Exculpatory (free from guilt or blame) materials must be disclosed through discovery to the defense counsel by the prosecution when the defendant is to be tried for a crime: From Brady versus Maryland, 373 U.S. 83 (1963), in which the Supreme Court ruled that suppression by the prosecution of evidence favorable to a defendant who has requested it, known as the Brady material, violates due process.

An interdisciplinary field involving the properties of matter and its applications to various areas of science, technology, and engineering: Material science is the study of the functioning, nature, and use of matter or stuff that can be used in technology and science.