So you're into sci fi? But what about sci fact? Sometimes fact is stranger than fiction...

Each month our very own Voyager Science Queen* will bring you interesting, quirky and downright bizarre tid bits from the world of science. And its all completely, totally, 100% true!

October Sci-Facts

The science of Forensics is the application of scientific or medical techniques to the investigation of a crime. This is usually the method used in determining a cause of death in homicide investigations. Come on, most of you will have heard of ‘Quincy’, since he is being replayed on some cable channels. These days, we also have ‘CSI’ and numerous detective books based on the hunt for criminal evidence. Of course, real-life forensic investigators don’t have Quincy’s run of luck, or a faithful Sam to pull some obscure fact out of the air. Instead, they are highly specialised scientists or medical examiners; after all, there is more than one branch of forensics.

Cut to the bone

“…All scattered in the bottom of the sea.
Some lay in dead men’s skulls; and in those holes
Where eyes did once inhabit, there were crept
As ’twere in scorn of eyes, reflecting gems,
That wooed the slimy bottom of the deep,
And mocked the dead bones that lay scattered there”
Shakespeare “Richard III”

When bones are discovered, they aren’t necessarily going to be human. One rib looks pretty much like another, to the untrained eye. But bones are highly identifiable, you can even predict age and sex from a person’s skeletal remains with the proper education; for a start, children have more bones than adults. And again, a woman’s bones are smooth and gracile while a man’s bones are knobbly and robust, due to the general differences in musculature between the sexes. A forensic bone specialist will be able to help identify remains, particularly if the skull and jaws of the skeleton are discovered.
And they may be able to provide a cause-of-death. Bones will carry the marks of a knife, and the fragile bones and cartilage of the throat will reveal if the victim was strangled. If the poor soul was bludgeoned to death, the evidence of this brutality was definitely be echoed in their skeletal remains.
Even bone fragments can still reveal much about the individual and their demise. Bones are tough, so tough that burning or crushing can’t completely destroy them. Even after cremation, the ‘ashes’ of the deceased will contain enough bone and dental fragments to identify the ‘ashes’ as human. If the deceased had fillings, metal pins, or other artificial additions – such as metal hips - these will also persist in a recognisable form.

Blood will tell

“Deliver me from blood-guiltiness, O God”
The Common Book of Prayer

“Here’s the smell of the blood still: all the perfumes of
Arabia will not sweeten this little hand.”
Shakespeare “Macbeth”

Blood is one of the most useful substances in a murder investigation. There are reagents that can identify and locate blood traces, and then further tests can be used to tell what blood type was the sample. These tests are used to identify both perpetrators and victims.
The spatter pattern of individual drops of blood can provide clues. A drop of blood will create a different splash when dropped from walking or running person, than from someone standing or lying down. As well, the varying force of a blow may spray blood high up onto walls and ceilings. Of course, the amount of blood at a crime site can give a fair indication of whether the victim is alive or not, even if the victim is no longer present.

Excretions and Secretions

“Thus they were stained with their own works;”
The Common Book of Prayer

“Slow, slow, fresh fount, keep time with my salt tears:”
Ben Jonson “Cynthia’s Revels”

Some people are ‘secretors’, which means they are among the majority of individuals that secrete cells into their tears, saliva and other body fluids. These cells are invaluable to DNA-testing. Any secretions, left at the site of a crime, are used for identification, and one of the most useful substances is semen. Viable semen contains cells, as sperm are cells, but a vasectomy will not remove all the cells from a seminal emission, as the seminal fluid contains more than just sperm cells.
Hair is great stuff, as we shed it all the time. The structure of your hair is highly variable, and can be nearly as good as a fingerprint when used for identification. Hair from any part of your body can be used. Pubic hairs are often left as evidence of a rape. If you have ever watched the movie ‘Gattaca’, you will have seen where the protagonist is given much trouble by an eyelash. Don’t think that technology is that far behind the fiction.
Hair will contain traces of toxins and poisons, particularly if the poisons are delivered over a period of time. This is also a good method for detecting environmental toxins. Arsenic can be detected readily from hair samples, and hair samples have been used to solve murders fobbed off as food poisoning.

The truth is out there

“Truth will come to light; murder cannot be hid long.”
Shakespeare “The Merchant of Venice”

Everyone knows about fingerprints, but these days a criminal can be convicted by a footprint, a hand print, and even bite marks; anything can be used to link the criminal back to the crime. (In one case, the dental work of a murderer was linked to a half-gnawed apple.) Investigators work on the concept that the perpetrator will not only leave clues at the crime site, but will tend to take evidence of his (or her) presence away with them, such as: soil, fabric fibres, paint flecks, plant matter.
For example, say that the fibres from a suspected murderer’s socks are found at a crime site. Police investigators may fossick though the suspect’s laundry, shoes and sock drawer, and match soil samples from the crime site to the residual dirt recovered from all three places. This isn’t enough evidence to cement a conviction, but it will place the suspect in the vicinity of the crime. It is part of the body of evidence that will be used to prove their guilt or innocence.

Innocent until proven guilty

“Happy is he born and taught
That serveth not another’s will;
Whose armour is his honest thought,
And simple truth his utmost skill”
Sir Henry Wolton “The Character of a Happy Life”

Forensic experts are often seen as ghouls, trying to dig up (literally and figuratively) the dirt on a suspect. It must be remembered that evidence works both ways, that the investigators may also confirm someone is innocent of a crime. I see them as seekers of the truth. And the truth can set you free.

*The Voyager Science Queen is also known as Lynne Green

So, who is this woman who attempts to entertain us with Science?

Well, I really am a scientist. I have a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Queensland, in Zoology. And, at the moment, I am working in a Pathology laboratory.

I have always been intensely curious about every aspect of our universe, from the teeny tiny workings of the gene right up to the mind-bending forces that are twisting and knotting inside a blackhole. So, now I am sharing a brain stuffed full of trivia…and hopefully entertaining people at the same time.

As well, I write Fantasy stories and novels. One day, I hope to have a book published, but don't hold your breath. Reading is my other major love, and my favourite authors are Terry Pratchett and Isaac Asimov, though I could list hundreds of others. If I had one wish, I ask for more time to write!

Read previous Sci-Facts:

A Grab Bag of Facts
Bits and Bobs
Australian Achievements
Getting Your Attention
May Sci-Facts
After the Big Bang
The Big Bang
Ashes to ashes; Dust to dust
Twists in the tale
Robots in the Swim and other things
The Tachyon and other things

Looking for more scientific oddities? Have you checked out Dr Steven Juan's website? He is, quite literally, the wizard of odds!

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