Determining if a fire is accidental or due to arson is a process often plagued by poorly understood science, subjective judgments on the part of investigators and inadequately trained personnel, according to a new AAAS report on the quality of fire investigation in the United States.

Disbanding an independent forensic science commission could jeopardize advances that have helped reinforce the reliability of forensic evidence.

Scientists have recovered the first ancient human DNA from cave sediments lacking human skeletal remains.