1. Summary of Thoughts:
Prep:
Clothing and safety requirements (goggles, lab coat/apron, pants, closed shoes)
Bring the stuff you can bring especially notes
Part A: Unknown Solids, Liquids and Metals
Make flow charts (which tests tell you which cmpds you have)
Study the possible combinations
Part B: “Polymer” testing
Know the hairs (both the appearance of the medulla inside and the scale pattern on the surface)
Know the fibers (microscope image identification)
Know the polymer density ranges and burn test results
Part C: Paper Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry
See the WSU SO website for my paper chromatography primer
We will do Mass Spec on a drug sample this year (give mass spec, and 4 possible structures)
Part D: Physical Evidence
Fingerprints are a given
Possible DNA chromatograms this year
Blood spatters and shoe prints are a possibility as well
Glass is a favorite of mine
Part E: Crime Scene Analysis
Leave time to write your essay
Who and Why…..Who and Why Not
Start to think: I KNOW that evidence X can be associated with person Y
Neatness, grammar, spelling
Clarity of thought (can I easily follow what you are doing)
Correctness of associations (are you properly associating evidence X with person Y)
Correctness of conclusions (are you properly interpreting your evidence and associations)

2. Science Crime Busters (SCB) & Forensics (FOR) 2011
Physical Science & Chemistry
Both of these events are 5 part events:
Qualitative analysis of unknown materials
Polymer Testing
Chromatography
Crime Scene Evidence
Analysis

3. Changes Note sheet clarified Safety clothing requirements
Change in part b—water quality testing
Removal of hairs and fibers from part d
Tie breaker rule

4. Part 0: Being Prepared NOTE SHEET Equipment:
Bring your kit. Bring everything allowed in your kit.
Safety:
Lab coat, apron or other type of front torso, leg and arm protection
Eyewear: Science Olympiad is very clear that the team must wear Chemical/Splash resistant eyewear. Seal around the face, do not have direct vents.
Clothing:
Closed toe shoes
“Pants”: long skirts acceptable but not recommended, no capris
Socks
Covered arms (see above)
NOTE SHEET

5. Part 1: Qualitative Analysis
In the past, this has been the worst performance section. For SCB this part is 50% of the score (only 20% for FOR).
How to do it:
Knowing what is in your kit, how to use it and what it tells you is very important. Get all the things and have them. That includes your note sheet.
SCB mixtures: use a magnifying glass at first to try to visually test.
Many of the substances are translucentcrystals, seeing dissolution on a white plate is very hard. Try to acquire clear plastic or glass dished for your teams to work with.

6. Part 1: Qualitative Analysis
How to prepare:
Method 1: Obtain all the potential chemicals form the list, use every technique available on each chemical and record the results. This can be a brute force table approach or be incorporates into a flow chart.
Method 2: “Steal” a flow chart from the internet.
Neither of these substitutes for the experience of seeing and interpreting the results that comes from practice.

8. Part 1: Qualitative Analysis
Resources:
Sciencekit.com and other supply houses sell chemicals and equipment, WSU, your local university or high school science department.
Study materials on how to do tests:
FOR--
SCB--

9. Part 2: Polymer Testing Hair identification: SCB: human, cat, dog
FOR: bat, horse
Hairs presented as images; Know scales and medullas
Fiber identification:
SCB: animal, vegetable, synthetic
FOR: cotton, wool, silk, linen, spandex, polyester
Samples presented as images and pieces of fabric; Microscopic appearance (how they burn for FOR)
Polymer identification:
SCB: PETE, HDPE, PS, LDPE, PP, PVC
FOR: PC, PMMA
Samples likely presented in text format; Know density ranges and burn test results

10. Part 3: Paper Chromatography
This is a relatively simple experiment to perform and interpret, yet is still the second most poorly performed section. However, it is not the most highly weighted experiment.
How to do it:
Lets give it a try.
This is also about visual and quantitative comparison of the spots that are observed. SCB—you will do strict visual comparison of the patterns/colors obtained form the test. FOR—you may be asked to include calculations of retention factors to “prove your point” (spot distance/solvent distance)

11. Part 3: Paper Chromatography
How to prepare:
Get some paper towels, filter paper, coffee filters, absorbent art paper, something that is going to wick water via capillary action.
Get cups, beakers
Get pens (not gel pens), water color paints, M&Ms, Kool-aid and do it.

12. Part 4: Physical Evidence
Many possibilities:
Blood spatter evidence
Fingerprints
Shoe/tires
DNA
Glass
Entomology
Seeds/pollen
Blood type
Bullet striations

13. Part 4: Physical Evidence
Fingerprints:
3 pattern types (arch, loop, whorl) SCB
Each has subtypes FOR
Plain arch, tented arch
Ulnar loop, radial loop
Plain whorl, central pocket loop whorl, double loop whorl, accidental whorl
Identify deltas, identify ridge flow
Types of minutiae points
Types of development

14. Part 4: Physical Evidence
Blood stains
Blood stains identify their direction of travel
Round/circular stains landed perpendicular to the surface
Oval stains have a tail that points in their direction of travel, opposite their point of origin (asin Θ = W/L)
Size is relative to force (velocity)

15. Part 4: Physical Evidence
DNA
Students must be able to interpret DNA separations to determine possible donors
FOR students need to be able to discuss the PCR process
Shoe/Tire
Students must be able to match shoe and tire tracks based on pattern comparison and individual characteristics

16. Part 4: Physical Evidence
FOR Event only
Seeds/Pollen
Just need to look at pictures, visual comparisons
Soil
Wet and dry color comparison if allowed
Bullet striations
Just need to look at them again
ABO blood typing
Conceptually is very easy to accomplish with a few materials, we may do this this year
Additionally, there is a place for blood cell species id based on visuals

17. Part 4: Physical Evidence
Glass
Refractive index is the amount that light bends, you can do numerical comparisons
Glass fractures do not cross other glass fractures, tells you which crack was there first
High impact in glass cones out the exit side
Entomology
Insect arrival ordering,

18. Part 5: Analysis of the Crime
Most important part of the whole event
Need to leave plenty of time to write it up
Who and WHY!!!!
Who and WHY NOT!!!!
Criminal justice is about proof, forensics is about identification and the strength of the association
Developed a rubric to grade on: neatness, grammar, spelling, clarity of thought, correct associations, correct conclusions are all a part of the score.
Practice two things: evidence X has this some level of significance; person Y because

19. Science is Fun…
…but only if you know something.
The students that enjoy the event the most and the ones that come prepared. Otherwise it is 50 minutes of frustration.
Many of the activities in these events are qualitative and descriptive, but are also great ways of getting students to reason through the logical processes of scientific discovery (read: problem solving)