Radiodense bullet wipe around osseous entrance gunshot wounds.

"Bullet wipe" is the material deposited by a bullet on any surface with which it comes into contact after it is fired and may contain debris from the gun barrel, including particles of primer and metal fragments from previously fired bullets. X-ray analysis is a non-destructive method by which traces of metallic elements can be visually detected. The analysis of osseous defects for radiodense bullet wipe (RBW) assists in determining the presence or absence of perforating gunshot wounds, especially in fragmented, skeletonized remains.

Spatial Distributions of Oxygen Stable Isotope Ratios in Tap Water From Mexico for Region of Origin Predictions of Unidentified Border Crossers.

One of the many difficulties associated with identifying undocumented border crossers stems from an inability to narrow down the search area for the region of origin and family members to obtain family reference samples for DNA comparison. While the geography of regions of origins is wide, the biological profiles of the undocumented border crossers often show strong similarities, young and male. The isotopic composition of human bones, teeth, and hair has been demonstrated to be useful biomarkers for tracing locations and movements of individuals and for aiding in the identification of human remains.

Classification of Porcine Cranial Fracture Patterns Using a Fracture Printing Interface.

Distinguishing between accidental and abusive head trauma in children can be difficult, as there is a lack of baseline data for pediatric cranial fracture patterns. A porcine head model has recently been developed and utilized in a series of studies to investigate the effects of impact energy level, surface type, and constraint condition on cranial fracture patterns. In the current study, an automated pattern recognition method, or a fracture printing interface (FPI), was developed to classify cranial fracture patterns that were associated with different impact scenarios documented in previous experiments.

The Role of Interface Shape on the Impact Characteristics and Cranial Fracture Patterns Using the Immature Porcine Head Model,

The forensic literature suggests that when adolescents fall onto edged and pointed surfaces, depressed fractures can occur at low energy levels. This study documents impact biomechanics and fracture characteristics of infant porcine skulls dropped onto flat, curved, edged, and focal surfaces. Results showed that the energy needed for fracture initiation was nearly four times higher against a flat surface than against the other surfaces.

A revised method of sexing the human innominate using Phenice's nonmetric traits and statistical methods.

The traits of the pubis described by Phenice (Am J Phys Anthropol 30 (1969) 297-302) have been used extensively by physical anthropologist for sex estimation. This study investigates all three of Phenice's characteristics in an approach similar to Walker's (Am J Phys Anthropol 136 (2008) 39-50) study using observations from the cranium and mandible. The ventral arc, the subpubic contour, and the medial aspect of the ischio-pubic ramus were scored on a five-point ordinal scale from a sample of 310 adult, left innominates of known ancestry and sex from the Hamann-Todd Human Osteological Collection and the W.