forensics [English]


Syndetic Relationships

InterPARES Definition

n. ~ The use of scientific techniques to examine, gather (or recover), and analyze information in a way that maintains its integrity.

General Notes

Developed in large part to gather evidence during investigations of potential criminal activity, forensics can be used in other contexts to more fully understand the nature of materials being studied for a wide range of purposes.

Other Definitions

  • Black's 9th 2009 (†382 p. 721): forensics ~ 1. The art of argumentative discourse. – 2. The branch of law enforcement dealing with legal evidence relating to firearms and ballistics. forensic linguistics ~ The science or technique that evaluates the linguistic characteristics of written oral communications, usu. to determine authorship. forensic medicine ~ The branch of medicine that established or interprets evidence using scientific or technical facts, such as ballistics.

Citations

  • American Forensics 2017 (†880 ): "Forensics" is a word rooted in the Western world's classical experience. The Greeks organized contests for speakers that developed and recognized the abilities their society felt central to democracy. These exercises acquired the title "forensics," derived from the Latin term for ensis and closely related to forum. Because the training in this skill of public advocacy, including the development of evidence, found one of its important venues in the law courts, the term "forensic" has also become associated with the art and science of legal evidence and argument. [The American Forensic Association] researches and trains in the earlier and more global skills of argument and public advocacy. (†2643)
  • CNSS-4009 (†730 p.31): The practice of gathering, retaining, and analyzing computer-related data for investigative purposes in a manner that maintains the integrity of the data. (†1729)