FORENSIC HUMAN IDENTIFICATION: An Introduction

Editors
Tim Thompson is a lecturer in forensic anthropology at the University of Dundee, Scotland.
He holds a Bachelor of Science (Honors) degree in archaeological science and geography,
a Master of Science degree in forensic anthropology, a postgraduate certificate in higher
education and a Doctor of Philosophy degree in forensic anthropology. He has been a
practicing forensic anthropologist since 2000 in both the U.K. and abroad for the Foreign
and Commonwealth Office (FCO), British police forces, and private clients. He is
membership secretary for the British Association for Human Identification, a registered
practitioner with the Council for the Registration of Forensic Practitioners, an accredited
member of the Forensic Science Society, and a listed expert on the National Centre for
Policing Excellence database.
Currently Dr. Thompson’s main research interests include the examination of heatinduced
changes in bone; improving methods of human identification; the legal, ethical,
and social ramifications of forensic anthropology; forensic anthropology and education;
and the management of mass fatality incidents. He has published many papers on these
topics, and peer reviews articles for several leading forensic journals.
Sue Black, head of anatomy and forensic anthropology at the University of Dundee, is a
founding director of the Centre for International Forensic Assistance. She holds a Bachelor
of Science (Honors) degree and a doctorate in Human Anatomy. She also holds an honorary
Doctor of Science degree in recognition of services to forensic anthropology and is a Fellow
of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. Prof. Black has more than 20 years of experience in the
national and international field of forensic anthropology and human identification, and
has given evidence in criminal and coroner’s courts in the U.K., Europe, and U.S. In her
professional capacity as a forensic anthropologist, she has assisted the British government,
various European and foreign governments, national and international police forces,
military investigators, the U.N., and the FBI. She is lead assessor for forensic anthropology
and a registered practitioner for the Council for the Registration of Forensic Practitioners,
founder member for the British Association for Human Identification, and a registered
expert with the National Centre for Policing Excellence. She was awarded the Order of the
British Empire in February of 2002 for services to forensic anthropology in Kosovo.
Professor Black has published many academic papers and is coauthor of the award-winning
text Developmental Juvenile Osteology.
© 2007 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC