news

Law/Forensics - 15.05
Almost a quarter of jurors confused about rules on internet use during a trial, according to new research
Almost a quarter of jurors (23 per cent) are unclear about the rules surrounding internet use during a trial, according to preliminary research led by Professor Cheryl Thomas (UCL Laws).

Law/Forensics - 5.04
Investigating child abuse: how interview training really matters
Gathering evidence from children about alleged sex abuse is problematic. Research shows that when ers are trained in a protocol that favours open-ended questions more cases lead to charges and more charges lead to prosecution.  - The quality of forensic ing practices is of utmost importance if the right of both child victims and innocent suspects are to be protected.

Law/Forensics - 10.12.2012
Are jurors influenced by special courtroom measures?
Alleged adult rape victims are not disadvantaged in court if they choose to give evidence behind protective screens or via video links, according to new research. - The study, jointly led by the University of Leeds and University of Nottingham, is the first of its kind in the UK to examine the impact of the use of technology and special measures in adult rape trials on juror decision-making.

Law/Forensics - Life Sciences - 23.08.2012
Menopause evolved to prevent competition between in-laws
The menopause evolved, in part, to prevent competition between a mother and her new daughter-in-law, according to research published today (23 August 2012) in the journal Ecology Letters. - The study - by researchers from the University of Turku (Finland), University of Exeter (UK), University of Sheffield (UK) and Stanford University (US) - explains for the first time why the relationship women had with their daughter-in-laws could have played a key role.

History/Archeology - Law/Forensics - 18.01.2012
Archaeologist reveals evidence of mass graves at Nazi death camp
Almost 70 years after the end of the Second World War a groundbreaking forensic archaeological study by the University of Birmingham has unearthed evidence of hidden burial sites at a former death camp where more than 800,000 Jews perished during the Holocaust.

Pedagogy/Education Science - Law/Forensics - 16.06.2011
Shared parenting legislation not in the interests of children?
Proposed legislation to introduce and enforce a presumption of shared parenting time for separating couples is not in the interests of children, according to a briefing paper published by the Department of Social Policy and Intervention at the University of Oxford.

Law/Forensics - 16.03.2011
Children’s evidence cross-examined
The complex question of how children should give evidence to court – particularly when it could be critical to convicting someone of child abuse – will be the subject of a University of Cambridge conference next month.

Physics/Material Science - Law/Forensics - 29.10.2010
New physics law sheds light on measurement precision
29 October 2010 - New physics law sheds light on measurement precision - Researchers from the University of Sheffield have discovered a new law of physics that determines exactly what it costs to make a measurement with a certain precision.

Law/Forensics - 6.10.2010
Ban on cigarette sales to teens has done little to reduce access to tobacco, study finds
Liverpool, UK - 6 October 2010: Researchers at the University of Liverpool have found that banning under-18s from buying cigarettes has had little impact on young people¿s access to tobacco and large numbers buy cigarettes via strangers.

Medicine/Pharmacology - Law/Forensics - 18.08.2010
Drop in teenage smokers
The number of 16- and 17-year-old smokers has dropped since it became illegal to sell cigarettes to under-18s according to new UCL research published today in the journal Addiction . - In the first study of its kind, more than 1,100 16- and 17-year-olds were interviewed from across England before and after the age rise in October 2007.

Law/Forensics - 14.06.2010
Guidance on cross-examination improves accuracy of witness testimony
Liverpool, UK - 15 June 2010: Researchers have found that witnesses who receive guidance on cross-examination techniques present more accurate court testimony than those who are unfamiliar with the style of questioning.

Law/Forensics - History/Archeology - 20.05.2010
Fighting for our right to debate
PhD student Jay Stone (UCL MRC Laboratory for Molecular Cell Biology) discusses the implications for science of the current inequities in British libel law. - In science, healthy debate and discussion of each other's work is crucial.

History/Archeology - Law/Forensics - 26.01.2010
Lost Roman law code discovered in London
Simon Corcoran and Benet Salway made the breakthrough after piecing together 17 fragments of previously incomprehensible parchment. The fragments were being studied at UCL as part of the Arts & Humanities Research Council-funded ‘Projet Volterra' ? a ten-year study of Roman law in its full social, legal and political context.

Law/Forensics - Philosophy - 14.05
Creativity that counts
In a digital world, literature, art and music are often the result of collaborative efforts. But who owns what, and can copyright law cope? New research aims to find out. - Authorship remains an important concept in the digital age, though there is real diversity in its meaning.

Administration/Government - Law/Forensics - 19.07.2012
Efforts to nip crime in bud hampered by lack of co-ordination
Efforts to tackle anti-social behaviour among young people are being undermined by a lack of joined-up working and the inability of organisations to collect appropriate data and share information. - Research published today by the University of Leeds shows that a considerable amount of work is being done across the country to address anti-social behaviour among young people and to stop behaviour escalating into serious crime.