New fingerprint technique

One America’s Most Wanted murders case’s is now under the investigation of the Northamptonshire Police, and one of the top forensic scientists and the University of Leicester. A United States detective is to bring the brass shell casings from a doorstep shooting now known ass the Marianne Wilkinson murder case, which is currently on the America’s Most Wanted website.
Detective Tony Roten, from the Crimes Against Persons Section of the North Richland Hills Police in Texas, is the man who will be delivering the casings. Detective Roten is hoping that Dr. John Bond’s new forensic technique will help to solve the murder investigation. Dr. Bond developed this technique at the University of Leicester Forensic Research Centre. Dr. Bond was able to develop a technique that allows scientists to visualize fingerprints even after the print itself has been removed. Bond put together a study that observes the way fingerprints can corrode metal surfaces. This technique can enhance a fingerprint on a shell that has been already fired, to make it look like it did before it was fired.
The Marianne Wilkinson murder case revolves around the killing of a 68 year old woman, who was killed as she answered her door at around 7:30 at night on December 9 or 2007. Police have been investigating whether it was just an instance of mistaken indentity, or if the 68 year old woman was actually the intended target. However so far, the case is still unsolved.

'America's Most Wanted' Murder Case To Be Investigated By Pioneering UK Forensic Scientist

Dr John Bond, Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Leicester Forensic Research Centre and Scientific Support Manager at Northamptonshire Police, has created a way to visualize fingerprints even after the fingerprint itself has been removed from a surface. He has also developed a method to detect detailed fingerprints off of metal surfaces that have undergone high heat and explosions. Even more amazingly, Dr Bond recently worked with a US police force to find latent prints on bullets fired almost a decade ago. His technique can also be used to find fingerprints on bombs that have been exploded. It is currently being used in Afghanistan to help find people who set up road-side bombs. With this, Dr. Bond has revolutionized the detection of fingerprints.

Forgotten But Not Gone: How The Brain Re-learns

Scientists at the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology have been able to show that new cell contacts established during a learning process stay put, even when they are no longer required. The reactivation of this temporarily inactivated "stock of contacts" enables a faster learning of things forgotten. To learn something, nerve cells make new connections with each other.  Whenever a special point of contact, called synapse, forms at the end of the appendage, information can be transferred from one cell to the next - and new information is learned. Once the contact breaks down, we forget what we have learned. Everything seems to point to the fact that when we forget, synapses are only disabled, but not physically removed. Many of the appendages that develop between nerve cells are thus maintained and facilitate later relearning. This insight is crucial to our understanding of the fundamental processes of learning and memory. 

Fingerprints Prove to Do More Than Simply Identify

It turns out that fingerprints can now be used not only to determine someone’s identity, but also what materials the individual had recently been holding. Scientists are able to use a program that provides an image of the chemical structure of the fingerprint, a characteristic that is extremely specific to each fingerprint. This is useful in a crime scene because it can serve as evidence that a suspect had touched the possible weapon used.

Furthermore, forensic scientists have developed a new method of fingerprint analysis that allows them to separate multiple fingerprints that overlap. Demian R. Ifa explains, "By looking for compounds we know to be present in a certain fingerprint, we can separate it from the others and obtain a crystal clear image of that fingerprint. The image could then be used with fingerprint recognition software to identify an individual." The process uses mass spectrometry, a technique that turns molecules into ions so that their masses can then be analyzed. They spray a stream of water in the presence of electrical fields, creating positively charged water droplets. These water droplets are then put onto the material being tested and the ion is transferred to the sample.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/08/080807144246.htm

Video Enhancement of Facial Images

The article I read had to do with new forensic technology which enables investigators to better determine an individual's identity by viewing video surveillance recordings.  Prior to new technology, it was often very difficult to determine an exact identity from security cameras, as they are often in black and white, and very fuzzy.  However, currently they are able to use Adobe Photoshop to make images clearer, and forensic artists can use the light and dark spots on the face in the recordings to determine actual features.  Facial anatomy awareness, as well as computer programs, can be used to make surveillance recordings more accurate.  Most computer programs are available for medium- and large-sized police task forces, and even some small criminal investigation offices.  When used in collaboration with artists who understand light and dark, as well as facial anatomy, suspect sketches may be composed from video recordings that were previously thought to be useless.

Study Finds ADHD Affects Motor Skills of Boys More Than Girls

New research shows that ADHA affects boys’ motor skills more than girls. Examining age-related improvement of motor skills in children with and without ADHD, researchers from the Kennedy Krieger Institute found that girls with ADHD and their typically developing peers were more likely to be able to control their movements compared to boys with ADHD. MRI studies shows that boys with ADHD have decreased activities in the brain. E. Mark Mahone, Ph.D., ABPP said that "These findings suggest that sex-related differences in children with ADHD extend beyond symptom presentation to development of motor control". The female brain matures earlier than the male brain.

http://www.brightsurf.com/news/headlines/41340/Study_Finds_ADHD_Affects_Motor_Skills_of_Boys_More_Than_Girls.html

WORLD BRIEFING | ASIA; Thailand: Powerful Gas Used In Protests, Study Finds

Over the past few days, a handful of Thai anti-government protestors have died from unexplained, sudden causes. Numerous more have experienced their limbs and feet exploding. Studies by forensics experts and a human rights commission confirmed that a police squad had intentionally used three types of tear gas (American, Spanish, and Chinese), in order to subsidize the crowd during the protest. However, Pornthip Rojanasand, director of the Central Institute of Forensic Science, insists that the police relied heavily on the tear gas made from China. Tests proved that the Chinese tear gas contained high levels of RDX, an explosive commonly used in bombs, and powerfully enough to rip craters in the ground. Diagnoticians are now trying to aid the wounded and exposed protestors to remove the RDX from their systems, but remain unsure whether they will be successful.

http://query.nytimes.co/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E06EFD8143AF937A25753C1A96E9C8B63&scp=4&sq=Forensics&st=nyt

Forensic breakthrough takes top prize

Auckland University PhD student Claire French has recently discovered a new forensics technique that could potentially help solve sex crimes. What she discovered was a method of identifying whether cell samples collected for DNA testing come from the skin, the mouth or the vagina. Currently, DNA from such cells found at a crime scene can link a person to the crime but cannot provide evidence about which part of the body the cells came from. The technique, involves staining epithelial cells to reveal different colours, providing an indicator of the cells' origins. Police national forensic services adviser, Inspector John Walker, commented on her discovery calling it groundbreaking, "It's not uncommon in a case of sexual violation to have a situation where the prosecution alleges one set of circumstances and the defence another. Being able to isolate exactly where the body fluids found have come from will remove doubt."

Claire was recently named the 2006 MacDiarmid Young Scientist of the Year, New Zealand's top award for emerging scientists. Her research has already been presented at international conferences in Hong Kong and Australia and she is due to present her findings to leading forensic scientists at the influential European Academy of Forensic Sciences conference in Helsinki next week. Miss French hopes her research will be developed into a commercial kit used routinely at crime scenes and forensic laboratories. Her win entitles her to a trip to the UK in September to attend the British Association's annual Science Festival, which draws 400 of the world's top scientists and science communicators. She also receives the gold MacDiarmid medal. She has a year left in her doctorate in anatomy, and hopes to continue in the field of forensic science

Children's ability to describe past event develops over time

Recently scientist have come foward with the results of a study which tested a child's memory of events. This surveying of the 250 sexually abused children ages 4-10 that participated in the study helps scientists try to figure out how credible their testimony is when on the witness stand or describing a crime that actually happened to them over time. They found that by the time the younger victims reached the age of ten they could begin to elaborate on the specific times, dates, and events of their abuse. This increase in detail as they aged may be attributed to the children's developing capability to elaborate. The older children in the study could focus on specific times and dates while the younger children could only give loose time frames like "after I got home from school", though this was able to become more specific as they matured and began to fine tune their memory of the crime. This has provided much insight into the credibility of children when testifying, and researchers have found that there will be more success if the children are allowed to be prompted by questions about the time and date and sequence of events, and that the child's ability to recall specific dates and times should do little to discredit the victim's reliability, rather they are just not as developmentally able to recall such facts.



http://www.brightsurf.com/news/headlines/31707/Childrens_ability_to_describe_past_event_develops_over_time.html

Criminals Who Eat Processed Foods More Likely To Be Discovered, Through Fingerprint Sweat Corroding Metal

A researcher at the University of Leicester and scientific support officer at Northamptonshire Police, by the name of Dr. John Bond, stated that people who enjoy processed foods are most likely going to be incapable of hiding evidence they leave behind at a crime scene due to the fact that fingerprint marks will be more visible because they have high salt levels in their body. He said that a person with a high salt content is more likely to sweat and as a result would leave a stronger and more visible fingerprint on metal. He was able to create a method that allowed scientists to see fingerprint marks even after they were removed. He and his colleagues brought about a study to show that fingerprints can abrade on  metal surfaces. People with high salt levels will sweat more because the body must get rid of excess salt. When salt leaves our body it comes out as sweat through the pores in our fingers. The more salt, the better abrasion on a piece of metal. Therefore, the chances of finding someone in a crime are higher in a person who has high salt concentration. 

Babies placed in incubators decrease risk of depression as adults

I found this article to be very interesting, I clicked on the headline immediatley. Babies who receive incubator care after they are born are less likely to suffer depression as adults according to a new study. This discovery was made by scientists from a hosptial research center in the U.K. The logic is that separation between mother and child after birth is considered a major stressor that can cause problems in adulthood. The mother baby separation could heighten depression in adulthood, so the incubator care could obvoiusly decrease the risk of depression in two out of three cases by the age of 21. Incubators are controlled environments where all senses of the human body are adjusted to maximize neuronal development. "We believe that incubator care is a trigger for a complex chain of biological and emotional factors that helped decrease depression." said the doctor at the University of Montreal. I cannot wait to see how this plays out in the future and am looking forward to seeing more results.

New Field Of Research Could Help Police In Crime Scene Forensics

Scientists at the Translational Genomics Research Institute have developed a way to identify suspects at crime scenes when there is only a small amount of DNA, or even if the individual’s DNA is mixed with hundreds of other people’s DNA. They were able to identify an individuals DNA even if it was only .1 percent of the total amount of DNA using genotyping microarrays. They successfully identified the DNA even when it was among more than 200 individual samples. This could be very useful for investigators, which will help them better identify possible suspects; even if there have been many people at the crime scene. It may also be useful in the reprocessing of evidence from previous crime scenes. It would also be extremely useful since a lot of DNA evidence is made useless due to contamination, and this would enable the investigators to use the specific DNA and disregard other samples in the mix.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/08/080828220505.htm

Forensic DNA SNP Analysis

Forensic genetics is the branch of genetics that, through DNA analysis and comparison, deals with the resolution of legal problems such as paternity tests. Recently, it has been proposed that single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) could be used as a new genetic marker in the field eventually even replacing the methods/markers now employed. But in an article just published online in Forensic Science International, a team of scientists challenges the effectiveness of SNPs in kinship studies predicting an increase in inconclusive cases when these markers are used.

In forensic genetics, DNA samples are analysed through the comparison of particular DNA sequences unique to each individual. In fact, although more than 99% of the genome is the same across the human population, variations in DNA sequence called polymorphisms can be used to both differentiate and correlate individuals.
Short Tandem Repeats (STRs) are the genetic markers most commonly used in this moment by forensic scientists. STRs consist of repetitive segments of DNA two to five nucleotides (DNA building blocks) length found throughout the genome with different individuals having different STRs combinations.

Recently however, another type of genetic marker called SPNs (single nucleotide polymorphisms), which consists in DNA sequence variations that result from alterations in a single nucleotide in the genome sequence, has been considered to replace STRs in forensic investigations. SNPs seem to have several advantages over STRs as not only they are a more stable genetic marker and so are less likely to be lost across generations which is crucial in paternity cases, but they are also cheaper, easier and faster to examine and need much smaller DNA samples.

But now Antonio Amorim and Luisa Pereira at IPATIMUP (Institute of Pathology and Molecular Immunology, Porto University, Portugal) and the Faculty of Sciences of the same university show that SNPs analysis can also have some problems. In fact, the two scientists used statistic simulations to compare STRs and SNPs effectiveness in kinship studies and reached the unexpected conclusion that the possibility of inconclusive results is much higher when using SNPs. Amorim and Pereira's work question the validity of SNP polymorphisms sole use in routine paternity investigations and raise the need for a proper assessment of this technique before any decisions are make.

SANS Announces New Resources for Computer Forensics and e-Discovery Professionals: http://forensics.sans.org

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/SANS-Announces-New-Resources-Computer/story.aspx?guid={F715B8ED-B252-44DA-BEE8-28A06747A943}

The SANS (SysAdmin, Audit, Network, Security) University developed a new website recently that was targeted at forensic training. The website uses verious training methods to instruct future and current forensic compputer analysists prospects in the methods of analysis and and which crimes to look outfor. The site provides a community-focused environment, and "offering a one-stop resource to learn, discuss, and share current developments in the field of digital forensics." Some of the various crimes detailed on the site are: "fraud, intrusion, insider threats, phishing, and other cyber-crimes." The site is equipped with a team of GIAC Certified Forensic Analysists (GCFA), who provide insights to those who participate in learning from the site. The site also provides a long "list of blogs, podcasts, and other forensics focused resources." The SANS Univeristy's many innovations and resources provide it with the the most trusted seal of foresic computer analysists.

Criminals who eat processed foods more likely to be discovered, through fingerprint sweat corroding metal

Dr. John Bond discovered that sweaty fingerprint marks made more of a corrosive impression on metal if they had a high salt content. The impressions left enables scientists to 'visualize fingerprints' even after the print had been removed. Fingerprints deposited on a small calibre cartridge case before firing, are magnified/enhanced. Dr. Bond said, "on the basis that processed foods tend to be high in salt as a preservative, the body needs to excrete excess salt which comes out as sweat through the pores in fingers. So the sweaty fingerprint impression you leave when you touch a surface will be high in salt if you eat a lot of processed foods-the higher the salt, the better the corrosion of the metal. Dr. Bond is currently working on a means of identifying people through sweat marks. He doesn't believe it will replace fingerprints but only give the police something to start with if there is no other forensic evidence. He believes it could be used in crimes where the nature of the incident tends to destroy all evidence, such as a bomb explosion. He believes that a sweat mark on a piece of metal or a bomb fragment could provide a clue to the type of person who perpetrated the act

Researchers find new forensic tools to ID missing soldiers' remains

Hundreds of researchers at two military laboratories analyze bone fragments to reveal the names of skeletons of missing soldiers dating back to the civil war. Forensic anthropologists are using methods ranging from DNA to comparing bones to X-rays. 12,000 family members of 7600 service members missing from the civil war to the cold war have given DNA samples, but due to a lack of full participation by families the researchers are struggling to make matches. They are comparing the specific types of DNA, such as Y-DNA, which is paternally inherited, and mitochondrial DNA, which is maternally inherited. Mitochondrial DNA is the most reliable because it can be compared to other relatives and it does not deteriorate as quickly as nuclear or Y-DNA. They have been extracting DNA from items ranging from watches to old stamps to hearing aids. In cases where remains were stored in formaldehyde (which destroys DNA) they are using a process known as demineralization to undo some of the damage to find the DNA. They have also compared skulls to old photographs and bones to chest x-rays and dental records. In addition these researchers contributed in identifying remains in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina and identifying remains of bodies in Southeast Asia after the 2004 Tsunami

New detergent washes away stains of murder: study

Yesterday Spanish researchers stated that new generation cleaning products could potential help criminals get away with murder by making bloodstains invisible to forensic tests. A team at the university of Valencia discovered that new washing powders and other chemicals that generate oxygen, rather than use chlorine,  erase telltale traces of hemoglobin, which is the protein in the blood that transports oxygen throughout the body. Up to now forensic scientists could identify blood using a mixture of chemicals to unmask the stains, even after ten washes. The new detergents, like Reckitt Benckiser's 'Vanish', contain the active ingredient sodium carbonate peroxyhydrate which produces a fizz of oxygen that degrades the blood even though it may still be visible to the eye. The same team that discovered this is now working to see if the oxygen producing chemicals also destroys DNA

Forensics Breakthrough could stop major art fraud-

Until now there was always a risk that you were being sold a clever forgery, but a new forensic test developed by Western Australian chemists, Emma Bartle and Professor John Waltling, has created what looks like a foolproof system for authenticating such antique porcelain. The test could also open a new door on Australians early maritime history including the controversial theory that an ancient imperial fleet of Chinese junks visited the country 250 years before ht arrival of Captain Cook.

Forensics: Fingerprints can be recovered from fired bullet casings-

Science has developed a technique for retrieving fingerprints from bullet casings and bomb fragments after they have been fired and detonated. The new method, which relies on subtle corrosion of metal surfaces, is already being applied for the first time anywhere in the world by two British police forces. The patterns of corrosion remained after the surface has been cleaned, heated to 600C or even painted over. This means that traces of fingerprints stay on the metal long after the residue from a persons finger has gone.

Forensic Breakthrough on text messages-

New techniques that may soon be used in court are text messaging. This technique can also be used from emails, chat rooms conversations and other electronic messages. This is used so that they can determine the like hood that two messages were written by the same person. Dr. Grant analyzed the characteristic abbreviations used in the messages. In the phone of a girl that was murdered Jenny Nicholl she used, “I am” and “myself”. The text messages sent to her phone after the appearance contained “im” and “meself,” which were similar to what was said in David Hodgsons phone with convicted him of murder.

Women Have More Diverse Hand Bacteria Than Men

University of Colorado at boulder study indicates that not only do human hads carry far higher numbers of bacteria species than previously believed, woman have a significantly greater diversity of microbes on theur palms than men.Using powerful gene sequencing techniques, the team found a typical hand in the new study had roughly 150 different species of bacteria living on it, said Fierer of CU-Boulder's ecology and evolutionary biology department. While the researchers detected and identified more than 4,700 different bacteria species across 102 human hands in the study, only five species were shared among all 51 participants.

Knight recently received a $1.1 million NIH grant to develop new computational tools to better understand the composition and dynamics of microbial communities. He has been developing novel methods to tag DNA samples with error-correcting "barcodes" to obtain more accurate sequencing data.

I personally found it very interesting to find out form this article that woman have more hand bacteria than man. This is all due to the advance of technological devices we have encountered, especially in the scientific field.