Forensic Analysis: Bones To The Real World

Dr. William Bass is considered to be the Leonardo da Vinci in the field of forensic anthropology. Famous for creating the Anthropology Research Facility, to the majority of us known as the Body Farm, at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Born in Staunton, Virginia, Bass received a BA in psychology from the University of Virginia in 1951, an MS in anthropology from the University of Kentucky in 1956. Thus, half a decade he received his PhD in anthropology from the University of Pennsylvania in 1961. Originally the thought of anthropology didn’t cross Bass it was until his junior year of college is when he changed majors to anthropology thanks to his mentor Dr. Charlie Snow, who introduced him out on his own forensic case to analyze a corpse

It tracks Dr. Bass’ life before and after the farm, and what he did to move his way to being the founder of a forensic farm which is the only of its kind in the world. A recognition should also be given to all the present-day and upcoming TV series such as CSI or Law and Order, shows that revolve around solving murder cases and have forensics as a big component in the show. Many people are now flooding to the forensic science, which was scarce with professionals not too long ago (Pitt 1). This kind of recognition in the media that is available to all kinds of people, lets people know what kind of work forensics is. It piques people’s interest and opens them to a world they may be interested in. Usually at first, The nature of the job causes people to be scared away from the Body Farm, so Dr. Bass uses his old-timey humor and knowledge to share the horrific details to people and his students (Wheat 1). It’s easy for people to see the bodies at the farm as still people, who are left behind to rot. Dr. Bass does not think the same way. He believes the soul has gone from the body and that all that is left behind is bones, all of which tells their own story. Reviews have praised this book as being one of the best, and also informative in the daily life of a forensic

Forensic anthropology is the physical or biological studies of a human skeleton. The purpose of a forensic anthropologist is to discover secrets hidden in bones. Forensic anthropologists are trained physical anthropologists. The difference between the two are the amount of knowledge involved in forensic anthropology. In forensic anthropology science, biology, and culture are applied to the legal process.

Forensic anthropology is a subfield of physical anthropology that aims to assist in the identification of human remains and to help determine what happened to the remains (Ubelaker, 2006). A forensic anthropologist is able to aid law enforcement by narrowing down the list of possible victims. This subfield of anthropology consists of several processes and a vast list of duties that are important in providing positive identification.Even though forensic anthropology dates back many years, major advancements in this field are still being made today.

After that they “analyze bones to determine the victim's biological profile” as it is said in “What is Forensic Anthropology” by R.U. Steinberg.

“This is my lab and what we do is study bones,” states Kari Bruwelheide in her video entitled “30,000 Skeletons”. Out of all three resources, “Puzzles of the Chesapeake” by Sally Walker, “Forensic Anthropology” by an unknown author, and “30,000 Skeletons” by Smithsonian Education, but presented by Kari Bruwelheide, “30,000 Skeletons” is by far better at explaining the role of an anthropologist. It is unbeatable because it is a video and Kari Bruwelheide has personal experience of being a forensic anthropologist. A forensic anthropologist is a scientist that studies human remains, or in another word, skeletons, to try to find out information.

Forensic anthropologist examine skeletal remains for elements of a skeleton that can give clues to the person it belongs to. The Kennewick man’s skeleton was found in surprisingly good condition meaning the damage to the skeleton was done in his life, not due to deterioration. The skeleton showed a projectile point lodged in his hip, five broken ribs that did not properly heal, two small dents in his skull, and a bum shoulder. These wounds show an insight to the lifestyle

In the Kathy Reich’s novel, Deja Dead, a Forensic Anthropologist, named Dr. Temperance Brennan, recently moved to the Canadian province of Quebec to escape her divorce. There, Dr. Brennan works for the “Laboratoire de Medecine Legale”, a coroner’s office in the city of Montreal. The novel begins when Dr. Brennan is called to investigate bones found by two Quebec water workers at an abandoned monastery. At the scene, Dr. Brennan discovers the meticulously mutilated and dismembered remains of a female stashed in a series of trash bags. As the novel progresses, Dr. Brennan begins to notice a pattern amongst the remains brought to her lab: all victims were female, most dismembered with similar methods of disposal and evidence of mutilation.

The definition of forensic science is any scientific research, method, or theory used to analyze evidence in an attempt to solve legal cases (Cho). In recent years, there has been growing public interest in forensic science, arguably because of the numerous television programs that glamorize its practices. This phenomenon is part of what is known as the CSI effect, or the process through which devoted fans of popular crime dramas develop unrealistic notions of forensic science methods, practices, and their applications in real life cases (Mancini 544; Stevens 37; Ley, Jankowski, and Brewer 52). The CSI effect has had more negative impacts on forensic science and society than positive impacts, especially in regards to what goes on in the

Dr. Brennen, a forensic anthropologist, finds remains all throughout the book in different scenarios. She finds human bones among lots of bear bones in a bag in the woods and she examines the remains of a baby found in a wood stove, in a plane crash, privy, and a submerged car. She briefly goes into discussion of what she does as a forensic anthropologist. She uses her knowledge of bones to identify the cause and manner of death in victims that are too compromised for autopsy; meaning there is little to no tissue left for a proper autopsy. (Reichs 2004:16). She also uses various methods throughout the book to identify the sex, age, stature, and ancestry, as well as securing an identification of the victim.

In this paper, I will discuss the background of forensic pathology, the pros and cons of forensic pathology, and the similar and different in a forensic pathologist and a coroner. There are various disciplines in Forensic Science that can help with a crime, and solving that crime. One of these various disciplines is Forensic Pathology which the study of disease, and its causes, moreover; it involves the discovering the cause of the death where a death is sudden or suspicion to law enforcement. While a Forensic Pathologist can be helpful to law enforcement, and helpful in assisting in crime investigation, there are cons to being forensic pathologist. Furthermore, forensic pathologist can be confused with coroner even though they do the same

This truth forms an essential link between the enforcement of law and protection of the public in the administration of justice.” Forensic pathology is clearly a crucial role in the justice system. You have to be a little weird and crazy to have a passion for the kind of work that the coroners and M.E. go through on an everyday basis. They use past knowledge to make decisions on how death occurred and they come across many different postmortem changes in dead bodies. Every field is important in forensics, but pathology advocates for truth and justice to dead

In 1948, the professional organization of forensic scientists in America (AAFS) was established (Lyman, 2014). Members of the AAFS include pathology and biology, toxicology, criminalistics, questioned documents, and forensic odontology, anthropology, serology, and ballistics (Lyman, 2014). The science advancement in these areas of study

I have always loved suspenseful whodunit television shows, movies, and books that use forensic science to crack the cases. My favorite television show is The First 48, my favorite movie is The Silence of the Lambs, and my favorite book is The Body Farm. Therefore, I was excited to have the opportunity to take this course and learn even more about the subject of forensics. This essay gives a summary of N. E. Genge’s book, The Forensic Casebook: The Science of Crime Scene Investigation, and includes the things I disliked and liked about the book.

Forensic science involves the use of science to solve criminal and civil crimes but mostly lies on the side of criminal investigations. It makes it possible to identify the criminals based on the DNA traces they leave behind. It involves analyses of blood, DNA and other evidences and later on uses the findings as evidence in the court of law. It helps in solving the various crimes in the world and this has been the greatest contributor to the growth of the sector. Cases that were previously considered impossible due to lack of evidenced tracing to the victim can now be solved using forensic science evidences. The essay aims at analyzing the different aspects of forensic science that are used in the process of solving criminal activities. It will also look at the different cases that forensic science was used to solve crimes in a court of law.