Jump to main content

Forensics: How Does It Matter? Measure the Spatter!

1
2
3
4
5
748 reviews

Abstract

Every criminal leaves behind evidence at the crime scene. The trick to catching the criminal is collecting all of the evidence and making sense of it. This is what the forensic expert does. In this science project you will be correlating the size of blood stains to the distance they fell, but do not get too grossed out. You will be doing it with fake blood. If you like figuring out mysteries, this is the science project for you!

Summary

Areas of Science
Difficulty
 
Time Required
Very Short (≤ 1 day)
Prerequisites
None
Material Availability
Readily available.
Cost
Low ($20 - $50)
Safety
This topic can be a little scary. If you are squeamish, you may want to choose another topic. Adult supervision is required when doing background research, especially online, on this topic.
Credits

Michelle Maranowski, PhD, and Teisha Rowland, PhD, Science Buddies

Special thanks to Mr. Geoff Bruton, Ventura County Sheriff's Department Forensic Sciences Laboratory Firearms & Toolmarks Section.

This project is based on a DragonflyTV episode.

Objective

To investigate how, in the field of forensic science, the size of blood spatter correlates to the distance from which the blood fell.

Introduction

The word forensic comes from the Latin word forensis, which means of or before the forum. "During the time of the Romans, a criminal charge meant presenting the case before a group of public individuals in the forum. Both the person accused of the crime and the accuser would give speeches based on their side of the story. The individual with the best argument and delivery would determine the outcome of the case. Basically, the person with the sharpest forensic skills would win. This origin is the source of the two modern usages of the word "forensic" — as a form of legal evidence and as a category of public presentation" (Wikipedia, 2008). Today, the use of scientific evidence is so prevalent in the courtroom that the term forensics has become associated with forensic science. Forensic science is any science that is used in the courts or judicial system and it is extremely vital. The goal of a forensic scientist, like the one shown in Figure 1, below, is to remain impartial and to appraise all of the available evidence in order to determine the truth.

Forensic science includes many areas of study, such as criminalistics, engineering science, and pathology and biology. If a sports player were to die suddenly while playing a game, a forensic scientist with a specialty in pathology and biology would be called in to find out the cause. The scientist may have to perform an autopsy and examine the body to determine if the death was natural, such as being caused by a health problem, or not. To find out more about a related career, you can check out the Science Buddies career profile on pathologists. On the other hand, a forensic engineer may need to apply engineering principles to the purposes of law investigations. For example, a forensic science with specialty training as a civil engineer may study failure analysis and evaluate the quality of construction and manufacturing of structures involved in a crime or catastrophic event. They may look into why a particular car rolled over or why a building or bridge collapsed. In general, to become a forensic scientist, you may need to study math, science, and engineering. To find out more about being a forensic scientist, you can check out the Science Buddies career profile on forensic science technicians.

In this forensics science project, you will investigate how the size of blood spatter changes depending on the height that the blood was dropped from, but you will be using fake blood instead of real blood. In crime scenes where people are wounded, investigators apply principles of blood spatter analysis by taking measurements, such as of the diameter of the blood spatter, to figure out what happened. How do you think the diameter of the spatter changes as blood is dropped from different heights? Find out by trying your hand at collecting evidence in this science project and remember that solving mysteries is serious work!

Photo in black and white of a forensic scientist examining blood spatter in a room
Figure 1. This is a forensic scientist examining spatter. (Courtesy of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences Brochure and www.aafs.org, 2008.)

Terms and Concepts

Questions

Bibliography

The following sources will help you learn more about forensic science:

Materials and Equipment

Disclaimer: Science Buddies participates in affiliate programs with Home Science Tools, Amazon.com, Carolina Biological, and Jameco Electronics. Proceeds from the affiliate programs help support Science Buddies, a 501(c)(3) public charity, and keep our resources free for everyone. Our top priority is student learning. If you have any comments (positive or negative) related to purchases you've made for science projects from recommendations on our site, please let us know. Write to us at scibuddy@sciencebuddies.org.

Experimental Procedure

Making the Simulated Blood

  1. Using the digital scale, weigh 17 grams (g) (or 2 Tablespoons [Tbsp.]) of cornstarch and place it into the bowl.
  2. Thoroughly mix 30 milliliters (mL) (or 2 Tbsp.) of water into the cornstarch with a fork or spoon. The mixture must be smooth, as shown in Figure 2, below.
Cornstarch and water are mixed in a bowl with a fork
Figure 2. Mix the water into the cornstarch until the mixture is smooth.
  1. Add 60 mL (or 4 Tbsp.) of corn syrup to the bowl and mix thoroughly. The mixture should be smooth, as shown in Figure 3, below.
Cornstarch, water and corn syrup are mixed in a bowl with a fork
Figure 3. Mix the corn syrup into the mixture until it is smooth.
  1. Mix in 5 mL (or 1 teaspoon) of red food coloring. Stir until the mixture is a consistent color, as shown in Figure 4, below.
Cornstarch, water, corn syrup and red food coloring are mixed in a bowl with a fork
Figure 4. A bowl of simulated blood (cornstarch, corn syrup, water, and red food coloring).
  1. You should now have a small bowl of simulated blood. If you will not be using it right away, cover the bowl (such as with plastic wrap) and set it aside for now.
  2. Note: Be careful not to spill the simulated blood on furniture or carpeting as it can stain! If it does spill, be sure to clean up the simulated blood immediately.

Blood Spattering

  1. Carefully cut up the cardboard into 7 similarly-sized pieces. Each piece will be used for testing a different height.
    1. Each piece should be about 30 centimeters (cm) by 30 cm. This will give you a good amount of space for dropping 10 drops of simulated blood onto each piece.
    2. Make sure the pieces can lay flat.
    3. Avoid using pieces with many folds or creases in them.
  2. Use a pencil or pen to label each piece of cardboard with the height you will be testing on it.
    1. The heights you will be testing are 30 cm, 60 cm, 90 cm, 120 cm (or 1.2 meters [m]), 150 cm, 180 cm, and 210 cm.
  3. Lay the cardboard piece you labeled for testing a height of 30 cm flat on the ground where you will do your experiment.
    1. Because the simulated blood can stain, you should only do this experiment on a surface that can be easily cleaned in case of spills, such as linoleum or concrete.
    2. You may also want to cover the surface (below the cardboard piece) with butcher paper or lots of newspaper to prevent stains.
  4. Fill the medicine dropper with some simulated blood and hold the dropper completely vertically above the cardboard piece, as shown in Figure 5, below. Have a helper use the measuring tape to make sure the end of the dropper is 30 cm above the cardboard piece.
A medicine dropper is used to drop a red liquid onto cardboard from specific heights
Figure 5. Hold the medicine dropper 30 cm above the cardboard piece, holding the dropper in a vertical position.
  1. Drop a single drop of simulated blood onto the cardboard piece.
  2. Repeat steps 4–5 at least nine more times so that you have dropped a total of 10 drops onto the cardboard piece. Then let the cardboard piece dry, being careful not to disturb the drops while they dry.
    1. If any of the drops landed on another drop, or landed in a crease or fold on the cardboard, do not count these drops for your total of 10.
  3. Repeat steps 3–6 with all of your other cardboard pieces, testing one at a time (as you did with the first piece), being sure to test each from the correct height.
    1. You will need to have you and your helper stand on chairs, or stepping stools, to reach the highest heights. Be careful when doing this.
  4. When all of the drops on the cardboard pieces have dried, measure the diameter of each drop, or spatter, (in millimeters [mm]) and record the measurements in a data table like Table 1, below, in your lab notebook. Be sure to do your measurements very carefully as there may be only very small, but measurable, differences between the drops.
    1. Tip: The drops may look glossy and wet even after they have dried. You may want to make an extra drop on one of the cardboard pieces that you can test (by touching it) to see when the drops have completely dried.
Drop Height
(cm)
DropDrop Diameter
(mm)
Average Drop Diameter
(mm)
30 1  
2 
3 
... 
10 
60 1  
2 
3 
... 
10 
90 1  
2 
3 
... 
10 
etc. etc.  
Table 1. In your lab notebook, make a data table like this one and fill it in with your measurements. Measure the diameter of all 10 drops (in mm) on each of the 7 cardboard pieces.
  1. Calculate the average diameter of the drops for each height. Add your answers to your data table.
    1. For example, if the 10 drops you measured at a height of 90 cm had diameters of 12.5 mm, 12.0 mm, 12.5 mm, 13 mm, 12.5 mm, 13 mm, 12.5 mm, 12.0 mm, 13.5 mm, and 12.0 mm, the average drop diameter from a height of 90 cm would be 12.6 mm (since the sum of all 10 drops is 125.5, and this number divided by 10 is 12.6).
  2. Make a graph of your results. On the x-axis, put the drop height (in cm), and on the y-axis, put the average drop diameter (in mm).
  3. Look at your graph and try to draw some conclusions based on your results.
    1. How did the diameter of the spatter change as the simulated blood was dropped from different heights?
    2. How do you think your results could help a forensic scientist figure out what happened at a crime scene?
icon scientific method

Ask an Expert

Do you have specific questions about your science project? Our team of volunteer scientists can help. Our Experts won't do the work for you, but they will make suggestions, offer guidance, and help you troubleshoot.

Global Connections

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs) are a blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all.

This project explores topics key to Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions: Promote just, peaceful and inclusive societies.

Variations

  • Instead of dropping the simulated blood straight down, try dropping it at angles to the ground, or dropping it while moving the dropper in a certain direction. How does this change the size and shape of the impact and where the spatter ends up? Be sure to do this in a location that can be accidentally stained with simulated blood.
  • Repeat the science project over other surfaces, such as newspaper, printer paper, parchment paper, paper towels, butcher paper, or wood. How do your results change when using different surfaces?
  • For a more challenging science project on blood spatter, check out the project idea Science Fair CSI: Can You Predict the Spatter?

Careers

If you like this project, you might enjoy exploring these related careers:

Career Profile
Guilty or not guilty? The fate of the accused in court lies with the evidence gathered at the crime scene. The job of the forensic science technician is to gather evidence and use scientific principles and techniques to make sense of it. It can be a grueling and graphic job, but very rewarding. If you like the idea of using science to help deliver justice, then you should investigate this career. Read more
Career Profile
Physicists have a big goal in mind—to understand the nature of the entire universe and everything in it! To reach that goal, they observe and measure natural events seen on Earth and in the universe, and then develop theories, using mathematics, to explain why those phenomena occur. Physicists take on the challenge of explaining events that happen on the grandest scale imaginable to those that happen at the level of the smallest atomic particles. Their theories are then applied to… Read more

News Feed on This Topic

 
, ,

Cite This Page

General citation information is provided here. Be sure to check the formatting, including capitalization, for the method you are using and update your citation, as needed.

MLA Style

Science Buddies Staff. "Forensics: How Does It Matter? Measure the Spatter!" Science Buddies, 11 May 2023, https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project-ideas/Phys_p066/physics/forensics-measure-blood-spatter. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

APA Style

Science Buddies Staff. (2023, May 11). Forensics: How Does It Matter? Measure the Spatter! Retrieved from https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project-ideas/Phys_p066/physics/forensics-measure-blood-spatter


Last edit date: 2023-05-11
Top
We use cookies and those of third party providers to deliver the best possible web experience and to compile statistics.
By continuing and using the site, including the landing page, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
OK, got it
Free science fair projects.