OSAC Lexicon

Heat transfer by way of electromagnetic waves that are longer than visible light waves and shorter than radio waves.

An image produced on a sensitive plate or film by x-rays or similar radiation, and typically used in medical examination range of motion.

A printing technique that combines different color inks to produce a subtle transition between colors.

A component of error whereby replicate measurements vary in an unpredictable way. Sources of random error are usually unexplained and therefore difficult to control. (NIST HF)

When the choice of something or the placement of something is random the source placed is equally likely to be either location.

A feature on a footwear outsole or tire tread resulting from interaction with an object(s) including, but not limited to: cuts, scratches, tears, holes, stone holds, abrasions, the acquisition of debris, and burn marks.

A feature or defect that can occur in the manufacturing process or from individual usage occurring after manufacture (for example, wear and damage defects such as cuts and gouges, reproducible blemishes, impression voids, improper and extraneous inking, or coincidental peripheral printing). The position, orientation, size, and shape of these characteristics are features that are part of the information an FDE uses to form an opinion about the probability of items being generated by the same or different source.

The distance from a firearm’s muzzle to the initial projectile impact.

The accumulation of deviations among repetitions of respective handwriting characteristics that are typically demonstrated in the writing habits of an individual (see 3.1.421 variation).

The subconscious impulse on the part of the canine to rise in status within the pack social order

A Category 0 scoring function. See 4.2.4. A rank-score only scoring function is either non-quantified, inconsistent, or non-explainable.

penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim. 

Fully automated, “swab in – profile out” process of developing a DNA profile from a sample without human intervention.

The frequency or prevalence of a friction ridge feature, either in isolation or in conjunction with other information about its local context. 

NOTE For example, the prevalence of a type of feature could be affected by its proximity to a pattern force area, the finger number or palmar region on which it is located, or the pattern type in which it is located.

Output peripheral, either stand alone or within a printer, that converts computer data into a bitmapped image, which is sent to the host for storage or a printer for output.

See heat release Rate (HRR).

Ordinate values that come directly from the instrument which have not been manipulated (e.g.,trimmed, filtered, and/or interpolation applied).

A family of file formats, often specific to different models of digital imageryequipment, that are not yet processed for storage in a 'printable' image format such asJPEG or TIFF. The file extension '.raw' is only one such format.

Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

A sample that contains no analyte, but contains the buffer, test reagents, or other materials required to perform a particular test. This is a negative control where results are not expected. The observation where the result(s) in this control may indicate the presence of contaminated or compromised reagents, which may impact the DNA or the serological results observed from samples tested at the same time. For forensic DNA testing this control is treated the same as, and parallel to, the DNA samples being analyzed.

A double impression of a typed character, the second lighter than and overlapping the first. (SWGDOC E04)

A verbal command given to the canine, terminating with the canine returning to the canine handler. The canine's response to return to the canine handler on command.

The recall rate is also known as true positive rate. It is defined as the number (or percentage) of toolmark specimens containing a Known-Match in the test set for which a Known-Match is correctly determined.

The document or other substrate that received indentations, other paper fiber disturbances, or other markings. (ANSI/ASB Std 044)

process of deciding whether items have potential forensic value

Note 1 to entry:  Enhancement can aid recognition

A document that is similar in content and structure to a code or standard but that contains only nonmandatory provisions using the word 'should' to indicate recommendations in the body of the text.

Document with observations, statements of results achieved, or evidence of activities performed.

A defined set of fields that contain data as defined in this standard.

The act of converting an acoustic voice signal directly from an individual into a storagemedia, perhaps through contemporaneous, intermediate (transient) signal types. Note:This definition is retained because of its entrenchment in natural language use.Consequently, a record (n) is not recorded, it is created. Transcoding is the term usedfor further processing of the voice signal and any digital or analog representation of thatsignal.

system used to ensure traceability and to identify, store, protect, retrieve, retain and dispose of record(s)

The act of creating a record contained in an ANSI/NIST-ITL transaction.

A piece of material, usually paper, on which an image or information is recorded.

A record/log in the use of a trained canine team in an operational environment, as opposed to training records. A log constituting a piece of evidence about the past, especially an account of an act or occurrence kept in writing or some other permanent form, i.e., electronic format. (See deployment record or utilization record.)

Objective evidence of a condition, result, work performed, activity conducted, and/or quality of asystem or process for archival purposes.

Over-writing of segments of a voice signal for the purpose of masking speech content ina way that does not disrupt the time record of the original recording.

An assemblage of established materials, substances, objects or artefacts of known properties or origin that may be used in the determination of the properties or origins of unknown items.

Data derived from biological specimens of a known individual.

Data generated from a reference sample.

The assembly of data related to a specific identifiable human group comprising all the relevant information to enable dental age assessment.

A collection of reference material or sequences assembled for use in comparative analyses for purposes of taxonomic identification, individual source evaluation, population assignment, or mitotyping.