Recently, NIST announced the availability of $2.5 million for funding criminal justice applications that use new scientific discoveries. Thirty-six proposals were received, and the judges found it difficult to narrow the choices. However, the OLES Forensic Science Program and five outside experts thoroughly reviewed the proposals and selected five for immediate funding.
* Rapid High Sensitivity DNA Extraction Using Direct Rapid Analysis Generating Extracted Nucleotides (DRAGEN) proposal by the Materials Measurement Laboratory ;
* Nuclear Forensic Reference Materials for Attribution of Urban Nuclear Terrorism proposal by the Physical Measurement Laboratory;
* Proposal to establish a National Ballistics Evidence Search Engine (NBESE) based on 3D topography measurements on correlation cells, by the Physical Measurement Laboratory;
* Metrics for Manipulation and Enhancement of Forensic Images proposal by the Information Technology Laboratory; and
* Production of Seized Drug Analysis Standards through Inkjet Printing Technology proposal by the Materials Measurement Laboratory.
Congratulations to these outstanding winners! So many other proposals were so stellar that the group is currently seeking other funding opportunities to support them. Thank you to all who participated!
