Corpse / Jessica Snyder Sachs

Corpse: nature, forensics, and the struggle to pinpoint time of death by Jessica Snyder Sachs. 270 p.

A very readable overview of the different markers that experts have used to try to pinpoint time of death. Besides the basic body markers--lividity, rigor, temperature--are other possible information sources, such as potassium levels in the eyeball. In addition, environmental factors such as bugs and plants--even the dirt around a body found outside--can provide additional information streams. The author does a great job of explaining to the layman the limits of each kind of information and what factors can distort that particular marker. She also details the history of various kinds of scientific study--there's a lot of discussion of entomology and how scientists set up studies to provide more detailed information that they could apply to the time-of-death question. An excellent book, although you might not want to read it while you're eating.

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