Murder Mystery Project
In this project we got in groups and worked to solve a murder mystery! We were given the case in which Captain Cornball was murdered at a dinner party. We then worked to solve the mystery. To do this we did made pedigrees, fingerprinting, DNA analysis, chromatography and blood typing. We made pedigrees of all the 8 subjects using their family history and determined the most likely candidates for the murder of Captain Cornball. For fingerprinting we were given fingerprints from the crime scene. We then brushed a florescent powder onto the slides and determined if the fingerprint was a loop, whorl or arch. This then helped us led to the conclusion of which finger print belong to who. For DNA analysis we were given DNA from each of the suspects. WE then color tagged the DNA and ran it through a gel. It was then concluded which DNA match the crime scene. For the chromatography there was a note found at the crime scene that said "your a dead man." We then did a chromatography test on 3 pens and the ink on the note. We then came to the conclusion of which pen it was and who owned the pen. For blood typing we were given blood samples from each of the suspects and blood samples from the crime scene. Wed then tested to see which blood type each one was. This led us to the conclusion of who was possibly at the crime scene. Below is the link to our presentation with our case on the crime.
I learned a lot about human genetics in this project. I learned how traits and disease can be passed through family lines through inheritance. I learned that genetic disease are passed by the parents of the offspring. I learned about triple X chromosome disorder. This a disorder that can cause behavioral problems. I learned that DNA fingerprinting can be very difficult, especially if there are multiple at the scene. I learned that forensic science is a very interesting field. It has helped to solve many unsolved cases from 40 years ago. One thing I liked in this project was getting really in depth with the human body. Another thing I liked was doing the DNA sequencing. It was very interesting to see how the markers had separated in the gel. I wonder if in the next 5 years that forensic will reach a level of clarity that was never though possible. I also wonder if in class we will ever be able to do blood typing with actual blood.