Forensic science is the application of scientific elements in crime cases. The concept of forensic science revolves around the need to gather, analyse and decrypt evidence that can be used to solve a crime.
The identification of fingerprints is a basic forensic procedure. Each individual has their own set of unique fingerprints. Matching fingerprints however, can be difficult.
Do you want to know what your fingerprints look like? If so, see the procedure experiment to become your very own forensic scientist.
Fingerprints can be left on any item that you touch, for example if you are viewing this on a smartphone you are currently leaving fingerprints on your screen. Tilt the top of your device towards the floor and look to see if you left any evidence on your screen.
DNA analysis is another example of a forensic procedure. Forensic scientists will attempt to match the DNA left at the crime scene with the DNA of their suspects. DNA can come from lots of different places for example, DNA is found in the blood, saliva, hair and skin molecules and many other places. One
problem with using DNA as evidence is that if you test your evidence multiple different times the DNA itself can become inefficient in making a match as the DNA is diminishing.
Forensic dentistry is one of the most accurate methods for identifying an individual. This involves looking at individual’s dental records and matching them to the teeth of a suspect or victim. This method would be used, for example, if the individual was a burn victim and had no identifiable DNA left.
Teeth although easily decayed in life are actually some of the last elements of the body to decay when you die. Therefore, forensic dentistry can be very useful in the identification process.
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