Miscellaneous Monday—Number Forty

"The Art of Forensic Detection and Sherlock Holmes."

By Robert Ing, DSc, FAPSc.

Article (5 pages).

Online at the author's website (HERE).

   "Sherlock Holmes and his art of forensic detection has and still is an inspiration to those who practice this as modern day science."

FOR someone living at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, the character of Sherlock Holmes nevertheless possessed a formidable store of "knowledge in chemistry, bloodstain identification, botany, geology, anatomy, law, cryptanalysis, fingerprinting, document examination, ballistics, psychological profiling and forensic medicine." But there was one forensic technology widely available at the time that the Sage of Baker Street ignored. As the author says, "It would appear that despite its popularity Holmes preferred not to trouble himself with it." Can you guess what it was? [Answer below.]

References:

- Sherlock Holmes (HERE).

- "the 2009 Movie" (Warning! Spoilers! HERE).

- Karl Landsteiner (HERE).

- Georg Popp [sic: Puppe] (HERE).

- "The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle" (Warning! Spoilers! HERE).

- Alphonse Bertillon (HERE).

- anthropometry (HERE).

- craniology (HERE).

- The Hound of the Baskervilles (Warning! Spoilers! HERE).

- "[The Adventure of] The Naval Treaty" (Warning! Spoilers! HERE).

- Sir Francis Galton (HERE).

- Latent fingerprint identification (HERE).

- Sir Edward Richard Henry (HERE).

- "A Case of Identity" (Warning! Spoilers! HERE).

- Francois Demelle (HERE).

- "The Adventure of the Reigate Squire" (Warning! Spoilers! HERE).

- "The Adventure of the Empty House" (Warning! Spoilers! HERE).

- Edmond Locard (HERE).

- profiling (HERE, HERE, and HERE).

- Dr. Thomas Bond (HERE).

- Jack the Ripper (HERE).

- cold reading (HERE).

- modus ponens (HERE).

- deduction (HERE).

Resources:

- Related: "Sherlock Holmes and the Tools of Deduction" (2012) by Jimmy Stamp in Smithsonian Magazine (HERE).

- Through the years there have been many "versions" of Sherlock Holmes (HERE).

- [Answer: yhpargotohp.]

The bottom line:

Unless otherwise noted, all bibliographical data are derived from The FictionMags Index created by William G. Contento & edited by Phil Stephensen-Payne.

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