Detail Cantuman

This edition of Forensic Science: An Introduction to Scientific
and Investigative Techniques includes several new features
designed to assist you in teaching this class at a variety of
levels, from high school through freshman and sophomores
in college. It is not meant as a definitive textbook in any one
area of forensic science, but rather as an overview of the
most commonly known and widely practiced areas. I hope
this treatment will help students engage in the material and
develop an interest in the underlying science. For a typical
semester-long introductory course, the core chapters are
Chapters 1–6 and 9–15. Chapters 7 and 8 (forensic anthropology
and entomology) are shorter and slightly more advanced,
but students typically find these two topics of great interest.
Chapters 17 and 19 are a bit more advanced and invoke
some mathematics (algebra). Students sometimes struggle
with the core concepts of microscopy but understanding these
concepts is critical given that microscopy and trace evidence
are inseparable. The remaining chapters are designed to stand
on their own to the extent possible. Digital evidence and forensic
computing are emerging as a critical forensic discipline,
and Chapter 20 could easily round out a semester class.
Two new features have been added. First is a section of
advanced questions and exercises. These are designed for
advanced students or students who require an honors addin
component. For the more ambitious, these could be extra
credit assignments or group activities. Second, a complete
crime scene scenario has been added to Chapter 3, and
subsequent chapters refer to it either explicitly in the last
section of the chapter or as part of the advanced questions
and exercises. The scenario is meant to help integrate what
might otherwise seem to be disconnected units, particularly
later in the book, as student memories of earlier material
may have faded. Finally, inserts entitled “Myths of Forensic
Science” appear in most chapters and are meant to counter
false impressions that many students have regarding the
practice of forensic science and how it has evolved in the last
few years.
It is critical to note that this is not meant to be a definitive
treatment of any one forensic discipline, nor is it intended
as a primary reference in a judicial setting. It is designed to
provide students an overview of the field and examples of
practice, but it is not a manual.