Monday, July 28, 2003

Why Experts Need Cojones

It can be staggering, the lore from my own profession of which I am ignorant.

It is alleged, at hookedonfacts.com, that it's called "testimony" because the ancient Romans would swear an oath by placing their hands on their testicles. At first, this sounds too good a story to be true, but cursory etymological investigation lends it some semblance of plausibility.

Another incidental factoid from the same source: "The fingerprints of koala bears are virtually indistinguishable from those of humans, so much so that they could be confused at a crime scene."

The source for both propositions, and apparently for all putative facts recited at the site, is listed as: "Verified." Sounds bulletproof to me.

posted by pn at 11:52 PM  

Fed. R. Evid. 702: If scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge will assist the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue, a witness qualified as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience, training, or education, may testify thereto in the form of an opinion or otherwise, if (1) the testimony is based upon sufficient facts or data, (2) the testimony is the product of reliable principles and methods, and (3) the witness has applied the principles and methods reliably to the facts of the case.