forensics
-
Scientists Can Now Establish Your Gender From A Fingerprint
Fingerprints may be unique, but without an existing record they can’t help identify a person. Now, though, researchers can use chemical analysis of the prints to identify the gender of whoever left them behind.
-
The Large-Scale Forensics That Reconstructed The Attack On Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17
15 months after Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 was shot down, a group of experts convened by the Netherlands have finished studying the crash. Their report explains what happened, and gives us a glimpse at the advanced technical forensics they used to painstakingly recreate the attack.
-
How A Forensic Scientist Uses Dirt To Solve Murders
Stuck to the bottom of your shoe is humble dirt that gives away where you’ve been and what you’ve been up to. It’s up to science to figure out it out. Nature has a fascinating profile of forensic geologist Lorna Dawson, who has used soil to solve decades-old cold cases.
-
Electron Microscopes Can Reveal Filed-Off Serial Numbers
To make it difficult for law enforcement to trace stolen cars or weapons, thieves will usually grind off their metal vehicle identification numbers or serial numbers. And while techniques for trying to recover those numbers do exist, they’re not as accurate as a new method developed by researchers at the National Institute of Standards and…