Understand how digital evidence goes from a crime scene to court by participating in our investigation

Step into the shoes of law enforcement, analysts, lawyers, forensic practitioners and journalists, as you navigate a fictional case in this interactive Curious workshop.

Working together in teams with other attendees, you will each take on different professional roles to gain a better understanding of who does what at a crime scene, and how evidence is recovered and handled. You’ll have the help of experts on hand, plus digital tools, to see how investigations come together in the courtroom and how a charge and conviction may be reached.

This event involves collaborating in groups, speaking in groups, and feeding back your thoughts and questions to the room.

The fictional scenario at the centre of this workshop is based on research from the Clarus EU project, which aims to improve the quality, impartiality and reliability of digital forensic science.

This event is suitable for ages 16+.

Important points to note

This event is suitable for age 16+

Event format: This event is a workshop and may involve some audience interaction. This could involve group activities, individual activities, quizzes or hands-on activities.

Content warning: This workshop will discuss a fictional crime involving a suspected homophobic hate crime.

Filming: Photography may take place at this event. Please let a member of the RSE Public Engagement team know if you do not want to be photographed.

SPEAKER

Professor Megan O’Neill

Professor of Criminology, University of Dundee

Megan O’Neill is a Professor of Criminology at the University of Dundee. Her work focuses on aspects of police culture, stop and search, community policing, public sector pluralisation in policing, technology in policing and surveillance practices of the state. She has published in several journals, including The European Journal of Criminology, The British Journal of Criminology, Criminology and Criminal Justice, Policing and Society and Policing: A journal of policy and practice. She has published two monographs: Policing Football (2005) and Police Community Support Officers (2019). She is the Scientific Lead for the EU-funded project, Clarus. Prof O’Neill’s work is largely qualitative, with a particular focus on ethnography, and blends theoretically informed research with applications for developing policing practice.

SPEAKER

Dr Amy Long

Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University of Dundee

Amy Long is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow and doctoral graduate at the University of Dundee. Her work sits across both Psychology and Human Geography, with a particular focus on policing practice, vulnerability, and the role of technology in policing systems. Her PhD thesis drew on ethnographic fieldwork to explore how police perceive success when a person is reported missing. Amy has to-date researched on several trans-national policing projects, including ‘Eyes Online’ which examined accountability and legitimacy of online surveillance by the state, and the follow-up impact and dissemination project ‘Embedding Ethics by Design in the Policing of Digital Futures in Scotland’. Amy undertakes all UK data collection for Clarus and is lead author for the cross-national report on practitioner perceptions of digital evidence systems.

SPEAKER

Ailsa Mackintosh

Online Learning Developer at the Leverhulme Research Centre for Forensic Science, University of Dundee

Ailsa Mackintosh is an Online Learning Developer at the Leverhulme Research Centre for Forensic Science at the University of Dundee. Her work focuses on making complex research accessible and engaging for a wide range of audiences through online learning, public engagement, and creative communication approaches.

As part of the EU-funded Clarus project, Ailsa leads the development of a public-facing Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) exploring digital evidence, communication, and bias in forensic and investigative contexts. She also coordinates the project's international Citizen Juries, working with members of the public across multiple countries to explore complex questions around digital evidence and justice.

SPEAKER

Dr Heather Doran

Public Engagement Manager at the Leverhulme Research Centre for Forensic Science, University of Dundee

SPEAKER

Clara Morriss

Public Engagement Coordinator at the Leverhulme Research Centre for Forensic Science, University of Dundee

About the Curious festival

The RSE’s free Curious festival of knowledge is back, from Saturday 5 − Sunday 13 September 2026!

Curious is Scotland’s annual festival of knowledge. Across its seven-year history, Curious has welcomed over 10,000 attendees into its yearly programme of talks, workshops, discussions and exhibitions – all covering different topics and subject areas. There’s no need for you to have any prior specialist knowledge before coming along, just bring your curious self! With plenty of events both in person and online, you can take part from a

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