Forensic Labs Session 2

1. What scientific ideas or theories would help you explain why you are able to use the procedure to analyze?



For the Ink is Still Wet lab we dipped the ink into achohol so that the colors could seperate and we could identitfy the different substances. I wondered why that worked though since I didn't really know myself. I also wondered though how the coloromiter was able to get information from a substance that was sealed. For the First Impressions I think we put the Pam spray on the dirt so that when the plaster dried and we had to take it off to analyze the print it would come off easy and with a clear print, not covered in dirt. For the Killer Cup of Coffee we used that formula to figure out how much poison was in the coffee so we could figure out if it was enough to actually kill the man. I don't really know the inner workings of the formula, I just did some calculations it was pretty clear how the man died.



2. How has your approach to lab procedures changed from the fist round of labs? Are you more/less confident?



In my recent labs I have become more observent with the instructions. For each lab my partner and I usually wouldn't move on until we were sure we knew what we were doing and how we were going to do it. Sometimes though we would start to run out of time and had to work fast giving us less time to wonder about the instrustions and in those cases I think I am less confident about my results. Over all though I am confident I did what was right and am confident in my results. For each lab we often asked for peers advice for what to do before going to a teacher. For example: for the The Ink is Still Wet lab we were stuck on a confusing instruction and we spent quite some time asking peers what to do, even after that though we were still confused so we went to Bert and asked for advice. I don't feel very confident unless the instructions are clear.