoral research at the FBI laboratory. He holds a BS in Chemistry from Brigham Young University and a PhD in analytical chemistry from the University of Virginia.
Taylor began college as a chemistry major before discovering stronger interests, which led her to complete her BA degree in African American Studies (Public Policy) from the University of Maryland’s College of Behavioral and Social Science. Scientific writing eventually brought her to the Department of Justice and forensic science, where those interests converged. She encouraged Fellows to seek internships, conversations with professionals and other firsthand experiences that reveal what a job actually involves.
The discussion also highlighted careers in industry, insurance investigations, forensic anthropology and healthcare, including nurses trained to care for sexual assault patients while preserving evidence. Both guests urged students to pursue subjects they enjoy, build expertise and remain open to connections across disciplines. Taylor underscored the importance of social science alongside laboratory science, while Butler offered a guiding phrase for aspiring researchers, which he attributed to a university football coach: “Be humble and be hungry” – willing to learn, ask questions and work hard.
The Sandra Lee Heyman Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization established in memory of Sandra Lee Heyman, a long-time mathematics teacher at the elementary, middle school, high school, and community college levels. The 18-month long Fellowship is aimed at promising high school students who have the opportunity to meet with STEM leaders, visit prominent institutions in the Washington, D.C., area, and access peers and mentors to support career exploration in STEM fields. There are multiple ways to support the Fellowship program, and donations to the Foundation are tax deductible.