{[['
']]}
']]}
The general public’s fascination with forensic science is unquestioned. Over the past decade, television programs focusing on the solution of crimes—such as the Law & Order, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Cold Case, and their spin-offs—have consistently topped popularity charts in the United States and other nations. Viewers seem to be captivated by the crime‑solving tools that law enforcement officers have at their disposal and the skills with which they use those tools. The appeal of crime stories is not new. Going
back at least as far as Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Murder in the Rue Morgue” (1841), Charles Dickens’ Bleak House (1852-53), and Wilkie Collins’s The Woman in White (1859), such tales have been best
sellers around the world. This fascination with forensic science is not difficult to understand. Investigators today have an amazing array of instruments, equipment, chemicals, and other devices with which to examine the most minute evidence. No criminal can hope to escape from a crime scene without leaving behind at least some evidence. A single eyelash may be all that is necessary for his or her identification. One of the most important contributors to the forensic scientist’s investigative arsenal has been the science of chemistry. Researchers have developed a host of new procedures for analyzing blood, fingerprints, DNA samples, documents, ammunition, medicines and drugs, soil, bacteria and other microorganisms, fire remnants, and even voiceprints. The purpose of Forensic Chemistry is to provide an introduction to some of the most important developments in this field over the past few decades and make it possible for readers to continue the study of forensic chemistry on their own
