Unit1 textquestions
- 1. 1. What are club drugs? What are some of the factors that support the use of club drugs? Club drugs are synthetic drugs that are typically used in bars, night clubs, raves, and other gatherings. Some of these drugs have become popular in these settings because they are thought to enhance or improve the experience, they also have no side effects and dangers. The settings of raves and nightclubs also support the use of these drugs. Their small and often tablet form make them easy to conceal and with all the people moving and dancing, people who take them are often not as noticeable as they may be in other settings. 2. What are screening tests? Why are they used? Screening tests are those that are nonspecific and help a forensic scientist identify several particular drugs that the substance is likely to be. These types of tests are useful when they provide positive and negative results since the forensic scientists can rule out certain types of drugs from the possibilities. 3. What are color tests? Why are these tests used? Color tests involve introducing a chemical reagent to the drug and observing whether or not the material changes color. They are sometimes used in the field by crime scene investigators to determine whether or not a drug is present at a scene or not. 4. What are microcrystalline tests? What information do they provide? Microcrystalline tests involve exposing the substance to a reagent and then examining the color and morphology (including shape) of the crystals that form. It is much more specific than color tests in identifying a particular drug as the size, color, and shape of the crystals will differ for each specific drug. 5. What is spectrophotometry? How can this be useful in identifying drugs? Different drugs and materials absorb UV and ultraviolet light differently. This provides another way for forensic scientists to examine materials. Like color tests, UV spectrophotometry cannot positively identify a particular drug, as there may be other materials with the drug that could influence the results. However, the test is a very useful one when determining if a drug is present. A spectrophotometry device can emit both UV and infrared light as it measures how a sample either reflects or absorbs the light. Though ultraviolet spectrophotometry cannot positively identify a drug, infrared spectrophotometry can, since the pattern of light is unique to each type of compound. 6. Why are forensic scientists an important part of drug cases? Forensic scientists can use different types of tests to identify a substance in a suspected meth lab, when someone is caught with a possible drug they can help prove that they did in fact have the drug in possession, when someone is thought to be under the influence of drugs a forensic scientist can help prove that they were on drugs. Especially if they had been on drugs while committing a crime. 7. If you were a forensic scientist and you were called to a crime scene to see if drugs were present, what would you do to determine this?
- 2. I would do one of the color tests, a spectrophotometry test or a microcrystalline test to see if there were drugs present at a crime scene. 8. Why is it important for forensic scientists to have as much information as possible about the place where a possible drug substance was found? It is important to know as much as possible about the area where a possible substance was found because some materials will affect the results of a drug test. 9. What are some of the difficulties in identifying particular drugs? Why is it important for forensic scientists to be able to identify particular drugs? Many different drugs such as street drugs are mixed with a lot of simple household items, such as sugar, starch or quinine. The forensic scientist must be able to tell the difference between the substances. Many court cases that involve drugs rely exclusively on the forensic scientists findings. They must be able to prove that the substance found was actually a drug and not say a package of sugar or another legal substance.