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Lundevall, J. (Institute of Forensic Medicine, Oslo, Norway) THE IDENTIFICATION COMMISSION IN NORWAY

A survey is given of the role of the forensic physician in the Commis- sion’s functions.

The desirability of international collaboration will be discussed.

Liiwenhielm, P. (Department of Forensic Medicine, University of Lund, Lund, Sweden) EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATION OF INTRACRANIAL INJURIES DUE TO

ANGLJLARACCELERATIONOFTHEHEAD

Post-mortem investigation of accident victims shows high frequency of injuries around the upper margin of the brain. These lesions are caused by angular acceleration of the head. Previous investigations have shown that it is possible to produce disruption of bridging veins and subarachnoidal heamor- rhages in cadavers. Tolerance thresholds for bridging vein disruption due to angular acceleration of the head has been evaluated in 2 dimensions from high-speed films. In the present investigation the angular acceleration has been recorded directly in 3 dimensions when the head has been subjected to impact from behind.

Maehly, A. C. (National Laboratory of Forensic Science, Linkaping, Sweden) CHEMICAL SERVICES SYSTEMS, NOW AND IN THE FUTURE

The use and abuse of drugs continues to increase in the industrialized countries, and the toxicity hazards from our environment attract serious attention. Both problems concern the authorities responsible for the public health and for legal control. The former gap between medical and legal toxicology is rapidly closing.

The expansion of the number and amounts of potentially toxic products has to be met by better training of the analysts and a development of new methods. This leads to increased specialization. In many countries the whole system of analytical services in this field is at present reviewed.

Historically, either the “Continental” or the “Anglo-saxon” systems have been used. A combination of these, complemented by a strong educational effort and increased co-operation between the individual countries seems to meet the future requirements for Scandinavia.

Max&, G. (National Police Board, Sweden) PHOTOGRAPHY IN POLICE WORK

Since the nationalization of the Swedish Police in 1965 there has been a gradual expansion, among other things in the field of forensic techniques. Here, as in many other sections of police activities, there has been a conspicuous improvement in terms of equipment, which has to some extent compensated for the shortage of manpower. As a natural consequence of this expansion, a great deal of interest has been given to photography, where it has been possible to invest in high quality photographic equipment.

Before the nationalization and in the years immediately after, about 90 different types of cameras were used in the several police districts. This was

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due to the fact that the police districts in their capacity as municipal organi- zations were “self-supporting” and that each community had to purchase the equipment they thought fit, or, to be more accurate, the equipment the finances of the community would permit them to acquire.

Through the nationalization and the ensuing organizational development, uniformity of operations and co-ordination of different functions were set down as guiding principles. It was therefore important - not least where photography was concerned - to lay down equipment standards and to issue regulations and instructions for the management of the activities as such.

The training system was also given a “brush-up”, in order to adjust it to new routines. Another example of these developments is the fact that at present only 10 different types of cameras are used in the police districts.

In order to make the presentation of photography in police work reasonably intelligible I shall have to mention a few words about the division of the Swedish police force into police districts.

Today the Swedish police organization comprises 118 police districts. The districts vary both in area and population density. 30 of the largest districts have technical squads which means that a group of police officers devote all their time to detective branch techniques for which they have received special training. To achieve a strategical location of the technical divisions (squads) they have been set up in the provincial capitals. Since there are only 24 provincial capitals, some counties have been allotted more than one technical squad. This is the case in the counties of Stockholm, &tergiitland, Malmijhus and Gothenburg and Bohus.

Although the photographic equipment is uniform the types of cameras vary depending on whether the police district in question has a technical squad or not. All police districts, however, dispose of 24 X 36 miniature cameras and 6 X 6 cameras of a number of makes.

McDowell, E. M. (Department of Pathology, University of Maryland, Baltimore, U.S.A.) CURRENT CONCEPTS AND TECHNIQUES FOR THE STUDY OF CELLULAR PATHOLOGY

Major advances have been made in the study of cellular pathology, correlating structure and function at the subcellular level. This has been possible through development of new concepts and methods in the fields of microscopy, immunology, biochemistry and physiology. The electron micro- scope is a fundamental tool in these investigations because it is at this level of resolution that such correlations are possible. The homogenizer, coupled with the centrifuge and biochemical analytical methods have yielded techniques for the isolation and study of virtually every cellular organelle and through electron microscopy and biochemistry it has been possible to sort out many of the important organelle functions. It is now possible to fix human tissues from routine surgical and autopsy specimens in simply prepar- ed fixatives which enable routine light microscopy and high-quality ultra- structural analyses to be made on the same tissues. Electron microscopy