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Essay about forensic entomology
Chapter 11 forensic entomology
Essay about forensic entomology
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1. Introduction
Forensic entomology has profound utility in contemporary time. Insects and their arthropod counterparts are used in the legal investigations to aid the forensic analysis of decomposing materials (Mumcouglu et al., 2004). It is used by criminal investigators to try to solve homicide cases by attempting to reconstruct the crime scene and establish the cause of death. In addition to human death investigations, it can be used to determine the death of animals and other wildlife crimes (Anderson, 1999). The increasing use of insects or arthropods as an aid in forensic investigation lies in their behaviour. Most of them are known to be attracted to decomposing bodies and lay their eggs in it. Thus, they can provide accurate leads on the post-mortem interval, the cause of death and also vital information on the corpse position, such as whether the dead body has been relocated to another scene in order to mislead the investigator (Gennard, 2012).
2. Insects of Forensic Importance
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In cases where there is a suspect, it is applied to find the associations between the victim and the suspect, as well as to assist in the collection of DNA samples. The insects that have forensic importance among others includes various types of Flies (order Diptera) and beetles (order Coleoptera). For examples, Blow Flies (Family Calliphoridae), Holarctic Blue Bow Flies (Calliphora vomitoria), Oriential Latrine Flies (Chrysomya megacephala), Carrion beetles, Rove beetles, Hide Beetles and Sap beetles (Byrd & Castner, 2001; Norm, 1971). When carrying out a forensic entomology analysis, proper species identification is a crucial aspect, as it enables the development of accurate data and distribution ranges which will be used in the investigation (Payne & Manson,
Forensic Science Introduction: Someone in a restaurant has suddenly fallen ill and a mystery powder has been discovered with the victim. As the chief investigator, your duty is to identify the mystery substance through a lab. In this lab, it will consist of five known compounds and one unknown compound. Your job is to distinguish which one out of the five substances is the mystery powder. To figure out the mystery matter you will have to compare their physical and chemical properties and match them with the appropriate compound.
To conduct the experiment, the beetles were massed, then attached to a petri dish with a 30 centimeter piece of dental floss. The beetle’s mass was the independent variable. Afterwards, the floss was tied to the beetle’s midsection with a slip knot. Then, the beetle was placed on a piece of fabric with the petri dish attached to it. As soon as the beetle was able to move with one paperclip inside the petri dish, more were added, one by one, until it could not move any further. After the beetle could not pull any more, the paperclips were massed and the results were recorded. The dependent variable was the mass that the beetles could pull. No control group was included in this experiment.
The crime scene was located in a deer hunting area in a meadow. There were several different types of trees and foliage surrounding the area where the skeletal remains were discovered. The...
Roach lists strange but helpful uses of human cadavers that benefit humankind in the long run. In the first chapter, as previously stated, Roach observes a face anatomy and face lift refresher course, in which surgeons use cadaver heads. This is an example of how cadavers are often used to practice different types of surgical operations, even cosmetic surgery (Roach 24). Cadavers also benefit the science of criminal forensics, in which their decay process is studied and used for different components of analyzing a crime, such as time of death. Researches place cadavers in different environments and observe the stages of biological and chemical decay and how different environments affect the decay process (Roach 61). To pinpoint the time of death, researchers analyze the body temperature, smell, the potassium level of the gel inside the eyes, insect infestation, and other entomological factors (Roach 62). Another beneficial use for human cadavers includes impact studies, such as a car crash. For the past sixty years, human cadavers have helped scientists understand and study human tolerance limits for violent injuries a human body can get from car crashes, such as skull slammings and chest skewerings. These studies and experiments allow automobile manufacturers design cars that, in the event of a crash, protect the person as much as possible and keep them safe (Roach 87). This results in safer windshields and steering wheels that aim to protect the chest and brain, the main culprits of car crash fatalities (Roach 89). One of the most extraordinary concept that Roach investigates is the live (beating heart) cadaver. Beating heart cadavers are alive by every means except the brain. The cadaver has perfectly functioning organs and a pulse, but is ultimately brain dead. Doctors utilize the cadaver’s functioning organs, such as the kidneys,
1. What is the difference between a. and a. How does the kissing bug (e.g., Rhodnius sp. , Triatoma dimidiate ) locate its human prey? The kissing bug ventures forth in search of the blood meal it takes from humans or sleeping pets. The bugs emerge while the inhabitants are sleeping “Due to these bugs tend to feed on people’s faces”.
At the cadaver lab in Memphis, TN they research the stages of decomposition in their body farm, because it related to our forensics unit we decided to do our own chicken body farm. We colored three out of five chickens with food coloring to see if maggots moved between corpses and if they would change color when they ingested food coloring.
Forensic anthropology is the study of bones in relation to a criminal investigation. Some have probably seen it used on television, but this is not an accurate portrayal of what this truly is. Many times, this area of forensic science is hidden from the public eye; people only get to see all of the glamorous parts. What they do not see is all of the hard work and effort that is put in to get the job correctly done. This career is a rare decision for someone to choose, because of the lack of opportunity for employment positions as well as the low income per year; however, it is an extremely fascinating occupation. Forensic anthropology has been known to help many organizations, including museums, and law enforcement agencies.
results of the forensic anthropology. For instance, if a crime is committed at a certain scene,
In today’s time, modern Crime Scene Investigation has increased rapidly. From throughout the late 1900’s and in the early 2000’s (Taylor 1). For all of the evidence that they find, a solid foundation has formed over the thousands of years of Crime Scene
Forensic Science, recognized as Forensics, is the solicitation of science to law to understand evidences for crime investigation. Forensic scientists are investigators that collect evidences at the crime scene and analyse it uses technology to reveal scientific evidence in a range of fields. Physical evidence are included things that can be seen, whether with the naked eye or through the use of magnification or other analytical tools. Some of this evidence is categorized as impression evidence2.In this report I’ll determine the areas of forensic science that are relevant to particular investigation and setting out in what method the forensic science procedures I have recognized that would be useful for the particular crime scene.
...he case of forensics. You can go beyond the normal reality of blood spatter (?.. how does or where did blood spatter come into play here). The species of a set of bones can be determined through forensics anthropology. The sex of a skeleton. The age of a person and by studying the bones you can find a person’s age. Forensics Anthropology, (2014)
Forensic scientists work in labs where they examine, identify, and interpret evidence collected in crime scenes. Crime scene investigators collect evidence and pass it to a forensic scientist who uses the items in numerous ways to help catch criminals. Forensic scientists must also record the evidence and any tests ran on it in detail to prove the truth in court. A forensic scientist also has to be able to present his or her physical evidence verbally in court, so a strong communication background is important.
Forensic entomology is the study of insects and arthropods and their relation to a criminal investigation. Forensic entomology can determine the postmortem interval (PMI) or how long since the descendants’ death, whether the body has been moved since expiring, and what injuries may have been sustained (Ryan, 2011). When decomposition begins, insects establish a colony to lay eggs on the remains; these eggs will hatch into larvae that will eat the human organs and tissues. Forensic entomologists can determine the specific insects present in the body and estimate how long a body has been left exposed by examining the stage of development of the fly larvae; however, these findings are not always plausible. The fly larvae look and act different at each stage of development. The time required for stage development is not only affected by environmental influences such as geographical location, climate, and weather conditions, but also by type of insect. The forensic entomologist must consider these conditions when estimating the postmortem interval. Knowledge of insects, their life cycles, and their habits make entomological evidence a priceless tool for an investigation. Forensic entomology has proved its significance in a number of cases; though circumstances such as weather, temperature, and time of year clearly affect the development of insect infestation, and the expert must keep these in the forefront of his/her mind (Innes, 2000).
The main reason for studying forensic entomology is to establish the time since death. Recognizing each species and their life stages as well as having knowledge about how long an insect is in a particular life stage is the basis for establishing a PMI. The use of forensic entomology is a growing area of research, which will become more prevalent as more research on the subject is completed. This is important in criminal cases in providing a time range for when the crime occurred so that it is possible to narrow the possibility of each suspect or to acquit the defendant.
Crime today seems as if it keeps getting worse and worse, but without forensic science would we have been able to figure out some of the main details in some cases? Forensic science is any science used to help solve a case/mystery, which is very vital when it comes to criminal investigation research. While researching my project I discovered all the many tasks and difficulties that come with forensics.