For Midterm 1

Question 1

What is NISP and MNI?

Answer 1

• Number of Individual Specimens - counts each bone and fragment as one unit
• Minimum Number of Individual - tends to underestimate the actual number under medium fragmentation

Question 2

What are the basics for Forensic Science? (3)

Answer 2

• identification - identification of a chemical compound using libraries and reference materials
• classification - to assign an exhibit of evidence to a group of like objects based on descriptors
• individualization - linking a piece of evidence to a single source e.g. suspect, evidence

Question 3

What are the scientific method? (5)

Answer 3

• observation - measures or describes something about the physical world
• hypothesis - a tentative explanation for an observation or a scientific problem that can be tested by further investigation
• experiment - a procedure that attempts to measure observable predictions to test a theory or a law
• law - a statement that summarizes past observations and predicts future ones; always holds true
• theory - a proposed explanation for observations and laws; true until proven otherwise

Question 4

The Frye Rule

Answer 4

• the evidence produced by scientific analysis is admissible as long as the techniques are accepted as valid by the relevant scientific community
• from lie detector or polygraph

Question 5

Rule 702

Answer 5

If scientific, technical or other specialized knowledge will assist the trier of fact to understand the evidence or determine a fact in issue, a witness qualified as an expert by knowledge, experience, training, or education, may testify thereto in the form of an opinion or otherwise.

Question 6

Daubert Decision

Answer 6

Judges serve as “gate keepers” for evidence

Daubert hearings determine the merit of evidence

Question 7

What are the three stages of time around death?

Answer 7

Antemortem – occurring prior to the death of the individual
Perimortem – occurring at/around the time of death
Postmortem – occurring after the time of death

Question 8

What are the possible postmortem changes?

Answer 8

• Decomposition – the state or process of rotting or decay
• Mummification – drying of soft tissues due to exposure to hot or cold, dry environments unfavorable to bacterial growth
• Saponification – the conversion of fatty tissues of the body to a soapy, way substance
• Alteration and scattering by scavengers
• Movement and modification by running water

Question 9

Taphonomy

Answer 9

• The study of what happens after an organism is dead and until the discovery of its remains
• Interpretation of primarily outdoor death scenes and postmortem processes

Question 10

Forensic Archaeology?

Answer 10

Recovery of scattered or buried remains

Question 11

Facial Reconstruction / Approximation?

Answer 11

Extrapolation of soft tissue form based on skeletal form

Question 12

What is Forensic Anthropology?

Answer 12

Forensic Taphonomy
Forensic Archaeology
Facial Reconstruction / Approximation
Biomechanical injuries

Question 13

What are the task for a Anthropologist?

Answer 13

1. Identify the victim or make a biological profile
2. Reconstructing the postmortem period
3. Provide data regarding the death event

Question 14

What are the characteristics to be identified?

Answer 14

Estimated Stature; Sex; Congenital anomaly – something unusual or different at birth; Medical condition; Population

Question 15

What is sexual dimorphism and what are the differences?

Answer 15

The systematic difference in form between individuals of different sex in the same species
e.g. Stature, hip width, jaw line, brow ridge, size of joint surface, thinner cartilage

Question 16

What kind of injuries are there?

Answer 16

• Blunt force trauma – usually the result of
assault, abuse, accidents or resuscitative
efforts
• Sharp force trauma – caused by sharp
objects, including knives, axes, etc.
• Equifinality – a given result can be caused by
many paths

Question 17

What are the certainties?

Answer 17

• Possible – consistent with circumstances
• Presumptive or Preponderance of the evidence – more likely than not
• Positive – all evidence supports conclusions

Question 18

How to calculate t-factor?

Answer 18

• Find your degrees of freedom in the df column (total measurements - two).
• Find the value of the t-factor in the column underneath the desired certainty (e.g., 90%). If your t-factor is larger than this number, then there is a greater than a 95% possibility that the difference between the two values is not due solely to chance and that there is a statistical basis for concluding that the two measurements are not the same.

Question 19

Thin Layer Chromatography stages?

Answer 19

◦ Spotting
◦ Development
◦ Visualization

Question 20

Other chromatography?

Answer 20

High-performance liquid chromatography; gas chromatography (destructive), headspace analysis

Question 21

CSI models

Answer 21

1. Traditional
2. Crime Scene Technicians
3. Major Crime Squad
4. Lab Crime Scene Scientist
5. Collaborative Team

Question 22

Crime scene documentation

Answer 22

 Notification Information
 Arrival Information
 Scene Description
 Victim Description
 Crime Scene Team
 Video Recording
 Photographing
 Sketching
 Digital Imaging

Question 23

Crime scene search models

Answer 23

link method
line/strip method
grid method
zone method
wheel or ray method
spiral method

Question 24

What is chain of custody

Answer 24

document showing how a sample is treated and by whom