Dab hands: Sydney duo revolutionise fingerprint technology

It takes half a day for forensic scientists to recover fingerprints at a crime scene — but a new innovation by Australian researchers could cut it down to just seconds using a cheap, handheld device.

Forensic science honours students — Adam Brown and Daniel Sommerville — at Sydney’s University of Technology found they could identify fingerprints on porous materials such as paper just by heating it — doing away with the need for chemicals.

The technology has been developed into a cheap, portable device by UK forensic equipment company Foster + Freeman and is being trialled by law enforcement organisations and militaries across the world — via redwolf.newsvine.com