Michelle Harvey

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Michelle Louise Harvey (born in Brisbane) is an Australian forensic scientist specialising in forensic entomology (use of insects in the investigation of crimes). [1] [2] Her research uses insect DNA to identify maggots, which helps in estimating the time since death. [2] [3] [4] Harvey has published widely on her research and been a guest speaker at many conferences. She is active in the promotion of science through public speaking engagements and the media.

Contents

Career

Harvey completed her PhD / Master of Forensic Science degree in 2006 at the Centre for Forensic Science at the University of Western Australia (UWA) and graduated in March 2007. [5] From 2006 to 2012 she was a senior lecturer in forensic biology at the University of Portsmouth, [1] [2] researching molecular relationships between forensically important Calliphoridae. [5] She has since returned to Australia to continue her research at Deakin University, Geelong. [6]

Honours and awards

Related Research Articles

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Forensic entomology is the scientific study of the colonization of a dead body by arthropods. This includes the study of insect types commonly associated with cadavers, their respective life cycles, their ecological presences in a given environment, as well as the changes in insect assemblage with the progression of decomposition. Insect succession patterns are identified based on the time a given species of insect spends in a given developmental stage, and how many generations have been produced since the insects introduction to a given food source. Insect development alongside environmental data such as temperature and vapor density, can be used to estimate the time since death, due to the fact that flying insects are attracted to a body immediately after death. The identification of postmortem interval to aid in death investigations is the primary scope of this scientific field. However, forensic entomology is not limited to homicides, it has also been used in cases of neglect and abuse, in toxicology contexts to detect the presence of drugs, and in dry shelf food contamination incidents. Equally, insect assemblages present on a body, can be used to approximate a given location, as certain insects may be unique to certain areas. Therefore, forensic entomology can be divided into three subfields: urban, stored-product and medico-legal/medico-criminal entomology.

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References

  1. 1 2 "The wriggling world of 'Maggot Girl'". Portsmouth Today. 28 November 2006. Archived from the original on 21 April 2013. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Wojtas, Olga (17 November 2006). "Maggot Girl passes on forensic bug". Times Higher Education. TSL Education Ltd. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  3. "The 'Maggot Girl'". Radio 4 Woman's Hour. BBC. 28 November 2006. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  4. "Maggots to give crime scene clues". The Age. 21 August 2003. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 "Dr. Michelle Harvey - Biological Sciences". University of Portsmouth. Archived from the original on 13 March 2012. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  6. "School Staff, Deakin University".