Homework help > Briefly explain how natural fibers differ from syn... > Published by: CPA Guru 4 years ago
By: CPA Guru
Subject: Law
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Briefly explain how natural fibers differ from synthetic fibers. Give examples. How does fiber evidence relate to forensic science and evidence identification/analysis? Discuss the function of the polarized microscope in fiber analysis. ...[Show More]

4 years ago


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Natural fibers are those extracted from the environment either from animals, plants or inorganic materials. Examples of natural fibers are wool, silk cashmere, and cotton. Synthetic fibers are manufactured by laboratory procedures by altering natural compounds (Houck and Siegel, 2009). Examples of synthetic fibers are acrylic, nylon, and polyester. Fiber is considered class evidence because it can be used to link the crime scene to suspects and thus can be used to establish connections. The investigating agent tries to isolate the fibers that can narrow the scope of the suspects (Houck and Siegel, 2009). Chemical tests, as well as microscope analysis, could help improve the relevance of fiber evidence by linking the source to the crime scene and to isolate suspects. A polarized microscope is an optical microscope that uses polarizing light to analyze particles obtained from a crime scene especially fiber (Houck and Siegel, 2009). Under the polarizing light, special features of the fiber could be identified like distinctive fiber characteristics or even other particles like soil samples on the said fabric.

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