One of Northern Michigan University’s most unique programs involves the study of death, which although can be morbid to some people, is essential to scientific research.

The Center for Forensic Anthropology at NMU, which includes the Forensic Research Outdoor Station, recently received a $30,000 National Institute of Justice subaward from Colorado State University to help validate a novel method for estimating human time since death, or postmortem interval.

NMU students will be involved in the research, the university said.

The research is a collaboration between NMU Associate Professor of Biology Josh Sharp and CFA Director Jane Harris. Their job is to take samples of bacteria, fungi, and protozoa — known as the microbiome — from donors and the surrounding soil to see how human decomposition affects the soil microbiome.

“There’s a lot that we don’t know about how the decomposition process changes over time,” Sharp said in a news release. “That’s what the current research is trying to address: What changes over time in the microbe-population during the decomposition process, and are those changes predictable? Are there certain bacteria, for example, that show up at certain times?”

Those can be clues for forensic investigations, he said, and could add another tool to help make some of those measurements of the time following death more precise.

NMU said it was chosen to receive the subaward because FROST is one of only two human taphonomy research facilities in a northern climate. A facility in Quebec, Canada, also received a grant — an important fact since the original test sites were in states such as Tennessee and Texas that have much warmer climates than the Upper Peninsula.

Taphonomy, by the way, deals with the processes of fossilization.

Harris indicated that studies like this are important to carry out in multiple regions to determine whether what they are seeing in the soil is universal or if it is different in different climates or regions. She said FROST is in a region that experiences long periods of cold temperatures and receives substantial annual snow accumulation, making it unique among the U.S.-based taphonomy facilities.

The $30,000 grant, NMU said, will be used for various research purposes, including the purchase of personal protection equipment such as gloves, gowns and masks, and testing equipment necessary for taking samples over the course of 21 days and across multiple sites.

Some funds will support student research time, plus there is a need to travel to conferences and ship samples back to CSU so that the other labs with which FROST collaborates can easily share their information with each other and streamline the research process.

This type of project is expected to involve students in research, and as many educators will tell you, hands-on experience complements augments book learning in the classroom.

We are glad to see the CFA getting this award to further research in such a fascinating field.