Some applications of an argon ion laser in forensic science

A two watt argon ion laser has been in use in the Metropolitan Police Laboratory for about six months. During this time it has been applied to a number of cases with considerable success. Shoeprints, fingerprints, erased writing, differences in inks, transfer of inks to other surfaces, stains on clothing, differences in paints, fibres and interference patterns in glass have all been either detected or enhanced when conventional techniques have failed.     

A case of sudden death by decidual cell embolism

A 35-year-old multipara died suddenly of a pulmonary embolism about 12 h after delivery. The morphological features and the entry site of the emboli into the circulation suggested that they were decidual cells. Intact decidual cells accounted for only a minority of the emboli: the great majority were cells that had lost their nuclei and/or had been fragmented. The presence of embolized areas, accompanied by fibroblasts and newly formed capillaries, suggested that the embolization process had started before the beginning of labor. However, no symptoms suggesting embolism had been recorded on the clinical chart.