Crashes and Collapses, Revised Edition

Thomas Bohan

Description

Praise for the previous edition:

"...[an] interesting book...an ideal primer for teachers, aspiring forensic scientists and engineers, as well as members of the general public...valuable..."—Journal of Forensic Sciences

"Anyone who is interested in forensic science would find this book to be a powerful reference about the application of the field."—NSTA Recommends

Engineering scientists in motor vehicle crash investigations use forensic evidence to measure and analyze the variables involved in a car crash. Crashes and Collapses, Revised Edition examines forensic cases and investigative methods from the forensic engineering sciences, which include the physical sciences as well as all of the engineering fields. The engineering sciences dominate forensic investigations of events underlying civil disputes while also playing an important role in criminal investigations, especially in those in which a crime has been disguised as an accident.

Crashes and Collapses, Revised Edition provides middle and high school students with a unique look at this area of forensic science. After providing a history of forensic engineering science, this compelling eBook goes on to introduce Newton's laws of motion, which underlie accident reconstruction; the critical-speed-scuff method for determining the speed of cars; the obstacles confronting forensic investigators; and more. The eBook also provides enlightening looks at specific cases of crashes and collapses, presenting both the facts and analyses.

Chapters include:

• History and Guiding Principles of Forensic Engineering Science


• Accident Reconstruction: Getting Started


• Accident Reconstruction: Moving into High Gear


• Speed from Critical-Speed Scuffs


• A Double Murder Poorly Disguised as an Accident?


• The Crash of the Merchant Vessel Tamano


• Subway Stop


• Crane Collapse


• Scaffold Collapse


• Bringing It All Together: Lessons Conveyed.

Sujets

• Forensics
• Forensic Science
• Young Adult Nonfiction
• Sciences et techniques
• Investigation
• Engineering
• Evidence
• Enquête
• Médecine légale
• Nature
• Science

Informations

• Publié par: Infobase Publishing
• Date de parution: 01 octobre 2019
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781438182636
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

Crashes and Collapses, Revised Edition
Copyright © 2019 by Thomas L. Bohan
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher. For more information, contact:
Chelsea House An imprint of Infobase 132 West 31st Street New York NY 10001
ISBN 978-1-4381-8263-6
You can find Chelsea House on the World Wide Web at http://www.infobase.com
Contents Chapters History and Guiding Principles of Forensic Engineering Science Accident Reconstruction: Getting Started Accident Reconstruction: Moving into High Gear Speed from Critical-Speed Scuffs Murder Poorly Disguised as an Accident Subway Stop The Grounding of the Merchant Vessel Tamano Crane Collapse Scaffolding Collapse Bringing It All Together Conclusion Support Materials Glossary Further Reading Index
Preface

Forensic science has become in the early 21st century what the space race was in the 1960s—an accessible and inspiring window into the world of science. The surge in popularity that began in the later part of the 20th century echoes a boom that began in the latter part of the 19th century and was labeled the "Sherlock Holmes effect." Today it is called the "C.S.I. effect," but the consequences are the same as they were a century ago. The public has developed a seemingly insatiable appetite for anything forensic, be it fiction, reality, or somewhere between.
Essentials of Forensic Science is a set that is written in response to this thirst for knowledge and information. Written by eminent forensic scientists, the books cover the critical core of forensic science from its earliest inception to the modern laboratory and courtroom.
Forensic science is broadly defined as the application of science to legal matters, be they criminal cases or civil lawsuits. The history of the law dates back to the earliest civilizations, such as the Sumerians and the Egyptians, starting around 5000 B.C.E. The roots of science are older than civilization. Early humans understood how to make tools, how to cook food, how to distinguish between edible and inedible plants, and how to make rudimentary paints. This knowledge was technical and not based on any underlying unifying principles. The core of these behaviors is the drive to learn, which as a survival strategy was invaluable. Humans learned to cope with different environments and conditions, allowing adaptation when other organisms could not. Ironically, the information encoded in human DNA gives us the ability to analyze, classify, and type it.
Science as a formalized system of thinking can be traced to the ancient Greeks, who were the first to impose systematic patterns of thought and analysis to observations. This occurred around 500 B.C.E. The Greeks organized ideas about the natural world and were able to conceive of advanced concepts. They postulated the atom (from the Greek word atomos ) as the fundamental unit of all matter. The Greeks were also among the first to study anatomy, medicine, and physiology in a systematic way and to leave extensive written records of their work. They also formalized the concept of the autopsy.
From ancient roots to modern practice the history of forensic science winds through the Middle Ages, alchemy, and the fear of poisoning. In 1840 pivotal scientific testimony was given by Mathieu-Joseph-Bonaventure (Mateu Josep Bonaventura) Orfila (1787–1853) in a trial in Paris related to a suspected case of arsenic poisoning. His scientific technique and testimony marks the beginning of modern forensic science. Today the field is divided into specialties such as biology (DNA analysis), chemistry, firearms and tool marks, questioned documents, toxicology, and pathology. This division is less than a half-century old. In Orfila's time the first to practice forensic science were doctors, chemists, lawyers, investigators, biologists, and microscopists with other skills and interests that happened to be of use to the legal system. Their testimony was and remains opinion testimony, something the legal system was slow to embrace. Early courts trusted swearing by oath—better still if oaths of others supported it. Eyewitnesses were also valued, even if their motives were less than honorable. Only in the last century has the scientific expert been integrated into the legal arena with a meaningful role. Essentials of Forensic Science is a distillation of the short history and current status of modern forensic science.
Crashes and Collapses by Dr. Tom Bohan, J. D.; Diplomate, International Institute of Forensic Engineering Sciences; Founders Award recipient of the Engineering Sciences Section, American Academy of Forensic Sciences. This book covers forensic engineering and the investigation of accidents such as building and bridge collapses; accident reconstruction, and transportation disasters.
Each volume begins with an overview of the subject, followed by a discussion of the history of the field and mention of the pioneers. Since the early forensic scientists were often active in several areas, the same names will appear in more than one volume. A section on the scientific principles and tools summarizes how forensic scientists working in that field acquire and apply their knowledge. With that foundation in place the forensic application of those principles is described to include important cases and the projected future in that area.
Finally, it is important to note that the volumes and the set as a whole are not meant to serve as a comprehensive textbook on the subject. Rather, the set is meant as a "pocket reference" best used for obtaining an overview of a particular subject while providing a list of resources for those needing or wanting more. The content is directed toward nonscientists, students, and members of the public who have been caught up in the current popularity of forensic science and want to move past fiction into forensic reality.
Acknowledgments

I am pleased to acknowledge the help of my editor Frank K. Darmstadt in prying the completed version of this book from my reluctant fingers and especially his tirelessly good-natured support during the final year. I note my gratefulness for the continuing support of Joseph A. Keierleber, whose work with me over the years has provided the talent needed to reduce to visible images for court and press my forensic findings and arguments. Further in connection with images, I here record that one of the greatest pleasures that I had in working on this project was my work with Suzanne M. Tibor, as she discussed with me and then quickly located and acquired the photographs with which I wished to illustrate the text. Finally, I thank Professor Suzanne Bell for her prime role in involving me with Facts On File, Frank, and the project.
Introduction

Most forensic scientists, though they may not admit it, derive pleasure from their field's sudden TV-driven popularity. Men, women, and children across the country, drawn to the array of shows that have blossomed from the first C.S.I. program in 2000, have developed a great interest in, even love for, forensic science; teenage clerks at electronics stores pronounce it to be "cool." The downsides of this new world for forensic science and forensic scientists are the misconceptions sown by the same dramas, misconceptions that when they reach the level of "psychic detective" absurdities, threaten to drive some practitioners berserk. Rather than just being annoyed, an increasing number of forensic scientists are taking advantage of the opportunity given them by public fascination with their field and telling their own stories. Doing so, they can show a wide audience what they actually do and reveal the role that real science and not pseudoscience plays in their work. Crashes and Collapses includes a collection of stories based on real cases involving the forensic engineering sciences. It may surprise those whose view of forensic science has been formed by those television shows to learn that a large fraction, perhaps most, of forensic work involves the engineering sciences and that this has been the case since ancient times. This book is about some of that work and is aimed at introducing curious adults as well as middle- and high-school students to the world of forensic science in such a way that they will be better able to evaluate what they hear and see about forensic investigations and also about the broader world within which these investigations take place.
The engineering sciences include the physical sciences such as chemistry and physics, as well as all of the engineering fields. The engineering sciences dominate forensic investigations of events underlying civil disputes. The engineering sciences also play an important role in criminal investigations, especially when it appears that a crime may have been disguised as an accident. A distinguishing feature of the forensic engineering sciences is that when one of its specialists is called in on a case, it is often unclear exactly what he or she can contribute to the investigation. It is a common occurrence that the authorities who have called on them, while convinced that they can help, are at a loss as to what exactly they can do. This is especially true in the area of forensic engineering science known as accident reconstruction.
Most of the cases described in the book reflect investigations carried out by the author. However, none is presented in exactly the way it happened. Changes have been made to obscure identities and to better shape the narrative as a teaching device. (For example, the driver in the case describe in chapter 2 as a hit-and-run did not flee the scene.)
It has been said that until one can describe an event with numbers, one has not even begun to understand the event. It is certainly difficult to gain an un