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Teen Forensic Science Researcher Unravels Secrets of Glitter Makeup
Jay Siegel, Director of Forensic and Investigative Sciences Program, with student Kristen Jaumann
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"I like solving puzzles. I like piecing things together and making things fit," Jaumann said.
In a challenging job that made her the envy of classmates and siblings, Jaumann, 17, spent the summer in an IUPUI forensic science lab where she helped unraveled mysteries of the makeup of cosmetic glitter.
During her paid summer job at IUPUI, she learned to analyze glitter found in various tubes of lip gloss using two different microspectrophotometers, instruments that use infrared light or ultraviolet light to identify microscopic samples.
"Basically what I am doing is trying to figure out if there are any differences in each brand of glitter, or each type of glitter," said Jaumann, whose readings identified some glitter as glass.
Cosmetic glitter is showing up at crime scenes involving violence such as murder and rape cases," said Kristen's summer boss, IUPUI Professor Jay Siegel. "No one has done any significant analytical work on glitter to see if glitter found on a suspect can be traced back to the victim. Kristen's work will be very valuable to the forensic science community."
Siegel is director of the new forensic and investigative sciences program at IUPUI which offers Indiana's first and only degree program in that field. Siegel is a nationally recognized expert on crime scene investigation and evidence collection.
The professor plans to present the results of Jaumann's work at the February 2006 meeting of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences. He also will most likely publish the results in a journal of forensic science, Siegel said.
Siegel met Jaumann after the professor did a presentation on forensic science during a visit to the teen-ager's school, a private college preparatory school in Carmel.
"She marched up to me after the talk and begged me to let her work with me this summer," said the professor, who asked the student for a letter of recommendation from her science teacher.
"The letter was outstanding and I thought I would take a chance," Siegel said, adding it was a decision he hasn't regretted. "She has been outstanding."
Kristen quickly learned to use the lab equipment and was able to work on her own with a minimum of supervision, Siegel said.
"I love science. I love chemistry. We have a lot of science classes at ours school and I have taken almost all them," Jaumann said.
"I really wanted to get my feet wet, to see if I would really like this. I thought it was a great opportunity," she said of her summer job. "A lot of my friends have been really jealous. I know my brothers are jealous... All my friends wish they could do something like this - in any of the fields in which they are interested - just to see if they like it."
Her love for science has earned her a nickname at her high school.
"They call me 'Science Barbie,'" she said. "All my friends kind of laugh at me. I really love fashion but then I am obsessed with science. I would be wearing a bright pink outfit and I would be working under a microscope and they would just make fun of me because it looks so out of place."
"I don't really mind it," Jaumann said, adding "it is kind of funny, ironic that someone who loves science would love fashions."
Jaumann wasn't the only high school student to spend time involved in forensic science studies at IUPUI this summer. Two dozen high school students enrolled in a one-week Computing Forensics course that taught computer science principles and techniques including fingerprint analysis, encryption, database searches, pattern matching and database optimization.
Jaumann's interest in forensics science predates the current popularity of the "CSI" TV series and its spin-offs.
"I was a huge fan of "Murder She Wrote," Kristen said. "I would even watch Discovery Channel or "Unsolved Mysteries" or stuff like that. I have always wanted to do autopsies and stuff. It sounds kind of morbid, but I've always wanted to be right there, figuring stuff out."