Podcast
Double Loop Podcast
Hosted by Glenn Langenburg and Eric Ray · EN
Whether you're a practicing Latent Print Examiner or you're interested in forensics and true crime, the Double Loop Podcast is a weekly show featuring Glenn Langenburg and Eric Ray discussing latent print topics, current events in forensic science, the newest research articles, interesting guests, and analysis of notable cases from a forensic scientist perspective.
23episodes
Episodes
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Episode 285 - Michael Whyte Interview - Latent to Latent Comparisons
Aug 12, 202501:08:18Tap to summarizeIn this episode, the guys start with a product-based Mandela effect question. Then they welcome back long-time friend of the show and webmaster, Michael Whyte from the New South Wales police force in Australia. Michael has a question for Glenn and Eric, regarding latent-to-latent comparisons, using latent prints as 'proxy exemplars' when the exemplars are worse than the latent prints or incomplete, and various off-shoots of these questions. The guys discuss the theoretical basis and some of the legal issues that arise in both the U.S. and Australia.
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Episode 284 - Black Box '22 - Part 2 (with Brendan Max)
Jul 28, 202501:28:36Tap to summarizeIn this episode, Eric stumps Glenn with a geography based Mandela Effect question. Then the guys welcome their guest commentator, Brendan Max, Public Defender and Chief of the Forensic Science Division in Chicago, Illinois. Eric, Glenn, and Brendan take a second look at the 2025 FBI/Noblis follow-up black box study for latent fingerprints. The guys had previously done a cursory review of the paper in Episode 282, and now wanted to dig in a bit into the appendices and take another look at some trends. Brendan offers his insights and shows that he’s pretty proficient with a spreadsheet too! The guys go back and forth discussing the strengths and limitations of the study and where the methodology and practice has likely improved since the original Black Box study (conducted in 2009). Article is available for free at: doi.org/10.1016/j.forsciint.2025.112457
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Episode 283 - DNA & Patterns
May 26, 202501:09:34Tap to summarizeGlenn Langenburg and Eric Ray review two articles from Cell that focus on the genetic basis for ridge development and pattern formation. 'The developmental basis of fingerprint pattern formation and variation' by Glover, et al., and 'Limb development genes underlie variation in human fingerprint patterns' by Li, et al. Our understanding of these complex processes continues to grow, and these papers further support our field and our conclusions.
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Episode 282 - Noblis-FBI Black Box 2 Fingerprint Study
May 10, 202501:22:36Tap to summarizeIn this episode, Glenn and Eric start with a quick game of “A Truth, A Lie, and a Mandella Effect”. Then they pose a question from a listener regarding interest in a forum where listeners can go and discuss the episodes of the show, ask questions, and chat “amongst themselves”. Finally they get to the long awaited Noblis/FBI study “Black Box 2” latent fingerprint error rate study. This is a re-do of the 2011 black box study for latent fingerprint performance. This study “Accuracy and reproducibility of latent print decisions on comparisons from searches of an automated fingerprint identification system” by Hicklin, Richetelli, Taylor and Buscaglia (For Sci Intl, 370 (2025), 112457), reported the performance of 156 U.S. latent print examiner participants each reviewing about 100 latent prints/comparisons resulting in over 14,000 trials. The study reports numerous statistics of performance such as sensitivity (63%), specificity (70%), false positive error rate (0.2%), and false negative error rate (4.2%). The guys also discuss some important study design differences, plus there are a lot of data in the appendices. Finally they talk about the number of false positives made in the study (n=23) and the fact that 13 of those 23 were made by one participant and how that impacted the results. Article is available for free at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.forsciint.2025.112457
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Episode 281 Kasey Wertheim Tribute
Apr 6, 202501:01:15Tap to summarizeEric Ray and Glenn Langenburg pay tribute to our colleague and friend. Kasey Wertheim passed away on March 7, 2025 and will be greatly missed. Please join us as we remember his legacy and contributions to the field of fingerprints and tell a few personal stories.
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Episode 280 - Pat Wertheim Tribute
Mar 21, 202501:17:20Tap to summarizeEric Ray and Glenn Langenburg pay tribute to our mentor and friend. Pat Wertheim recently passed and will be greatly missed. Please join us as we remember his legacy and tell a few stories.
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Episode 275 - 2024 IAI Conference: The Reno Recap
Nov 1, 2024Tap to summarizeThe guys start out with a quick explanation of why Glenn’s sound is so bad (he’s in Switzerland recording). They also start the new “season”, post-IAI with a new game: "Truth, Lie, or Mandela Effect?" Eric talks about his fall conference junket and then the guys finally catch up on the IAI. They discuss their favorite lectures, workshops, and activities at the 2024 IAI Conference in Reno, NV. They summarize some of their standout lectures that they attended. Glenn then discusses how the Double Loop Podcast vendor booth went with Rebecca Coutant running it during the conference. Rebecca also was “Our Girl Friday”, doing her impromptu interviews with conference attendees.
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Episode 268 - Steve Johnson Interview
Mar 21, 2024Tap to summarizeEric Ray and Glenn Langenburg sit down for a chat with Steve Johnson about face examiners, face comparisons, and the IAI. Steve's background includes latent prints, forensic art, face comparison, crime scene, and many positions with the IAI. He shares the future of the face discipline and how the IAI is working towards a certification process.
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Episode 259 - The 2023 IAI Conference
Sep 22, 2023Tap to summarizeEric and Glenn share their adventures at the 2023 International Association for Identification conference held in August in National Harbor, MD in the Washington D.C. area. They discuss various lectures and workshops they attended. They also discuss Becca running the Double Loop Podcast “merch” booth and this year’s hot selling fingerprint tee-shirt. Becca interviews several attendees and gets some of the international flavor that is so much a part of each IAI annual conference.
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Episode 239 - 2021 IAI Conference
Sep 27, 2021Tap to summarizeReturn with Glenn and Eric to the IAI Conference in Nashville, TN. The guys are joined by Josh Connelly, Kurt Aebersold, JP Rodriguez, and Claudine Carter Pereira. New accuracy studies, open field research, and stat talk. And we're already looking forward to next year's conference in Nebraska!
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