The Handy Forensic Science Answer Book: Reading Clues at the Crime Scene, Crime Lab and in Court, Barnes-Svarney Patricia, Svarney Thomas E.

The Handy Forensic Science Answer Book gives real-world examples and looks at what Hollywood gets right and wrong. It provides the history of the science, and it introduces the scientists behind breakthroughs. An easy-to-use and informative reference, it brings the complexity of a criminal investigation into focus and provides well-researched answers to over 950 common questions, such as ... & bull; What is the difference between cause of death and manner of death? & bull; How did a persons skull fit into criminal evidence in the early 1800s? & bull; When were fingerprints first used to identify a criminal? & bull; How is the approximate time of death of a crime scene victim determined? & bull; What is forensic serology? & bull; What is the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System? & bull; Can a forensics expert look at skeletal remains and tell whether the person was obese? & bull; How can a simple knot analyzed in the crime lab be used as evidence? & bull; Can fingerprints be permanently changed or destroyed? & bull; How fast does a bullet travel? & bull; How was a chemical analysis of ink important in the conviction of Martha Stewart? & bull; What types of data are often retrieved from a crime scene cellphone? & bull; Can analyses similar to those used in forensics be used to uncover doping in athletics? & bull; What is the Personality Assessment Inventory? & bull; What are some motives that cause an arsonist to start a fire? & bull; What state no longer allows bite marks as admissible evidence in a trial? & bull; What is the Innocence Project? & bull; Why are eyewitness accounts not always reliable? & bull; Who was Jack the Ripper?