Interview with the certified forensic entomologist.

January 9, 2002 11:14 PM

Interview with the certified forensic entomologist. In other words she examines insects in dead bodies for criminal investigations. Its good to know that there are dedicated professionals doing this just in case I happen to wash up on the shores of Lake Michigan. Hey, it could happen to any of us.
posted by skallas (5 comments total)

I'm making a skallas suit.
posted by dong_resin at 11:50 PM on January 9, 2002

This was me on New Years Day.
posted by Frasermoo at 12:55 AM on January 10, 2002

Sage advice: "KEEP HAIRY AND SMOOTH MAGGOTS SEPARATE"

But I don't like the sound of "CORPSE/GROUND INTERFACE" -- wasn't that something that didn't quite make it out of PARC?
posted by pracowity at 3:30 AM on January 10, 2002

The opposing side try to put you down and can be very rude. When you are inexperienced it can be unnerving and that certainly makes me wonder why I am putting myself through this

Ms. Anderson could be talking about MetaFilter, no?

I like the way she's no-nonsense, but sensitive(doesn't like using whole pigs)and you get the feeling she's slightly put off by all the bottom-feeding weird critters lurking in the "sediment".

I specially liked her saying that what you see on TV is "much worse" than the real thing.
All of a sudden I love TV.
posted by MiguelCardoso at 4:13 AM on January 10, 2002

Great post, skallas! I read "A Fly for the Prosecution" over the winter holiday, and it was truly fascinating. (By M. Lee Goff, one of the founders of the American Board of Forensic Pathologists, if you're interested in looking it up.) He, too, details his pig experiments though his methodology is one that animal rights activists deplore- he kills live pigs and leaves them to decompose, but he makes a compelling argument as to why he does it that way. (And he also details the legal processes required to do such experiments. He doesn't just pick up a pack of piglets on the way to work and go to town.) Though it's definitely not mealtime reading, it's a great book if you're interested in the subject. (For a gloss of the subject, check out The Forensic Entomology Pages, they're a pretty cool overview.)
posted by headspace at 6:30 AM on January 10, 2002