Improve Toolmarks' Impressions in Soft Wax.

When the forensic toolmarks laboratory receives for examination and comparison a tool that is suspected of having been involved in a crime, the expert performs tests designed to determine whether or not the specific tool generates the same toolmarks as those found at the crime scene. This is performed by testing tool striation on a piece of soft metal, such as lead, and examining the marks left by the tool. Studies have shown that wax may be an optimal material for this purpose.

Bolt Cutter Blade's Imprint in Toolmarks Examination.

Bolt cutters are known as cutting tools which are used for cutting hard objects and materials, such as padlocks and bars. Bolt cutter blades leave their imprint on the cut objects. When receiving a cut object from a crime scene, forensic toolmarks examiners can determine whether the suspected cutting tool was used in a specific crime or not based on class characteristic marks and individual marks that the bolt cutter blades leave on the cut object.

A physical match of a metallic chip found on a bolt cutters' blade.

Bolt cutters are known as devices which are used for cutting hard objects and rigid materials such as padlocks and bars. They are commonly used in instances of forced entries. In this case study, a bolt cutter was found in the car of two suspects in a grocery burglary.

The class characteristic mark of the H&M Mul-T-Lock picking tool in toolmarks examination.

Mul-T-Lock is a high security lock cylinder distinguished by the use of a telescoping "pin-in-pin"-tumbler design. Picking the Mul-T-Lock cylinder with a traditional picking tool is highly complicated because it can get stuck between the inner and outer pins. The H&M Mul-T-Lock picking tool was designed to overcome this problem and facilitate the picking of the "pin-in-pin" cylinder.

Phase transitions and thermodynamic properties of dense assemblies of truncated nanocubes and cuboctahedra.

Inspired by recent advances on the self-assembly of non-spherical nanoparticles, Monte Carlo simulations of the packing and thermodynamic properties of truncated nanocubes and cuboctahedra have been performed. The ergodicity problem was overcome by a modified Wang-Landau entropic sampling algorithm and equilibrium structural and thermodynamic properties were computed over a wide density range for both non-interacting and interacting particles. We found a structural transition from a simple cubic to a rhombohedral order when the degree of truncation exceeds a value of 0.

Estimating projectile perpendicular impact velocity on metal sheet targets from the shape of the target hole.

The correlation between bullet hole shapes in metal and projectile impact velocity was examined. A series of shots were fired from an M-16A1 assault rifle of 5.56 mm caliber toward a 1-mm thick metal target.

Different proliferative and apoptotic activity in peripheral versus central parts of human uterine leiomyomas.

Objective: To determine whether there are differences in proliferative and apoptotic activity and in expression of sex steroid receptors between central and peripheral parts of human uterine leiomyomas in different menstrual cycle phases.

Methods: Biopsy specimens of the myometrium and peripheral and central parts of uterine leiomyomas were obtained from 15 women in the proliferative phase and 8 women in the secretory phase. Mitotic cells were detected by immunohistochemical staining for Ki67.

Physical match: insole and shoe.

In this case report, the authors show an interesting case of a physical match between an insole and a suspect shoe that was connected to the crime scene by a blood drop. Several pairs of shoes were seized and inspected. On the insoles of the main suspect's shoes, two different types of prints were seen, one was clear and the other image was faint.