Veritasium

The Problem With Fingerprint Analysis

How accurate is modern forensics? Sponsored by Saily - Get an exclusive 15% discount on Saily data plans! Use code veritasium at checkout. Download the Saily app or go to https://saily.com/veritasium Last year, we launched the Elements of Truth game on Kickstarter and were thrilled by the response. We’re now in the final stages of production, with Kickstarter rewards shipping soon. If you missed the campaign, you can now pre-order the retail edition through our new website here - https://ve42.co/ForensicsDes If you backed us on Kickstarter, don’t worry, your game will ship before any pre-orders are fulfilled. If you’re looking for a molecular modelling kit, try Snatoms, a kit I invented where the atoms snap together magnetically - https://ve42.co/SnatomsV Sign up for the Veritasium newsletter for weekly science updates - https://ve42.co/Newsletter For early access to work-in-progress videos, join our Patreon https://ve42.co/VePatreon ▀▀▀ 0:00 The First Forensics Investigation 1:51 How accurate is hair in forensics? 3:30 Why Bite Marks Should Never Be Used In Court 5:22 Blood Spatter Analysis 8:04 How unique are fingerprints? 16:33 Is DNA evidence reliable? 21:38 How can we improve forensics as a science? ▀▀▀ Special thanks to the experts and collaborators who made this video possible: For their fantastic insights and time in contributing to this video (in order of appearance) - Dr Mary Bush from the University at Buffalo, John Foster at the University of Greenwich, Dr Itiel Dror, and Professor Turi King. For key expertise and consultation on the animations as well as wider research, Professor Denise Syndercombe Court of King’s College London and Dr John Butler of the National Institute for Standards and Technology. For their expert contributions to the development and research of the video (in alphabetical order), Zack Kowalske (@TheScienceDetective), Dr Emmanuel Nsiah Amoako, Professor Nick Scurich, Derek Tremain, Dr Sophie Turfus, Theron Vines, Professor Graham Williams and Jerri Williams. For key inspiration in the making of this video, Forensics: The Anatomy of Crime by Val McDermid, Patented: History of Inventions Podcast by History Hit, Murder Is Her Hobby: Frances Glessner Lee and The Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death Exhibition at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, deathindiorama.com, and @forensicsprof videos on the Henry Classification System for fingerprint analysis. ▀▀▀ Reference List: https://ve42.co/ForensicsRefs ▀▀▀ Special thanks to our Patreon supporters: Adam Foreman, Albert Wenger, Alex Porter, Alexander Tamas, André Powell, Anton Ragin, Balkrishna Heroor, Bertrand Serlet, Blake Byers, Bruce, Bryan Ackermann, Chris Brewer, Data Don, Dave Kircher, David Johnston, David Tseng, EJ Alexandra, Evgeny Skvortsov, Garrett Mueller, Gnare, gpoly, Hayden Christensen, Hong Thai Le, Ibby Hadeed, Jeromy Johnson, Jesse Brandsoy, Juan Benet, Kelcey Steele, KeyWestr, Kyi, Lee Redden, Marinus Kuivenhoven, Mark Heising, Martin Paull, Meekay, meg noah, Michael Krugman, Moebiusol - Cristian, Orlando Bassotto, Parsee Health, Paul Peijzel, Richard Sundvall, Robson, Sam Lutfi, Shalva Bukia, Sinan Taifour, Tj Steyn, Ubiquity Ventures, Vahe Andonians, wolfee ▀▀▀ Writers: Sarah Houlton and Gregor Čavlović Producer and Director: Sarah Houlton Presenter: Gregor Čavlović Editors: Trenton Oliver and Axel Oliver Assistant Editors: James Stuart and Peter Nelson Animators: Emma Wright, Domonkos Józsa, Alex Drakoulis, Andrew Neet and Fabio Albertelli Illustrator: Jakub Misiek Researchers: Sophia Rose and Gabe Strong Director of Photography: Richard Ing Camera Assistant: Jack Stevenson Additional Camera: Sarah Houlton Additional Writer: Sophia Rose Thumbnail Designers: Abdallah Rabah, Daniel Ellacott, Patryk Ziolkowski and Ben Powell Production Team: Jess Bishop-Laggett, Glen Griffiths, Matthew Cavanagh, Anna Milkovic and Justin St Laurent Executive Producers: Gregor Čavlović and Casper Mebius Additional video/photos supplied by Getty Images and Storyblocks Music from Epidemic Sound