William M. Bass

William Marvin Bass III is an American forensic anthropologist whose research on human osteology and the process of human decomposition has supported identification efforts by numerous law enforcement agencies across the United States. In 1981, while a professor at the University of Tennessee, Bass founded the Anthropological Research Facility, an outdoor site where donated human bodies are left to decompose under varied, controlled conditions so that researchers can systematically study decomposition timelines and their relationship to factors such as climate, burial and exposure, the first facility of its kind in the world. The facility became widely known by the nickname the Body Farm, a term popularized by novelist Patricia Cornwell in a book inspired by Bass's work. Bass has since co-authored a memoir, Death's Acre, and a series of detective novels with journalist Jon Jefferson under the joint pen name Jefferson Bass.