Bridget Essing ’22 Presents her

Thesis Research at the 2021 ISHI

Conference

Bridget Essing ’22, recently presented her honors thesis research at the International Symposium on Human Identification (ISHI) held from Sept. 12 – 16 in Orlando, FL. This annual conference brings together professionals from a wide range of companies and crime labs to share perspectives on new technologies, changing policies, and trends forensics. Bridget’s thesis project, under the guidance of Prof. Michael Marciano, seeks to quantify the amount of touch DNA that is deposited on a surface through the process of secondary transfer. The objective of the project is to shed more light on the process of secondary transfer and the possibility of individuals being falsely placed at a scene or within a mixture of DNA profiles. Secondary transfer is quantified by exploiting the sex-chromosomes associated with male and female donors distinguished by the use of fluorescence microscopy.

During the ISHI Conference Bridget received feedback on her project from professionals in the industry which she in using to improve her project with the goal of submitting it for publication in a peer-reviewed journal. Participation in the conference also gave her the opportunity to network and learn a lot about current trends in this field of study.

Bridget was the recipient of an Honors Professional Development grant which made it possible to attend the conference, while her thesis project is funded by an Honors Program Crown Award. To learn more about Honors funding opportunities, please visit the Honors website.