Term
| What is forensic science? |
|
Definition
| The application of science to matters of public or legal concerns / science applied to law. |
|
|
Term
| What was the first recorded application of medical knowledge to the solution of crime? |
|
Definition
| A Chinese book written in 1248: "Washing Away of Wrongs." |
|
|
Term
| What is the Bertillonage System and why was it discredited? |
|
Definition
| System in which individuals were identified by measurements of their body. The system was discredited when a a criminal being measured had the same measurements as a person already incarcerated. |
|
|
Term
| What did the NAS Investigation find in 2007? (Hint: opinion of forensic science in the US) |
|
Definition
| The committee called forensic science in the US infirm/fragmented/faulty, etc. with the exception of nuclear DNA analysis. |
|
|
Term
| What is the aim of the scientific method? |
|
Definition
| The scientific method attempts to minimize the influence of bias or prejudice in the experimenter when testing a hypothesis. |
|
|
Term
Francis Bacon was associated with:
a) Falsification
b) Paradigm Shifts
c) Observation |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
Karl Popper was associated with:
a) Falsification
b) Observation
c) Paradigm shifts |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
Thomas Kuhn was associated with:
a) Falsification
b) Observation
c) Paradigm Shifts |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| What three perspectives is 21st century science a combination of? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| How do the objectives of science and law differ? |
|
Definition
Law: Justice within a time limit - a decision needs to be made.
Science: Truth with no time limit - a decision is not required. |
|
|
Term
| What are the three distinct events during a PCR cycle? |
|
Definition
1) Denaturation of the template (separate strands)
2) Annealing (add primers)
3) DNA Synthesis by a thermostable polymerase (extend primers) |
|
|
Term
| How many cycles are typically performed during PCR? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Polymearse Chain Reaction |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Amplifying DNA and making copies |
|
|
Term
| Who was Charles Randal Smith? |
|
Definition
| An anatomical pathologist (not in the forensic field) who made fundamental errors in the investigation of child deaths - an inquiry was ordered - Goudge Reports. |
|
|
Term
| What did the Goudge inquiry find? |
|
Definition
| Out of 220 cases of child deaths - 44 were extensively reevaluated - 20 cases with mistakes - 13 wrongful convictions. |
|
|
Term
| What are the Daubert standards regarding expert testimony? |
|
Definition
- Peer review
- Error rates
- Adequate testing
- Regular standards and techniques
- General acceptance
|
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Combined DNA Index System (13 standardized loci used) |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Convicted Offenders Index (All the DNA profiles from convicted offenders) |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Crime Scene Index (all the DNA profiles from crime scenes) |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
|
|
Term
What does VNTR stand for?
|
|
Definition
| Variable Nuclear Tandem Repeats |
|
|
Term
| ____type codes for ____type. |
|
Definition
| Genotype codes for phenotype. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| An individual's internally coded information. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The outward, physical manifestation of the organism (i.e. eye color in humans) |
|
|
Term
| What is forensic entomology? |
|
Definition
| The application of insect biology to criminal (sometimes civil) matters. |
|
|
Term
| What are the stages of arthropod arrival? |
|
Definition
- Necrophages
- Omnivores
- Predators
- Incidentals
|
|
|
Term
| What are some factors that may affect a PMI estimation? |
|
Definition
- Temperature
- Maggot mass: large accumulation = higher temperature
- Geography
- Indoors vs. outdoors
- Buried or clothed remains
- Larval crowding
|
|
|
Term
| Does mtDNA identify a species, or an individual? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| Does nuclear DNA identify species, or an individual? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| What type of individual may have a low degree of rigor mortis? |
|
Definition
| Elderly, obese, or infants - low skeletal muscle development |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| "Stiffening of death" - body stiffens after death as muscle membranes become more permeable to Ca2+ (makes muscles contract). |
|
|
Term
| When would rigor mortis typically occur at room temperature? |
|
Definition
| 2-3 hours in the face / 6-12 hours in extremeties |
|
|
Term
| How long does rigor mortis typically last for? |
|
Definition
| Typically RM remains for 2-3 days |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| "Colour of death" - purple-blue colour everywhere but pressure points, i.e. places the body makes contact with a surface. |
|
|
Term
How would livor mortis be affected in a body that has been killed by:
a) Cyanide poisoning
b) Carbon monoxide poisoning? |
|
Definition
a) Colouring would be dark blue
b) Colouring would be pink red
As opposed to the typical purple-blue colour. |
|
|
Term
| How long would it take for livor mortis to typically appear? How long would it take to fixate? |
|
Definition
Appearance - 30min to 2h after death.
Fixation - approximately 12h. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| "Temperature of death" - post-mortem cooling in which the temperature of the body begins to fall to ultimately meet the temperature of the environment. |
|
|
Term
| At room temperature, what is the typical cooling rate of a body experiencing algor mortis? |
|
Definition
| The body cools at a rate of 2.5 degrees per hour for the first 6 hours, followed by 1.5-2 degrees for the first 12 hours. |
|
|
Term
| What is the term for the larval stages of a maggot? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| How many instars are there in the development of a maggot? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The branch of science concerned with the (adverse) effects of drugs on the body. |
|
|
Term
| What is pharmicokinetics? |
|
Definition
| How the body affects the drug, i.e. metabolism. |
|
|
Term
| What is elimination with respect to toxicology? |
|
Definition
| The irreversible removal of the drug from the system. |
|
|
Term
| What are the stages of alcohol pharmicokinetics in the human body? |
|
Definition
- Absorption - through the gastro-intestinal system
- Distribution - the heavier a person, the greater amount of water, therefore the greater the dilution (in tissue)
- Metabolism - 95% of alcohol is oxidized
- Elimination - cannot be changed, rate is fixed
|
|
|
Term
| What is the typical rate of elimination of alcohol in the human body? |
|
Definition
| 1 hour = 0.010-0.020/100mL |
|
|
Term
| What are some different methods of BAC analysis? |
|
Definition
- Blood (circulating in brain)
- Breath
- Urine
- Vitreous
|
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Blood Alcohol Concentration |
|
|
Term
| When is a person considered impaired by alcohol? (Hint: BAC level) |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| All data that the operating system is aware of. |
|
|
Term
| What are three types of visible data? |
|
Definition
- Data/work product files
- Swap file data
- Temporary files
|
|
|
Term
| Identify Kaufman recommendation #74. |
|
Definition
| Police and Crown counsel should be able to identify and avoid tunnel vision. |
|
|
Term
| What is one way that the issue of tunnel vision can be addressed? |
|
Definition
| Keeping an open mind; evaluating all possible hypotheses equally so that one theory does not overshadow all others. |
|
|
Term
| Explain Paul Kirk's views on the interpretation of evidence. |
|
Definition
- Physical evidence can not be wrong, perjure itself, or be absent
- Only its interpretation can err
- Only human failure to find it, study it, and understand it can diminish its value
|
|
|
Term
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| Where is nuclear DNA (or STRDNA) found? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| What is a better way to word a "match"? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| What are four other types of biological material that DNA can identify and individualize, apart from human applications? |
|
Definition
- Plants
- Insects
- Animals
- Microbial
|
|
|
Term
| What is the main problem associated with using forensic odontology (dental records) to identify human remains? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| What are the six classifications of trauma? |
|
Definition
- Mechanical (sharp force, blunt force, gun shot)
- Chemical (i.e. acid)
- Thermal (hypo or hyperthermia)
- Electrical
- Radiation
- Blast
|
|
|
Term
| What is a bioterrorism attack? |
|
Definition
| The deliberate release of viruses, bacteria, or other germs or agents, or of biologically derived toxins and poisons; with the intent to cause illness or death in people, animals, or plants. |
|
|
Term
| Identify and describe two types of biological agents. |
|
Definition
Pathogens: Naturally occurring microorganisms that cause disease, including: viruses, bacteria, fungi, protists, and parasites.
Toxins: Poisonous chemicals produced by a living organism. |
|
|
Term
| What is the main difference between toxins and pathogens? |
|
Definition
| Toxins, unlike pathogens, are not self replicating. Therefore, the impact is from the initial spread of the compound. |
|
|
Term
| Why would biological agents be used in an attack? |
|
Definition
- Relatively easy to obtain
- Relatively inexpensive to produce, store and transport
- Difficult to detect
- Effect can be hours or days later therefore identifying the attacker is also very difficult
- Spread via air, water, food or a human being
- Some agents spread from human to human (e.g. small pox) while others do not (e.g. anthrax)
|
|
|
Term
| What are four ways biological agents can be spread? |
|
Definition
- Aerosol transmission
- Water contamination
- Food contamination
- Direct application
|
|
|
Term
| What is an example of a biological warfare agent? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| What are the five components of microbial forensics? |
|
Definition
- Detection and identification
- Information and databases
- A strain repository
- New validated analytical methods
- Quality Assurance guidelines
|
|
|
Term
| What is the most sensitive and reliable tool used for detecting and characterizing flammable residues? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| What are some issues with wildlife individual profiling? |
|
Definition
- Low genetic variation (especially with endangered species) = lower power of inclusion
- Need to establish databases for each species across their distributions
- No standardized loci among wildlife labs, needs to happen as number of labs increases
|
|
|
