Investigative work in particular has made great progress during this century. Laboratory research first played an important role in the 1920s, when evidence from the scenes of violent crimes began to be systematically collected and examined for the purpose of identifying perpetrators. This work was largely limited to the collection and examination of fingerprints. Modern crime laboratories are equipped with such highly sophisticated scientific instruments as photomicrographs, which can determine the kind of device a bullet was fired in, and computerized photograph enhancers, which, by increasing the picture resolution of an image, can reveal otherwise invisible details in photographs and video stills. Today, however, it has many more aspects. Crime scene evidence that was unusable a few decades ago, such as paint from the surface of a car, shreds of clothing and human hair or skin, can also be analyzed in modern police laboratories, providing additional clues and evidence.

Investigative work in particular has made great progress during this century. Today, however, it has many more aspects. Laboratory research first played an important role in the 1920s, when evidence from the scenes of violent crimes began to be systematically collected and examined for the purpose of identifying perpetrators. This work was largely limited to the collection and examination of fingerprints. Modern crime laboratories are equipped with such highly sophisticated scientific instruments as photomicrographs, which can determine the kind of device a bullet was fired in, and computerized photograph enhancers, which, by increasing the picture resolution of an image, can reveal otherwise invisible details in photographs and video stills. Crime scene evidence that was unusable a few decades ago, such as paint from the surface of a car, shreds of clothing and human hair or skin, can also be analyzed in modern police laboratories, providing additional clues and evidence.

Investigative work in particular has made great progress during this century. Laboratory research first played an important role in the 1920s, when evidence from the scenes of violent crimes began to be systematically collected and examined for the purpose of identifying perpetrators. Today, however, it has many more aspects. This work was largely limited to the collection and examination of fingerprints. Modern crime laboratories are equipped with such highly sophisticated scientific instruments as photomicrographs, which can determine the kind of device a bullet was fired in, and computerized photograph enhancers, which, by increasing the picture resolution of an image, can reveal otherwise invisible details in photographs and video stills. Crime scene evidence that was unusable a few decades ago, such as paint from the surface of a car, shreds of clothing and human hair or skin, can also be analyzed in modern police laboratories, providing additional clues and evidence.