How machine learning is changing crime-solving tactics

Modern forensic DNA analyses are crucial to crime scene investigations; however the interpretation of the DNA profiles can be complex. Two researchers from the Forensics and National Security Sciences Institute (FNSSI) have turned to computer technology to assist complicated profile interpretation, specifically when it comes to samples containing DNA from multiple people. "There is a massive amount of data that is not being considered, simply due to our limited capability as human beings," says Michael Marciano, FNSSI research assistant professor, explaining why they're counting on computers to make data-driven predictions. Marciano and Jonathan Adelman, FNSSI research assistant professor, have developed a new method to predict the number of people contributing to mixed DNA samples, the results of which are published online in Forensic Science International: Genetics ahead of the journal's March issue. Additionally, the duo's method, dubbed Probabilistic Assessment for Contributor Estimate (PACE), is patent pending.