HOSA Forensic Science actual questions and
verified answers grade a+.
Who helped advance fingerprint, firearms, and hair analysis? - ANSWER: Victor
Balthazard
Who was credited with developing a probablility model that showed fingerprints are unique
(10^60 chance of 2 people having same patterns)? - ANSWER: Victor Balthazard
Who developed an advanced photographic method of comparing markings on bullets? -
ANSWER: Victor Balthazard
What is the identification of suspects using 11 body measurements? - ANSWER:
Anthropometry/bertillonage
Who created anthropometry? - ANSWER: Alphonse Bertillon
When was anthropometry popular? - ANSWER: 1883-1900s
Who was the first forensic scientist that used fingerprints to solve a case? - ANSWER:
Alphonse Bertillon
Who was the cousin of Charles Darwin? - ANSWER: Sir Francis Galton
Who developed the first classification for fingerprints? - ANSWER: Sir Francis Galton
What is used to describe one of the features found in fingerprints in the US? - ANSWER:
Galton Ridge
Who is credited with establishing examination of firearms evidence in US? - ANSWER:
Galvin Goddard
1
,Who coined the term of "criminalistics"? - ANSWER: Hans Gross
What does criminalistics refer to? - ANSWER: The forensic analysis of physical evidence
Who wrote Kriminologie? - ANSWER: Hans Gross
What is Locard's exchange principle? - ANSWER: Every contact leaves a trace
Who created Locard's exchange principle? - ANSWER: Edmond Locard
Who is the founder of forensic toxicology? - ANSWER: Mathieu Orfila
Who spent a good deal of their time studying poison? - ANSWER: Mathieu Orfila
What poison did Mathieu Orfila spend the most time studying? - ANSWER: Arsenic
What is the adversarial system? - ANSWER: Two positions arguing for acceptance
What is a judge and jury also called? - ANSWER: Finder of fact/trier of truth
What is the scientific method? - ANSWER: Data based and founded on concepts taken
collectively through a series of steps
What is the first step of the scientific method? - ANSWER: Formulate hypothesis
What is the second step of the scientific method? - ANSWER: Test hypothesis using
observation or experimentation
2
,What is the third step of the scientific method? - ANSWER: Based on results, revise
hypothesis and repeat previous steps
What is the fourth step of the scientific method? - ANSWER: Continue until the data is in
agreement with hypothesis
What is the first thing a forensic scientist should do? - ANSWER: Distinguish evidence
from coincidence
What is the second thing a forensic scientist should do? - ANSWER: Rank alternative
results based on the basic principles in applied sciences
What is the third thing a forensic scientist should do? - ANSWER: Allow for certainty and
probabilistic considerations wherever appropriate through this ranking
What is the fourth thing a forensic scientist should do? - ANSWER: Disallow hypotheses
more extraordinary than facts
What is the fifth thing a forensic scientist should do? - ANSWER: Pursue specific details
What is the sixth thing a forensic scientist should do? - ANSWER: Pursue testing by
addressing smallest logical component of the hypothesis one at a time
What are the opinions of Charles Sander Pierce? - ANSWER: Contrite Fallibilism
What is contrite fallibilism? - ANSWER: The awareness of how much we do not know
and the humility to acknowledge the possibility of making mistakes
Who normally works as private consultants? - ANSWER: Forensic
anthropologists/engineers
What are public laboratories? - ANSWER: Laboratories funded by governments
3
, What are private laboratories? - ANSWER: Businesses designed to make a profit
What do most private laboratories specialize in? - ANSWER: DNA and forensic
toxicology
What is the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner tasked with? - ANSWER: Death
investigations and houses laboratories associated with performing autopsies
What will the office of the Chief Medical Examiner also have? - ANSWER: Toxicology
laboratories to analyze postmortem samples
What do full-service laboratories cover? - ANSWER: DNA, drug analysis, firearms and
toolmarks, trace evidence, fingerprints
What is an example of a full-service laboratory? - ANSWER: FBI Laboratory in Quantico,
Virginia
What is a small branch laboratory? - ANSWER: Laboratory that focuses on one type of
evidence
What are the jobs of a forensic scientist that is also a police officer? - ANSWER: Respond
to crime scenes, process and collect evidence, deliver evidence for further testing
What is accreditation? - ANSWER: A laboratory that agrees to work according to
professional standards and proves that it can and does operate this way
What does accreditation also require? - ANSWER: Re-accreditation on a set schedule
What is certification? - ANSWER: A forensic scientist that has completed a written test
covering their discipline
4
verified answers grade a+.
Who helped advance fingerprint, firearms, and hair analysis? - ANSWER: Victor
Balthazard
Who was credited with developing a probablility model that showed fingerprints are unique
(10^60 chance of 2 people having same patterns)? - ANSWER: Victor Balthazard
Who developed an advanced photographic method of comparing markings on bullets? -
ANSWER: Victor Balthazard
What is the identification of suspects using 11 body measurements? - ANSWER:
Anthropometry/bertillonage
Who created anthropometry? - ANSWER: Alphonse Bertillon
When was anthropometry popular? - ANSWER: 1883-1900s
Who was the first forensic scientist that used fingerprints to solve a case? - ANSWER:
Alphonse Bertillon
Who was the cousin of Charles Darwin? - ANSWER: Sir Francis Galton
Who developed the first classification for fingerprints? - ANSWER: Sir Francis Galton
What is used to describe one of the features found in fingerprints in the US? - ANSWER:
Galton Ridge
Who is credited with establishing examination of firearms evidence in US? - ANSWER:
Galvin Goddard
1
,Who coined the term of "criminalistics"? - ANSWER: Hans Gross
What does criminalistics refer to? - ANSWER: The forensic analysis of physical evidence
Who wrote Kriminologie? - ANSWER: Hans Gross
What is Locard's exchange principle? - ANSWER: Every contact leaves a trace
Who created Locard's exchange principle? - ANSWER: Edmond Locard
Who is the founder of forensic toxicology? - ANSWER: Mathieu Orfila
Who spent a good deal of their time studying poison? - ANSWER: Mathieu Orfila
What poison did Mathieu Orfila spend the most time studying? - ANSWER: Arsenic
What is the adversarial system? - ANSWER: Two positions arguing for acceptance
What is a judge and jury also called? - ANSWER: Finder of fact/trier of truth
What is the scientific method? - ANSWER: Data based and founded on concepts taken
collectively through a series of steps
What is the first step of the scientific method? - ANSWER: Formulate hypothesis
What is the second step of the scientific method? - ANSWER: Test hypothesis using
observation or experimentation
2
,What is the third step of the scientific method? - ANSWER: Based on results, revise
hypothesis and repeat previous steps
What is the fourth step of the scientific method? - ANSWER: Continue until the data is in
agreement with hypothesis
What is the first thing a forensic scientist should do? - ANSWER: Distinguish evidence
from coincidence
What is the second thing a forensic scientist should do? - ANSWER: Rank alternative
results based on the basic principles in applied sciences
What is the third thing a forensic scientist should do? - ANSWER: Allow for certainty and
probabilistic considerations wherever appropriate through this ranking
What is the fourth thing a forensic scientist should do? - ANSWER: Disallow hypotheses
more extraordinary than facts
What is the fifth thing a forensic scientist should do? - ANSWER: Pursue specific details
What is the sixth thing a forensic scientist should do? - ANSWER: Pursue testing by
addressing smallest logical component of the hypothesis one at a time
What are the opinions of Charles Sander Pierce? - ANSWER: Contrite Fallibilism
What is contrite fallibilism? - ANSWER: The awareness of how much we do not know
and the humility to acknowledge the possibility of making mistakes
Who normally works as private consultants? - ANSWER: Forensic
anthropologists/engineers
What are public laboratories? - ANSWER: Laboratories funded by governments
3
, What are private laboratories? - ANSWER: Businesses designed to make a profit
What do most private laboratories specialize in? - ANSWER: DNA and forensic
toxicology
What is the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner tasked with? - ANSWER: Death
investigations and houses laboratories associated with performing autopsies
What will the office of the Chief Medical Examiner also have? - ANSWER: Toxicology
laboratories to analyze postmortem samples
What do full-service laboratories cover? - ANSWER: DNA, drug analysis, firearms and
toolmarks, trace evidence, fingerprints
What is an example of a full-service laboratory? - ANSWER: FBI Laboratory in Quantico,
Virginia
What is a small branch laboratory? - ANSWER: Laboratory that focuses on one type of
evidence
What are the jobs of a forensic scientist that is also a police officer? - ANSWER: Respond
to crime scenes, process and collect evidence, deliver evidence for further testing
What is accreditation? - ANSWER: A laboratory that agrees to work according to
professional standards and proves that it can and does operate this way
What does accreditation also require? - ANSWER: Re-accreditation on a set schedule
What is certification? - ANSWER: A forensic scientist that has completed a written test
covering their discipline
4
