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Fingerprints Recoverable From Cleaned Metal

Posted by Soulskill on from the leaving-a-mark dept.

dstates points out a recent article from guardian.co.uk which discusses a new method by which to recover fingerprints from metal. The method relies on corrosion caused by sweat and other biological residues on the metal's surface. Quoting: "The patterns of corrosion remain even after the surface has been cleaned, heated to 600C or even painted over. This means that traces of fingerprints stay on the metal long after the residue from a person's finger has gone. The chemical basis of the change is not yet clear, but [Dr. John Bond] believes it is corrosion by chloride ions from the salt in sweat. These produce lines of corrosion along the ridges of the fingerprint residue. When the metal is heated, for example in a bomb blast or when a gun is fired, the chemical reaction actually speeds up and makes the corrosion more pronounced."

4 of 178 comments (clear)

  1. Damnit! by jawtheshark · · Score: 3, Funny

    Damnit! I knew I should have used plastic vats to hide the bodies!

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    Ahhh...the great dumpster continuum. Many a free computer will be found there. -- sowth (748135)
    1. Re:Damnit! by txoof · · Score: 3, Funny

      Yeah, using hydrofluoric acid in the bathtub is a BAD IDEA (tm).

      There's a great Scene in Breaking Bad where Jessee tries to dispose of a body in a tub using hydrofluoric acid and a disgusting cheese body gloop falls through the ceiling after the HF eats the tub.

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      This one's tricky. You have to use imaginary numbers, like eleventeen... --Hobbes
  2. Re:Wooden bat never fails by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Except paper.

  3. Wrong game by spineboy · · Score: 4, Funny

    He's not playing Rock-Paper-Scissor, he's playing Bat-AcidSoakedSponge-Saw. The hand motions are a little strange though.

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    ..........FULL STOP.