Forensic Science Vocabulary Exam Questions with Verified Answers Latest Update 2024 (Already Passed)
Autopsy - Answers The internal and external examination of a body after death. An autopsy is performed to confirm or determine the cause of death and establish other pre-death conditions, such as t...
Autopsy - Answers The internal and external examination of a body after death. An autopsy is performed
to confirm or determine the cause of death and establish other pre-death conditions, such as the type of
food last consumed and the time it was consumed.
Ballistics - Answers The study of the motion of bullets and their examination for distinctive
characteristics after being fired. Examiners can use this evidence to match bullets or bullet fragments to
specific weapons.
Blood Splatter - Answers The pattern of blood that has struck a surface. This pattern can provide vital
information about the source of the blood. Can help determine the size and type of wound, the
direction and the speed with which the perpetrator or victim was moving, and the type of weapon used
to create the blood spill.
Caliber - Answers The diameter of the bore of a rifled firearm, usually expressed in hundredths of an
inch or in millimeters.
Composite Drawing - Answers A sketch of a suspect produced from eyewitness descriptions of one or
more persons.
Criminology - Answers The study of criminal activity and how it is dealt with by the law.
DNA - Answers Deoxyribonucleic acid. Double helix strand. Genetic code (fingerprint). 50% from mom
and 50% from dad. ACGT.
DNA Electrophoresis - Answers The technique by which DNA fragments are placed in a gel and charged
with electricity. An applied electric field then separates the fragments by size, as part of the process of
creating a genetic profile.
DNA Profiling - Answers The process of testing to identify DNA patterns or types. In forensic science this
testing is used to indicate parentage or to exclude or include individuals as possible sources of bodily
fluid stains (blood, saliva, semen) and other biological evidence (bones, hair, teeth)
Evidence - Answers Anything that has been used, left, removed, altered, or contaminated during the
commission of a crime or other event under investigation
Fingerprint - Answers The unique patterns created by skin ridges found on the palm sides of fingers and
thumbs.
Forensic Science - Answers The application of science to law. The application of science to those criminal
and civil laws that are enforced by police agencies in a criminal justice system. The focus of forensics is
the crime lab. The crime lab uses the principles and technique of biology, chemistry, physics, geology,
anthropology, and other sciences in order to place physical evidence into a professional discipline.
, Gas Chromatograph (GC) - Answers A forensic tool used to identify the chemical makeup of substances
used in the commission of crimes. The questioned substance is burned at high temperatures. The
temperature at which this material becomes gas is then charted to determine its makeup.
Gene - Answers A unit of inheritance consisting of a sequence of DNA that determines a particular
characteristic in an organism.
Hemoglobin - Answers A red blood cell protein responsible for transporting oxygen in the bloodstream.
Provides the red coloring of blood.
Latent fingerprint - Answers A fingerprint made by deposits of oils and/or perspiration, not usually
visible to the human eye.
Lie Detector - Answers A machine that charts how respiration and other bodily functions change as
questions are asked of the person being tested. Also known as a polygraph. An attempt to knowingly
provide false answers can cause changes in bodily functions.
Luminol - Answers A chemical that is capable of detecting bloodstains diluted up to 10,000 times. Is used
to identify blood that has been removed from a given area.
Physical Evidence - Answers Any object that can help explain an event under investigation, Can establish
that a crime has been committed, and Sometimes can provide a link between a crime and its victim or
between a crime and its perpetrator.
Ridge Characteristics - Answers Ridge endings, bifurcations, enclosures, and other ridge details, which
must match in two fingerprints for their common origin to be established.
Serology - Answers A technology dealing with the properties and actions of serums in blood
Super Glue Fuming - Answers Techniques used to develop latent fingerprints on non-porous surfaces. A
chemical in the glue reacts with and adheres to the finger oils, and then exposes latent prints.
Toxicology - Answers The study of poisons and drugs and their effect on human and animal populations.
It is the study of symptoms, mechanisms, treatments and detection of poisoning, especially the
poisoning of people.
Trace Evidence - Answers Material deposited at a crime or accident scene that can only be detected
through a deliberate processing procedure. An individual entering any environment will deposit traces
of his or her presence, and this material can be used as evidence. Examples- hairs and fibers
Trajectory - Answers The path of a projectile. A trajectory can be described mathematically either by the
geometry of the path, or as the position of the object over time.
Locard's Exchange Principle - Answers Dr Edmund Locard, a French police officer and forensic scientist.
Any physical contact between a suspect and victim will result in physical evidence being exchanged
between them.
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