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Call for Papers NEW JOURNAL
Computer Enhanced Spectroscopy An international journal of instrumental methods, techniques and developments in all fields of computer-related spectroscopy and chromatography/ spectroscopy. EDITORS UK and Rest of World: Dr. H.A. Willis (ICI L t d . , Petrochemicals and Plastics Division). Editorial Office: Computer Enhanced Spectroscopy, Spectrum House, Hillview Gardens, London NW4 2JQ, England. USA: Dr. George Levy, Syracuse University, Dept. of Chemistry, Bowne Hall, New Y o r k , N Y 13210, USA. Supported by an international board.
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AIMS A N D SCOPE This timely journal will be essentially practical in nature and is designed as a communications medium for the laboratory scientist. The content will centre on minicomputers and microcomputers, their applications in the control and operation of spectrometers and the acquisition and evaluation of data, the relevant software and user-developed programs, the associated hardware and the manmachine interface. Papers on more sophisticated computers and spectrometers will also be welcome, especially where the implications will be beneficial across a broader range. A strict refereeing system is applied to all submitted material.
PUBLICATION DETAILS Frequency: Six issues (one volume) per annum Subscription Price: Institutional/Library rate: $ 1 1 0 / £ 5 0 / D M 2 3 0 (post free). Private individual subscriber rate: $ 6 0 / £ 2 7 / D M 1 2 5 (post free). A fully detailed prospectus is available on request.
HEYDEN Journals Department, Heyden & Son L t d . , Spectrum House, Hillview Gardens, London NW4 2JQ., England. Tel: 01-203 5171 Telex: 28303
If one examines the critical research needs of the profession, one finds that the most essential element is a core of qualified personnel.
has acquired basic scientific concepts with an emphasis on forensic science applications; and perhaps more important, he has developed a forensic science ethic or way of thinking which is unique to this particular profession (2)." Ironically, possession of a forensic science degree is not a requirement at the largest crime lab in the country, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The FBI hires mostly MS scientists, though BS scientists with industrial experience the bureau needs are also considered. "We prefer a person with a good strong background in basic chemistry and physics, as opposed to a person with a forensic science degree," says Thomas F. Kelleher, Jr., an FBI assistant director. The FBI does give its people the opportunity to attend GWU's MS program in forensic science after they are hired, however. There is also some disagreement about the merits of field internships. In the 1976 study by Peterson and De Forest (2), five of the 11 graduate programs and 11 of the 15 undergraduate programs responding to their survey had some type of internship program with a working crime laboratory. Seven of these internship programs were elective and nine were mandatory for graduation. Peterson and De Forest believe that "internships are an essential part of forensic science education programs . . . . They should be mandatory for all undergraduates and for graduates who lack practical experience." George Washington University provides internship opportunities for its students with agencies such as the U.S. Secret Service or the Virginia Bureau of Forensic Science, but internship is not a degree requirement. "We recognize internships as training, not graduate education," explains Charles O'Rear, professor and chairman of the department of forensic sci-
CIRCLE 97 ON READER SERVICE CARD 450 A · ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY, VOL. 54, NO. 3, MARCH 1982
ences at GWU. "We strongly recommend it, unless it comes at the expense of graduate education. We feel you should get your education in academia. There's plenty of time to get field experience later." According to O'Rear, the job opportunities in forensic chemistry are there. "When a lab calls asking if we have a student to recommend for them, we often have to say no, since many of our students have job opportunities lined up well before they graduate." Bober complains that there are not enough trained people in the field, and decries the fact that only a handful of people get MS and D. Crim. degrees in forensic chemistry in any one year. There are concerns about the growth of the field over the next few years, however. Rampant inflation and growing fiscal conservatism have already eaten away at support levels. "As we enter the 1980s, federal dollars for crime laboratory services are increasingly harder to come by," wrote Richard Saferstein in 1979. "I am not forecasting a massive shutdown of crime laboratories, for I am confident that we will continue to receive sufficient funding to support our existence. But to exist is not to flourish. When priorities must be set in the light of limited resources we as scientists have come to expect that research and development become expendable. If this comes to pass, the prospect for meaningful growth during the next decade is limited ( i ) . " Forensic science as an academic discipline has experienced strong growth in the past decade. Now these programs are struggling to consolidate their gains in light of state and federal belt tightening and straitened fiscal circumstances for most universities. As Peterson and De Forest wrote in 1976, "Forensic science faces no problem more pressing than the education and training of the scientists who staff the nation's forensic science laboratories. If one examines the critical research needs of the profession, the shortage of truly qualified laboratory scientists and supervisors, or the crisis of overwhelming case loads and backlogs, one finds that the most essential element in satisfying these needs is a core of scientifically qualified personnel (2)." This need remains as strong today as ever. Stuart A. Borman References
(1) Saferstein, Richard. J. Forensic Sci. 1979,24 (4), 925-30. (2) Peterson, J. L.; De Forest, P. R. J. Forensic Sci. 1977,22 (1), 17-33.
