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American heads increasing in size according to scientists

Americans' Heads Have Been Growing, Scientists Say Heads Have Increased By Amount Equivalent To Size Of Tennis Ball, Researchers Say By Elizabeth Landau, CNN   (CNN) -- If you’re American with an average-sized head, your noggin is likely bigger than your ancestor’s was seven generations ago. That's the implication of research by Richard Jantz and colleagues at the Forensic Anthropology Center at the University of Tennessee.The scientists analyzed about 1,500 skulls, dated from various years in the 1800s and 1900s. The researchers focused on Caucasian individuals because there weren't as many skulls from blacks and Hispanics. Although their conclusions are about white Americans, there is no ...

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Palynology

A forensic palynologist is a particular specialism of botany that involves  the study of pollen grains and spores as trace evidence (Walsh and Harrocks, 2003). Any person in the particular vicinity of a plant releasing palynomorphs may acquire them on their clothing, hair, body and in their nostrils, ears and lungs.  The palynological profile can be highly accurate to a specific location and useful in placing people or objects at a scene as well as determining the time of year. The diversity of the palinological profile can vary to within a few meters within the same area. It is possible to retrieve ...

Ultraviolet light search

Ultraviolet light has a number of applications in forensic analysis and search including authenticating paintings, illuminating trace evidence and fingerprints.  It can also be used during a search for skeletal remains. [caption id="attachment_169" align="alignright" width="300" caption="UV fluorescence of burnt bone"][/caption] Ultraviolet light is a form of electromagnetic radiation that has a shorter wavelength (between 10 and 400 nm) than the visible light spectrum and is naturally present in sunlight.  It is used in various ways such as blacklights in bars, sunbeds and portable torches that can be used in forensics. The radiating energy produced from the source will cause a fluorescence in ...

How to get into Forensic Archaeology

If you are interested in and thinking about pursuing a career in forensic archaeology these tips should guide you in the right direction. The first thing you should do is to find out as much information as possible about this field from different sources. This may include search engines, official organisations, university sites, books and journals and talking to people. To get into forensic archaeology you would need to start with studying sciences at school. You would then normally be required to have a science related undergraduate degree (biosciences, forensics or archaeology) and either a masters or phd that can be in ...

Excavation Methods

Once an area of interest has been identified through proper search techniques and often with help of police informants, any artefacts or remains should be excavated in a way that maximises the recovery of such evidence while minimising intrusion.  By nature excavatation is a destructive and unrepeatable event and while there are a number of methods that have been used historically (pedestalling - which in some parts of the world is still used) the most accepted technique used today is stratigraphic excavation. Stratigraphic excavation involves unearthing the various layers of a context (i.e. graves dug on top of one another) in ...

Overuse of the term ‘forensic’

The definition of “forensic” literally means pertaining to the law, however the term has become increasingly overused by the media and consequently the general public.  There are an exhaustible list of techniques from different ologies (read disciplines) such as fingerprinting or archaeological methods that can be used forensically to investigate crimes. Often the term is misused to describe methods or techniques that are not related to a court of law simply because it is cool.  The distorted use of the term has been amplified by the CSI effect and the media in general, adding to the misinterpretation of your average Joe ...

Gunshot Residue “GSR”

Gunshot Residue (GSR) is a type of physical trace evidence that is released when a gun is fired and may directly place an individual at the scene of weapons discharge.  The inorganic particles are typically found on the hands or clothing of people in the environment and are highly durable heavy metals that form part of the ammunition (Schwoeble and Exline, 2000) . GSR could be present on the deceased and on the assailants clothing and may be identifiable even if the body is partly or totally decomposed. Clothing is a good medium for the preservation of GSR and it will ...

Blood Spatter

It may be possible to associate an assailant to a crime if the clothes they are wearing can be tested for blood.  It has been shown that even dried or decomposed blood can be identified with luminol.  Fine blood spatter is likely to occur from high velocity impact generated from a firearm.  It is possible for an assailant to receive blood spatter on their shoes, trousers, and top including the arm that is holding the weapon. The mist like dispersion of blood droplets typical of a high velocity impact is not likely to reach further than about 4 feet and ...

“DNA” trace evidence

The technology for DNA analysis has been greatly improved following the successful mapping of the human genome. Current genetic techniques can determine the identity of an individual with minute amounts of biological material and the approach to genetic sampling and analysis by the forensic pathologist/laboratory worker will depend on the sate of preservation of the remains (Haglund and Sorg, 2002).  It is sometimes possible to gain viable DNA profiles from highly degraded samples that may be old or may have been subjected to outside interference. Post-mortem blood or tissue DNA analysis may be compared to ante-mortem specimen tests where available, to ...

Mass Disasters Investigations and Recovery

[caption id="attachment_624" align="alignright" width="300" caption="www.freedigitalphotos.net"][/caption] A scene of mass fatality such as a train collision, airplane crash or natural disaster can present a number of difficulties due to the fact that debris and evidence may be distributed over a large area. The documentation of scattered remains can often lead to inaccuracies due to the scale and complexity of a scene, often aggravated by the pressures of identifying victims as quickly as possible, determining the cause of the crash and clearing up the scene in order to minimise media intrusion (Dirkmaat et al 2001). Discovering the cause of the crash and victim identification can ...