Fictional forensic science characters portrayed on television, such as the quirky 20-something goth forensic genius, Abby Sciuto, featured on “NCIS,” who seemingly knows everything about everything, and the former pole dancer, Catherine Willows, who serves as the second-in-command criminalist at the Las Vegas Metro Police Department Crime Lab on the show, “CSI,” have captured the viewing public’s collective imagination. However, in reality nothing could be further from the truth.

Dr. Max M. Houck is an internationally-recognized forensic expert with research interests in forensic science, education, and the forensic enterprise and its industries. He has worked in the private sector, the public sector (at a medical examiner's office and for the FBI Laboratory) and in academia. Dr. Houck has published in a wide variety of areas in the field, in books, book chapters, and peer-reviewed journals.

Jason Linville, Ph.D. is the director of the University of Alabama-Birmingham’s Forensic Science program. Linville describes the differences between the media's depiction of forensic science in the media and the reality of the job. He also describes the difference between forensic scientists and crime scene investigators and the best way to gain an education in this field.