JULY 2000

FEATURES

DNA Profiling to Solve and Prevent Crime
Tony Raymond describes how DNA is used to identify criminals, and points to spectacularly successful results overseas.

Safeguards to the DNA Database
Alastair Ross discusses the social issues arising from the DNA database and how these concerns are being addressed.

Individual Protection or Public Good?
Felicity Hampel says it is wrong to carry out DNA tests just because the technology exists.

DNA Evidence: Proceed with Care
Justice Michael Kirby identifies controls required for the use of DNA evidence.

Trace Evidence: The Silent Witness
Not every crime can be solved using DNA evidence, says Claude Roux.

Digital Fingerprinting
Ink is becoming obsolete as a computerised database gives police new powers of identifying criminals. Fiona West reports.

Find Me That Fingerprint!
Fingerprints don’t show up well on plastics such as polymer bank notes, but James Robertson describes a technique that solves this problem.

The Red Thumb Mark Lives Again
Peter Pockley discovers how faint fingerprints can be retrieved.

What Identified Skeletons Tell Us
Denise Donlon says that determining the ancestry of skeletons is being made more difficult by the repatriation of Aboriginal remains.

What You Can Tell from Adhesive Tape
Juuso Huttunen reveals that forensic experts can discriminate between adhesive tapes to compare the origin of drug seizures.

Pollen Exposes Cannabis Dealers
Forensic botanists can now trace the distribution chain of cannabis from user to dealer and even grower. Stephen Luntz reports.

Forensic Dentistry Bites Back
David Griffiths reveals how forensic dentists can distinguish between twins based on their bite marks.

Crime in the Digital Age
Peter Grabosky explores the application of digital technology to child pornography and securities fraud.

Photography: Bet Your Life on It?
Gale Spring reveals how photo experts can detect when a camera lies.

Malpractice or Natural Causes?
David Ranson investigates how many deaths in hospitals are due to poor medical treatment.

The Coroner's Role in Investigating Unexpected Infant Death
John Hilton investigates the scene of an infant death to determine whether it was natural, accidental or deliberate.

Identifying Those at Risk of Suicide
Statistics on risk factors for suicide have been difficult to collate, but the National Coroners Information System will help to identify potential suicide victims, writes Tim Lyons.

INSIGHT

Best Scientific Advice for Maralinga Clean-up
Jeff Harris defends criticisms of the methods used to clean up Maralinga.

Maralinga: Clean-up or Cover-up?
Alan Parkinson says there are many outstanding issues and unanswered questions regarding the clean-up of Maralinga.

SERIAL

UPDATE

Impact crater discovered

No need to wash the windows

Nuclear reactor close to settled

Antibiotic assassin deals death blow to bacteria

Recalibrating the carbon-14 clock

A titanic discovery

Seeing through cosmic gunk

Why koalas are fussy feeders

Solar maximum a fizzer for aurora watchers

Rammed earth buildings poorly insulated

The short nose knows

Greenhouse waste products find salinity use

UK powerhouse slates lack of funding

"Pregnant brain" a fallacy 

BRIEFS

Rebuilding the food pyramid

Ecstasy brings agony of brain damage

Born to the soil

More complex molecules in space

Honey bee mite arrives

Simple science stops sewage

Reduced blind spots for reversing trucks

Local wind power