Digging up the Past

1
Digging up the Past

• Can you use your scientific skills
• To solve the mystery of the murder of
• Mr. Bones

2
Task

• Collect evidence to piece together a picture of
  our murder victim.
• You will do this by
• Excavating the body.
• Identifying parts of the body.
• Testing blood samples found.
• Analysing stomach contents.
• Test brain matter for clues.
• Observing artefacts.

3
Lab notes

• You will need to collect as much evidence to help
  you solve the crime.
• Your note book needs to include
• Drawings, names and measurements of bones found
  to help identify the victim e.g M/F, age, diet
• Results of forensic tests.
• Drawing of skull for facial reconstruction
• Your case report will be a summary of your
  findings

4
Archaeology

• Archaeologists collect evidence by digging up
  from under the ground, remains and objects buried
  for many many years.
• What do you think they could find out from these
  remains and objects that they find?

5
Excavating evidence

• If you find any evidence buried it is important
  that it is removed carefully and preserved
  properly.
• You need to carry out the following to ensure
  correct removal of the remains from the rock.
• Digging a site requires the removal of layers
• Samples of the rock need to be taken for study.
• What could the rock possibly tell us about the
  remains that we find?
• If we found remains in different layers of rock,
  what evidence would this give us about the age of
  the remains?

6
Excavation techniques

• Large samples of rock can be removed by chipping
  it away using chisels and hammers or pic-axes.
• Care must be taken that no remains will be
  damaged using this technique
• Small samples of rock can be removed by gentle
  scraping of the rock, using trowels, dental pics
  and probes
• This techniques would be best used when the
  remains become evident.
• Hand and tooth brushes can be used to remove any
  rock still attached to the remains for fine
  cleaning

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Archaeology links

• Want to know more about archaelogy?
• Dig into these links to excavate some further
  information and activities
• http//www.canterburytrust.co.uk/schools/discover/
  discov03.htm
• http//www.bbc.co.uk/history/archaeology/ser3pro3_
  1.shtml
• http//www.bbc.co.uk/history/archaeology/launch_gm
  s_dig_deeper.shtml

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Teacher and technician notes

• Bones need to set in home made rock prior to the
  excavation.
• Lays singular bones out in trays/containers
• Mix together sand and salt solution (enough to
  cover bones)
• Cover the bones completely, to bury them, in the
  mixture
• Leave the mixture to harden to rock around the
  bones, ready for excavation

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Post excavation work

• You need to arm yourself will all the available
  evidence to interpret to find out about the
  history behind the remains
• Why would it be important to collect other
  objects found around our skeleton?
• Some remains need to washed and marked, ready for
  identification.

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Identification

• You need to identify your specimen
• You need to record on the tag
• Name of bone
• Date
• Measurements
• Length
• Weight
• Sketches or photograph
• This will help you piece together more
  information on your remains.
• Why do you need to collect and keep evidence that
  you find?

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Analysis

• You will carry out a range of experiments to
  analyse some of the remains find in or near the
  body, to help you solve this case.
• Follow the instructions at each station and
  record your evidence.

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Reconstruction

• You will need to draw a detailed picture of the
  skull of your specimen as you will need to make a
  modelled clay face, using the shape of the skull
  of your victim.

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Case Report

• Your case report must give the following with
  supporting evidence.
• Age
• Sex
• Diet
• Cause of death
• This will help the archaeologists find out when
  he died.

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Food Test

• Test for Starch Iodine
• Positive test Brown ? Black
• Test for Glucose Benedicts Solution
• Positive test (when heated) Blue ? Orange
• Test for Protein Biuret
• Positive test Blue to Purple

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Brain tissue

• Add solution to sample
• If Red tissue has oxygen in it
• If Blue tissue starved of oxygen

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Blood sample

• Test sample with universal indicator paper
• If turns red high levels of carbon dioxide in
  the blood
• If turns green normal level of carbon
  dioxide in the blood

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Bodies from before

• In the past, archaeologists, historians and
  scientists have worked together to piece together
  clues to solve the mystery deaths of remains they
  have found during excavations.
• Follow these links to learn more about these
  cases
• Lindow Man Mummy from the bog
• http//www.mummytombs.com/mummylocator/featured/li
  ndowman.htm
• Ice mummies
• http//www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/icemummies/iceman.htm
  l
• http//library.thinkquest.org/J003409/ice.htm
• http//dsc.discovery.com/convergence/iceman/intera
  ctive/interactive.html

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Crime Scene Investigation

• Forensic scientists collect evidence from present
  crime scenes in the aim of finding perpetrators
  of crime
• Watch the Bristish Pathe movie clip to see how
  detectives used to solve crimes in the 1920s.
  Now try some techniqiues used by scientists today
  to solve crimes? How are these techniques
  different?
• They collect small samples of evidence left
  behind at the scene and use them to reconstruct
  events that led to the crime occurring.
• Use some investigative skills to solve the
  following crimes
• INK PEN MURDER
• WHO STOLE THE SWEETIES?

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• Ink Pen
• Murder

• We have reason to suspect dirty deeds at work!
• Mr Scribbler, the chief animation assistant, on
  the new Disney film was found murdered at his
  drawing board late last night.
• The murder weapon is thought to be a pen, as the
  only clue left behind was a pool of ink and ink
  stains on Mr Scribblers shirt.
• Our only hope, in the form of Mr Labcoat, our
  resident scientist, has gone on holiday for two
  weeks and we need to track a our culprit before
  he strikes again!
• My only hope is to ask you, our new forensic
  science recruits, to solve the mystery of the
  Ink Pen Murder.
• Take the challenge!!!!!!!!

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Chromatography

• Using a separating technique called
  chromatography, we might just be able to find
  the murderer from our list of suspects.
• We can use chromatography to separate very small
  quantities of substances, which vary in different
  solubilities in different solvent.
• Using a special type of paper called
  chromatography paper, which you can put the
  substances onto, and by placing the paper into a
  solvent, the different substance will separate on
  the basis of how well they dissolve in the
  solvent.

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How it separates inks

• Ink from pens usually contain different types of
  dye, which make up the colours. These dyes have
  different solublities in the solvent. Those,
  which are the most soluble in the solvent, travel
  the furthest, carried by the solvent and coloured
  traces can be seen.
• This indicates that if we can find exactly the
  same chromatogram using a range of inks from our
  suspects we will be able to work out who the
  murderer is, by comparing it to one carried out
  by Mr Labcoat on the sample found at the scene
  before he left.
• The instructions on how to carry out this
  investigation can be found opposite, should you
  chose to except the mission.GOOD LUCK!!!
•  
• Inspector Gadget

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You will need

• !    Safety goggles
• !    A piece of chromatography paper
• !    A beaker containing a solvent to run the
  chromatogram
• !    Evidence inks from suspect A, B, and C
• !    Sample of ink found at the crime scene
•  
• ! SafetyEthanol, which is used in the solvent,
  is highly flammable and harmful. Take care when
  using it.

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To carry out the investigation, follow these
instructions

• !    Place the chromatography paper on the bench
  in front of you. Using a ruler and a pencil draw
  a line across the bottom of the paper 2cm from
  the base. Make sure this line is parallel.
• !    Using a pencil mark four dots on the line,
  evenly spaced out.
• !    Put your three samples from your suspects on
  the first three dots, a small drop will be enough
  and then the sample of ink from the scene of the
  crime on the last spot. Mark at the top which
  sample belongs to who, for your own reference.
• !    Stand the paper in the solvent and let the
  solvent run until it has almost reached the top.
  (See the diagram on next page).
• !    Lift out the chromatography paper and leave
  it to dry.
• !    Compare the evidence and solve the mystery.
  If the traces match.then they are the murderer.

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Finger prints

• No one has the same finger prints
• as you!

Use the ink pad, to roll one finger at a
time across the ink pad then carefully roll it
across the paper
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Bone Fact File

• Measurements/descriptions to help you find out
  more

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Femur measurement
28
Foot size
29
Sex
30
Date of Birth
31
Diet