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Definition
| A process that uses strict guidelines to ensure careful and systematic collection, organization, and analysis of information |
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Definition
| An individual whom the court determines to possess knowledge relevant to the trial that is not expected of the average layperson. |
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Term
| Locard's Exchange Principle |
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Definition
| Whenever two objects come into contact with one another there is exchange of materials between them. |
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| What is Forensic Science? |
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Definition
| Forensic science is the application of science to the criminal and civil laws that are enforced by police agencies in a criminal justice system. |
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Definition
| Is a specialized are in which the relationship between human behavior and legal proceedings is examined. |
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Definition
| Practitioners of this help identify victims when the body is left in an unrecognizable state (teeth). |
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Definition
| These are concerned with failure analysis, accident reconstruction, and causes and origins of fires or explosions. |
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Term
| Forensic Computer and Digital Analysis |
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Definition
| Is a new and fast-growing field that involves the identification, collection, preservation, and examination of information derived from computers and other digital devices, such as cell phones. |
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Definition
| Any object that can establish that a crime has or has not been committed or can link a crime and its victim or its perpretrator. |
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Definition
| A draft representation of all essential information and measurements at a crime scene; this sketch is drawn at the crime scene. |
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Definition
| A precise rendering of the crime scene, usually drawn to scale |
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| Place each different item or similar items collected at different locations in separate containers. |
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Definition
| Packaging evidence separately prevents damage through contact and prevents cross-contamination. |
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Definition
| A list of all people who came into possession of an item of evidence |
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Term
| Standard/Reference Sample |
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Definition
| Physical evidence whose origin is known, such as blood or hair from a suspect, that can be compared to crime-scene evidence. |
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Definition
| A swab of the inner portion of the cheek; cheek cells are usually collected to determine the DNA profile of an individual |
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Term
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Definition
| Uncontaminated surface material close to an area where physical evidence has been deposited; this sample is to be used to ensure that the surface on which a sample has been deposited does not interfere with laboratory tests |
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Term
| A number of allowances have been made to justify a warrantless search: |
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Definition
| (1) the existence of emergency corcumstances, (2) the need to prevent the immediate loss or destruction of evidence, (3) a search of a person and property within the immediate control of the person provided it is made incident to a lawful arrest, and (4) a search made by consent of the parties involved. |
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Definition
| The process of determining a substance's physical or chemical identity; drug analysis, species determination, and explosive residue analysis are typical examples of this undertaking in a setting forensic setting. |
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Definition
| The process of ascertaining whether two or more objects have a common origin. |
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Term
| Individual Characteristics |
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Definition
| Properties of evidence that can be attributed to a common source with an extremely high degree of certainty. |
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Definition
| Properties of evidence that can be associated only with a group and never with a single source. |
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Definition
| Multiplying together the frequencies of independently occuring genetic markers to obtain an overall frequency of occurence for a genetic profile |
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Definition
| An individual who investigates sudden, unnatural, unexplained, or violent deaths. |
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Definition
| The medical dissection and examination of a body in order to determine the cause of death. |
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Definition
| A medical condition that occurs after death and results in the stiffening of muscle mass. The rigidity of the body gradually disappears 24 hours after death and disappears within 36 hours. |
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Definition
| A medical condition that occurs after death and results in the settling of blood in areas of the body closest to the ground. |
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Definition
| Postmortem changes that cause a body to lose heat |
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Definition
| The behavior of a substance without alteration of the substance's composition through a chemical reaction. |
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Definition
| The behavior of a substance when it reacts or combines with another substance. |
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Definition
| The temperature scale using the melting point of ice as 32" and the boiling point of water as 212", with 180 equal divisions or degrees between. |
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Definition
| The temperature scale using the melting point of ice as 0" and the boiling point of water as 100", with 100 equal divisions or degrees between. |
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Definition
| A property of matter that depends on both the mass of a substance and the effects of gravity on that mass. |
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Definition
| A constant property of matter that reflects the amount of material present. |
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Definition
| A physical property of matter that is equivalent to the mass per unit volume of a substance. |
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Definition
| A property that is not dependent on the size of an object. |
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Definition
| The bending of a light wave as it passes from one medium to another. |
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Definition
| The ratio of the speed of light in a vacuum to its speed in a given substance. |
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Definition
| A solid in which the constituent atoms have a regular arrangement. |
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Definition
| A solid in which the sontiuent atoms or molecules are arranged in random or disordered positions; there is no regular order in amorphous solids. |
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Definition
| A difference in the two indices of refraction exhibited by most crystalline materials. |
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Definition
| The separation of light into its component wavelengths. |
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Definition
| Glass that is strengthened by introducing stress through rapid heating and cooling of the glass surfaces. |
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Definition
| Two sheets of ordinary glass bonded together with a plastic film. |
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Definition
| A bright halo that is observed near the border of a particle immersed in a liquid of a different refractive index. |
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Definition
| A crack in a glass that extends outward like the spoke of a wheel from the point at which the glass was struck. |
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Definition
| A crack in a glass that forms a rough circle from the point of impact. |
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Definition
| A naturally occuring crystalline solid. |
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Definition
| All things of substance; matter is composed of atoms or molecules. |
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Definition
| A chart of elements arranged in a systematic fashion; vertical rows are called groups or families, and horizontal rows are called series; elements in a given row have similar properties. |
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Definition
| A condition or stage in the form of matter; a solid, liquid, or gas. |
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Definition
| A state of matter in which the molecules are held closely together in a rigid state. |
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Definition
| A state of matter in which molecules are in contact with one another but are not rigidly held in place. |
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Definition
| A state of matter in which the attractive forces between molecules are small enough to permit them to move with complete freedom. |
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Definition
| A physical change from the solid state directly into the gaseous state. |
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Definition
| Describes a substance composed of carbon and often smaller amounts of hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, chloring, phosphorus, or other elements. |
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Definition
| Describes a chemical compound not based on carbon. |
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Definition
| An analytical method for identifying a substance by its selective absorption of different wavelengths of light. |
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Definition
| Any of several analytical techniques for separating organic mixtures into their components by attraction to a stationary phase while being propelled by a moving phase. |
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Definition
| The decomposition of organic matter by heat. |
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Definition
| To emit visible light when exposed to light of a shorter wavelength that is, ultraviolet light. |
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Definition
| A technique for separating molecules through migration on a support medium while under the influence of an electric potential. |
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Term
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Definition
| An acronym for light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation; light that has all its wave pulsating in unison. |
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Term
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Definition
| Colored light ranging from red to violet in the electromagnetic spectrum. |
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Definition
| The distance between crests of adjacent waves. |
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Definition
| The number of waves that pass a given point per second. |
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Definition
| The entire range of radiation energy from the most energetic cosmic rays to the least energetic radio waves. |
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Definition
| A high-evergy, short-wavelength form of electromagnetic radiation. |
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Definition
| A small packet of electromagnetic radiation energy; each photon contains a unit of energy equal to the product of Planck's constant and the frequency of radiation: E = hf. |
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Definition
| A device for isolating individual wavelengths or frequencies of light. |
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Definition
| Light having a single wavelength or frequency. |
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Term
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Definition
| Invisible long frequencies of light beyond violet in the visible spectrum. |
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Definition
| Invisible short frequencies of light before red in the visible spectrum. |
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Definition
| An atom or molecule bearing a positive or negative charge. |
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Definition
| Light emitted from a source and separated into its component colors or frequencies. |
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Definition
| A type of emission spectrum showing a continuous band of colors all blending into one another. |
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Definition
| A type of emission spectrum showing a series of lines separated by black areas; each line represents a definite wavelength or frequency. |
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Definition
| A positively charged particle that is one of the basic structures in the nucleus of an atom. |
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Term
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Definition
| A negatively charged particle that is one of the fundamental structural units of the aton. |
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Term
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Definition
| A particle with no electrical charge that is one of the basic structures in the nucleus of an atom. |
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Term
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Definition
| The core of an atom containing the protons and neutrons. |
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Term
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Definition
| The number of protons in the nucleus of an atoml each element has its own unique atomic number. |
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Definition
| The path of electrons as they move around the nuclei of atomsl each orbital is associated with a particular electronic energy level. |
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Definition
| The state in which an atom absorbs energy and an electron moves from a lower to a higher energy level. |
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Definition
| The sum of the number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus of an atom. |
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Definition
| An atom differing from another atom of the same element in the number of neutrons in its nucleus. |
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Definition
| The particle and/or gamma-ray radiation emitted by the unstable nucleus of some isotopes. |
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Definition
| A type of radiation emitted by a radioactive lement; the radiation is composed of helium atoms minus their orbiting electrons. |
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Definition
| A type of radiation emittted by a radioactive elementl the radiation consists of electrons. |
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Definition
| A high-energy form of electromagnetic radiation emitted by a radioactive element. |
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Definition
| An analytical technique for identifying crystalline materials. |
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Definition
| An image that cannot be seen directly. It can be seen only by a viewer looking through a lens. |
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Term
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Definition
| An image formed by the actual convergence of light rays on a screen. |
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Definition
| The lower lens of a microscope, which is positioned directly over the specimen. |
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Definition
| The lens of a microscope into which the viewer looks; same as the ocular lens. |
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Definition
| Light that passes up from the condenser and through the specimen. |
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Term
| Vertical or reflected illumination |
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Definition
| Illumination of a specimen from abovel in microscopy it is used to examine opaque specimens. |
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Definition
| The lens system under the microscope stage that focuses light onto the specimen. |
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Definition
| Descrribes a microscope such that when an image is focused with one objective in position, the other objective can be rotated into place and the field will remain in focus. |
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Term
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Definition
| Describes a microscope with one eyepiece. |
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Definition
| Describes a microscope with two eyepieces. |
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Definition
| The area of the specimen that can be seen after it is magnified. |
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Definition
| The thickness of a specimen that is entirely in focus under a microscope. |
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Definition
| Light confined to a single plane of vibration |
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Definition
| A device that permits the passage of light waves vibrating in only one plane |
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Definition
| An instrument that links a microscope to a spectrophotometer |
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Definition
| The scale structure covering the exterior of the hair. |
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Definition
| The main body of the hair shaft. |
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Definition
| A cellular column running through the center of the hair. |
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Definition
| The initial growth phase during which the hair follicle actively produces hair. |
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Definition
| A transition stage between the anagen and telogen phases of hair growth. |
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Definition
| The final growth phase in which hair naturally falls out of the skin. |
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Definition
| A translucent piec e of tissue surrounding the hair's shaft near the root; it contains the richest source of DNA. |
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Definition
| DNA present within the nucleus of a cell; this form of DNA is inherited from both parents. |
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Definition
| DNA present in small structures (mitochondria) outside the nucleus of a cell; mitochondria supply energy to the cell; this form of DNA is inherited maternally (from the mother) |
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Definition
| Fibers derived entirely from animal of plant sources. |
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Definition
| Fibers derived from either natural or synthetic polymers; the fibers are typically made by forcing the polymeric material through the holes of a spinneret |
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Definition
| A substance composed of a large number of atomsl these atoms are usually arranged in repeating units or monomers. |
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Definition
| Two or more atoms held together by chemical bonds. |
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Definition
| A molecle with a high molecular mass. |
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Definition
| The basic unit of structure form which a polymer is constructed. |
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