The Fire Research Laboratory (FRL) is part of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), an investigative agency within the United States Department of Justice. Located in Beltsville, Maryland, the FRL is an innovative partnership among law enforcement, fire services, public safety agencies, academia and the private sector that uses the most advanced scientific, technical, educational, and training methods to make the ATF and its partners leaders in fire investigation science to serve and protect the public.
The Fire Research Laboratory does the following:
- Conducts scientific research that validates fire scene indicators and improves fire scene reconstruction and fire evidence analysis;
- Supports fire and arson investigations and the resolution of fire related crimes;
- Develops improved investigative and prosecution procedures using scientifically validated methods that integrate the assets of the ATF and its partners to enhance fire investigation personnel expertise;
- Maintains a central repository for fire investigative research data that will be disseminated throughout the fire investigation community;
- Develops an internationally recognized research and education center for the advancement of knowledge, technology transfer and case support related to fire cause investigation and fire scene reconstruction.
Famous quotes containing the words fire, research and/or laboratory:
“I thought it was a wonderfully conceptual act actually, to fire a replica pistol at a figurehead—the guy could have been working for Andy Warhol!”
—J.G. (James Graham)
“One of the most important findings to come out of our research is that being where you want to be is good for you. We found a very strong correlation between preferring the role you are in and well-being. The homemaker who is at home because she likes that “job,” because it meets her own desires and needs, tends to feel good about her life. The woman at work who wants to be there also rates high in well-being.”
—Grace Baruch (20th century)
“For a novelist, a given historic situation is an anthropologic laboratory in which he explores his basic question: What is human existence?”
—Milan Kundera (b. 1929)